Welcome.
In the Ayurvedic tradition,
Everything in nature,
Including you,
Is made of five elements.
Earth,
Water,
Fire,
Air and space.
These elements combine to form three energies within us,
Known as doshas.
Fata is movement,
It consists of air and space.
Kapha is stability,
Earth and water.
Pitta is the energy of transformation,
It's fire with a touch of water.
When pitta is balanced,
We feel focused,
Clear and we are able to digest life with ease.
Not only our food,
But also thoughts,
Emotions and experiences.
But when fire builds up,
Especially in the heat of life,
We may feel overwhelmed,
Restless,
Feeling sensitive or emotionally charged.
Digestion can become strained,
Not just in the belly,
But in the heart and mind too.
This meditation invites in the opposite qualities,
The cool,
Soft and flowing,
To suit the fairy mind.
Let's begin.
Start by finding a comfortable position,
Either seated or laying down.
And let your eyes close gently.
Take a slow breath in.
And as you exhale,
Allow your body to soften.
Now picture a stream.
A gentle,
Steady current flowing through a quiet forest.
You are sitting beside it.
Or maybe your feet are in the cool water.
The stream is calm,
Flowing gently and effortlessly.
Let your breath begin to match that rhythm.
Inhale and draw in the calm of the stream.
And exhale and release with its steady flow.
Let each breath carry you,
Like water,
Smooth,
Cool,
Unforced.
Perhaps the stream widens into a river,
Still gentle but strong in its direction.
Or maybe you see the ocean,
Vast,
Open,
Deeply calm beneath the surface.
Feel into the image that your body responds to most.
And let that water quality begin to move through you.
Cooling,
Softening and easing heat and effort.
There is nothing to prove here,
Nothing to perform.
Just you and a steady,
Soothing rhythm of water.
Now gently bring your attention to your head.
Imagine moonlight resting on a calm lake.
Soft,
Cool and steady.
Let that same stillness spread across your forehead.
And then soften the space between your eyebrows.
Let the tension melt and let the mind loosen its grip.
Feel the coolness move down your eyes.
As if you have been staring into the sun too long and now there is shade,
Relief.
Let your eyes rest.
Now soften your jaw,
Unclenching,
Ungripping.
As if water were dissolving the effort it takes to hold everything together.
Let the stream flow down your neck and shoulders,
Washing away the weight of doing,
Striving.
Bring awareness to your chest,
The heart center.
And feel the breath moving gently in and out.
Let it feel like a tide,
Rising and falling.
If there is any heat here,
Emotional or physical,
Let the water come and soothe it.
Let it cool the fire of frustration.
Let it calm the urge to prove.
Moving down to your belly.
Soften your belly.
And feel the breath moving like a stream here,
Flowing in and flowing out.
Let the cool flowing energy of the stream ripple through your hips,
Your thighs,
All the way down to the soles of your feet.
Your whole body cooled,
Softened and quiet.
Now feel into the deeper layers.
Where are you still trying to hold it together?
Where are you pushing or striving?
You don't need to push the river,
Let it carry you.
Let the water teach you how to release.
How to receive.
And how to trust that the flow knows the way.
Insight doesn't come from force.
It rises from the stillness.
From this space.
Let yourself just be.
Let the mind soften.
Like a stream returning to stillness after the rain.
Trust that stillness reveals what is true.
Let your breath become your rhythm.
A steady current you can return to whenever the mind begins to race again.
Inhale soft and cool.
Exhale smooth and slow.
Just follow the calm rhythm of the stream.
And gently repeat within.
I soften.
I surrender.
I flow.
My breath is my anchor.
My rhythm,
My return.
Water is my calm.
Softening what burns.
Smoothing what resists.
Dissolving pressure into peace.
Inhale.
And exhale.
Take one more gentle breath in.
And as you exhale.
You can wiggle toes and fingers.
Waking up your body.
Know that the stream is flowing within you.
When you are ready you can open your eyes.
And carry this water-like calm with you.
Welcome into the flow of your day.
Namaste.
