Hello and welcome,
Beautiful radiant being.
Thank you for choosing this practice.
Before we begin,
I want you to bring your kind awareness to how you feel,
How your body feels,
Your belly,
Your chest,
Your head.
Anxiety you accuse when past trauma pulls us back from the present,
Or when worry about the future keeps us looking ahead.
By staying present,
We remain in the only place where peace and calm exist,
Which is right here and now.
Next time you notice your mind in the past or future,
Return to the present with the following mindfulness exercise.
Begin by finding a comfortable position,
Either seated or lying down,
With eyes open or closed.
Choose a posture that feels safe and comfortable to you.
Turn your attention inward towards your breath.
Breathe in and out through the nose and remain present with a felt experience of the breath as you watch breath move in and out through your nostrils.
Stay with this one breath in and with this one breath out.
As you look upon the breath with curiosity,
Let the detail of what you notice keep you right here and right now.
As you look upon the breath with open acceptance,
Let a sense of awe help hold you in this one moment.
And now expand awareness from the breath to the body as a whole,
Still aware of the breath.
Remain present with the sensation of breath throughout the body.
Feel the rise and fall of your shoulders or the expansion and contraction of your belly or an overall sense of floating upwards and downwards on each cycle of your breath.
Hold your attention to wherever it is in the body that you notice the breath the most.
Let curiosity and an open spacious attention keep you rooted in the breath and body awareness.
Allow for a sense of awe which helps keep us connected to that which we notice and then begin at the top of your head as yourself.
What else is present here in the body other than the breath?
Scan through your head,
Forehead,
Jaw and neck.
Still present with awe,
With curiosity and open-mindedness.
Notice the sensation or if you have any particular thoughts,
Feelings,
Emotions present here in the head and neck.
And if you find something,
Allow it to be.
The exercise here is to simply notice,
To remain present with what is.
No need to judge,
Criticize or change.
Just acknowledge.
Acknowledge what's present right here and right now.
Connect the sensation in your shoulders,
Upper arms,
Lower arms,
Wrists and hands.
The right side arm,
The left side arm.
Can you be aware of both together?
Connect to the sensation in your chest now.
Always aware of your breath,
But present right now with the torso.
Connect to the sensation in your pelvis,
Your upper thighs,
Front and back.
And then bring your awareness down to your lower legs,
Your feet and toes.
Remain curious and open,
Free from self-judgment.
And continue to let your heart open as you invite a sense of awe and wonder.
These are all qualities which help keep us present right here
