Well,
I think it's safe to say that we rarely take time to appreciate all our body does to help us move,
Create,
Carry,
Speak,
And sense the world around us.
When things are going well,
We take our body for granted.
And yet we always notice something wrong,
Like an illness or an injury.
What's even more adhesive are the ideas we hold about how our body should look or be.
But as I like to remember,
As long as you're breathing,
There's more right with you than there is wrong.
So for today's practice,
I invite you to find a quiet place to sit upright or to lie down.
If you choose to lie down,
Allow your legs to be long with your feet falling away from each other.
Let your arms be alongside your body,
Palms facing up.
And if it's comfortable for you,
Allow your eyes to gently close.
Otherwise,
Just let your gaze remain unfocused.
And take some time to feel the sensations of the body.
Notice the points of contact where the body meets the mat or the chair or the floor.
And feel the whole length of the body.
Remember that the intention of this body scan is to directly feel the sensations as you move your attention through the body.
There's no right or wrong way to feel.
There's no need to relax or feel any different.
See whether you can forego judgment about what you should feel.
And simply notice what is there.
And as thoughts arise during the body scan,
See whether you can take note of thinking and gently returning to the body.
When you're ready,
Move your attention down your legs into the feet.
Begin by exploring sensations in the toes,
The soles of the feet,
The top of the feet.
And shift your attention to your ankles and your lower legs.
Feel sensations arising from the skin and deep inside the lower legs.
If there are no sensations,
That's okay too.
Just rest your attention in the lower legs.
And shift your attention up to the knees and the upper legs.
Notice any temperature,
Any pressure.
And gently let go of thinking about the sensations and directly feel them.
Bring your attention to the region of the pelvis.
Notice any sensations that arise as you breathe.
If any thoughts or emotions arise,
Take a moment to acknowledge them and kindly return to the body.
Know that you can always return to your breath or briefly open up your eyes to help ground and settle yourself.
And as you exhale,
Let go of the pelvis.
And as you inhale,
Shift your attention to feel the whole length of the back.
Feel the lower back and the upper back.
Perhaps detect sensations of touch where the body meets the chair or the mat.
And shift your attention to the belly.
Feel the sensations in the belly,
Including the movement of the breath.
And then bring your attention up to the region of the chest.
Feel the ribs and the muscles as you breathe.
Perhaps feel the heartbeat.
And shift your attention down both arms into the hands.
You might feel any numbness or moisture in the hands.
And as you exhale,
Let go of the hands.
And as you inhale,
Shift your attention into both arms,
Feeling the length of the arms,
Feeling the skin and the muscles.
And then shift your attention into the shoulders.
Feel any tension or holding and carefully attend to this region as you breathe.
Now let go of the shoulders.
Shift your attention up to feel the neck and the throat.
Perhaps feel the breath in the throat or the air on the skin.
Next,
Shift your attention up to the face.
Feel the face in this moment.
Feeling any tension,
Any tingling.
Simply breathe with the sensations in the whole face.
And finally,
Shift your attention to feel the very top of the head.
And when you are ready,
Allow your attention to spread slowly down from your head to include the whole body,
All the way down to your feet.
Breathe for a few more moments here,
Appreciating your body just as it is.
