Thank you for being here.
In the next 15 minutes,
I invite you to walk alongside death as a quiet and trusted friend.
Through mindful breathing and reflection,
You will explore impermanence not as something to fear,
But as a doorway to gratitude and presence.
Take a moment to find a comfortable position,
Lying down,
Seated,
Or lying down.
Let your body be supported by the surface beneath you and any props you may like to use for comfort.
Close your eyes if you like,
Or open with a soft gaze,
And bring your attention to the simple act of breathing.
A slow inhale and a gentle exhale.
Again,
Breathing in and breathing out.
Notice the weight of your body.
Feel gravity pulling you down into the earth,
Steady,
Constant,
Inevitable.
With each breath,
Allow all your muscles to soften.
Your jaw loosens.
Your shoulders sink lower.
Your hands rest without tension.
Your feet relax into stillness.
Now bring your awareness to your feet.
Feel the skin,
The temperature,
The gentle tingling of life in them.
Then move up your legs,
Sensing the heaviness and warmth.
Next,
Your hips and pelvis,
Resting in stillness.
The slow rhythm of your belly,
Rising and falling with each breath.
Your chest,
Expanding and settling with each breath.
Your arms,
Resting like branches on the earth.
Your face,
Calm and open.
With this scan of your body,
You are reminded this is your home for now.
This body is the vessel through which you experience life and one day you will release it.
And that is part of the natural rhythm of existence.
Now imagine that you are standing barefoot in a wide,
Quiet meadow.
It is dusk.
The sky above you is painted in deep oranges and soft purples,
The last light of the day gently fading.
You can smell the faint sweetness of grass,
The earthy scent of soil.
A cool breeze brushes your skin.
You begin to walk forward,
Each step pressing into the soft earth.
You feel the life beneath your feet,
Roots,
Insects,
The hum of existence.
And you notice every blade of grass,
Every flower,
Every leaf will one day return to the earth.
They do not resist.
They simply live fully and then let go.
In the distance,
You hear the sound of flowing water.
You follow it until you come to a slow,
Wide river.
The water glimmers in the fading light.
As you step closer,
You see that the river carries everything,
Fallen leaves,
Petals,
Small twigs,
And the occasional feather drifting gently along.
This river is a passage of time.
Everything that has lived will enter it.
You imagine placing your hand in the water.
It is cool,
And it flows past you effortlessly,
Carrying away what is no longer here.
Now imagine your own life as one of those leaves.
You rest on the surface of the water,
Drifting,
Not struggling,
Not clinging,
Simply moving with the current.
The water supports you,
Carries you,
Embraces you.
As you drift in your mind's eye,
Return to the sensation of your breath in your real body.
Feel your chest rise and fall.
Notice each inhale is a birth,
Each exhale is a death.
The breath you take now has never been taken before.
The breath you release will never return.
Feel your heartbeat,
Steady,
Faithful,
Finite.
It will beat millions of times in your life,
And one day it will stop.
And yet,
Here you are,
Alive in this moment.
In your mind's eye,
You step out of the river and find yourself in a quiet grove of trees.
In the center is a small clearing with soft earth.
You kneel and touch the soil.
It is rich and warm,
Full of life.
This is the same earth that holds those who came before you,
Every ancestor,
Every being that ever lived.
You realize the earth is not a place of endings,
But of transformation.
One day,
Your body will return here,
And from it,
New life will grow.
Perhaps a tree will rise from where you rest,
Birds will perch on its branches,
Children will play in its shade,
And the cycle will continue.
Now begin to imagine that the meadow,
The river,
The grove are slowly fading,
And you are returning to the present.
Bring your awareness back to your body,
Breathing deeply.
Feel gratitude for your life,
For the chance to feel the wind,
To taste food,
To love and be loved.
Feel gratitude for death,
For the way it shapes life into something precious.
You may wish to silently repeat,
I am alive,
I will die,
And that is natural.
I choose to live fully while I can.
Take three slow breaths.
On each inhale,
Welcome life.
On each exhale,
Release into trust.
When you are ready,
Gently open your eyes.
Carry this awareness into the rest of your day,
Knowing that life and death are not opposites.
They are partners in the dance of existence.
Many blessings.
