Welcome.
Settle into your seat and find a comfortable posture.
If you are sitting in a chair.
Place your feet flat on the floor and allow your hands to rest comfortably in your lap or on your knees.
You may close your eyes or keep them slightly open with a soft,
Unfocused gaze.
Take a few deep cleansing breaths.
And allow yourself to arrive fully in this present moment.
Now,
Let the breath flow naturally.
There is nothing you need to do except observe it.
Allow the breath to move as it wishes.
Bring your awareness to your nostrils.
And notice the sensation of the breath.
Gently moving in and out.
You may feel it most clearly at the edge of the nostrils.
On the upper lip.
Or deeper inside the nasal passages.
Wherever the sensation feels most vivid,
Allow your awareness to rest there.
Focus on each sensation as the air flows in and as it flows out.
Notice the subtle differences from one breath to the next without attaching to any particular experience.
Sensations arise and sensations pass away,
Just like each breath.
Continue breathing naturally.
Without trying to control or change anything.
Simply observe each breath as it comes in and out.
And as it goes out.
Now,
Bring your awareness down to the upper lungs,
The chest or the sternum.
Feel the breath moving into this area of the body.
Notice the gentle expansion of the chest.
And perhaps even the upper back.
With each inhalation.
And the soft release with each exhalation.
You may find that the breath is not as easy to perceive here as it was at the nostrils.
If that is the case.
.
.
Simply notice it.
There is no need to judge or criticize the experience.
Just acknowledge the difference and allow it to be exactly as it is.
Now let go of the upper chest and upper back.
And move your awareness down to the abdomen.
The Dantian or Hara.
Your lower energy center.
Feel the gentle movement of the belly with each breath.
As you inhale,
Notice the diaphragm descending and the abdomen expanding.
As you exhale,
Feel the diaphragm rise and the abdomen softly contract.
You may also sense subtle movement in the lower back as the body makes room for each breath.
Allow the breath to settle deeply and naturally into the abdomen without consciously trying to lengthen or control it.
Simply observe with the spirit of gentle curiosity.
Inhale and feel the belly expand.
Exhale and feel the belly contract.
If the mind wanders.
Gently guided back.
To the sensations of breathing in the belly.
Now,
Widen your awareness to include the entire pathway of the breath.
Sense the breath at the nostrils.
The expansion of the upper lungs and chest.
And the movement all the way down into the abdomen.
With each exhalation,
Feel the diaphragm contract as the breath rises through the body.
And leaves through the nostrils once again.
If you would like to add a visualization,
Imagine pure white light entering through the nostrils with each inhalation.
See it traveling down through the airways,
Filling the lungs.
And continuing into the lower abdomen.
Then,
With each exhalation,
Watch the white light rise from the bottom of the belly.
Moving through the chest and out through the nostrils.
You Observe the next few breaths flowing in and out.
Know that you can always return to this awareness of the breath during moments of stress,
Anxiety,
Or turbulence.
Allow it to be a refuge amid the changing conditions of life.
And now gently release your focus on the breath.
Let go of any visualization.
Allow yourself to simply breathe,
Naturally and effortlessly.
Thank you for your time and your practice today.
May it serve you well.
