Welcome to this guided meditation for being in the present moment,
Releasing anything from the past that does not serve you,
And to cultivate forgiveness towards yourself and others.
Please find a quiet place where you won't be disturbed,
Turning off or silence any distractions,
And find a comfortable seated position,
Softly closing down your eyes if it's comfortable.
If you need to move at any time during this meditation,
Then please feel free to do so.
Just be sure to move mindfully.
We will take three cleansing breaths to relax the mind and the body.
So on your next inhale,
Take a long,
Slow,
Deep inhale.
Notice how your stomach expands,
Your chest and shoulders rise.
And an exhale as your chest and shoulders lower,
Your stomach contracts.
Taking another deep inhale into your stomach,
Chest and shoulders,
As your body becomes more expansive.
And a full exhale,
Chest and shoulders lower,
Stomach contracts.
And one more full inhale.
And a complete exhale,
Allowing your mind and body to rest and relax.
And return to your natural breath,
Just breathing in and out of your nose naturally.
We will scan the body now to release any tightness or any tension that we are holding in the body.
So taking your attention to the top of your head,
Allowing the top of your head to relax.
Softening your face,
Relaxing your jaw and your tongue.
Softening into your throat and neck,
Your shoulders become heavy.
Relaxing your arms from your upper arms,
All the way down to your hands and your fingers.
Relaxing your chest,
Your upper back,
All the way down to your lower back.
Softening into your stomach,
Allow it to become heavy and rest naturally.
Feel that relaxation down into your upper legs,
All the way down to your lower legs,
Your feet and your toes.
And return your attention back to your breath,
As you breathe in and out of your nose naturally.
If your attention drifts off into a story,
Or to an external sound throughout this practice,
That is okay.
Just be kind to yourself and return your attention back to the meditation.
Just focusing on the breath moving in and out of your nose now.
Become aware of what sensations you notice.
You may notice the cooler air on the inhalation,
And the warmer air on the exhalation.
You may notice twitching and tingling.
You don't need to go into a story about any of these,
Simply be a witness,
Without labelling or judging.
And just be in the present moment.
And whenever you can turn your attention towards your breath,
You will always be in the present moment.
Each present moment that you are in,
Defines your next present moment.
There only ever is a present moment.
Anything that happened in the past,
Only ever happened in the present moment.
And anything that will happen in the future,
Will only happen in the present moment.
So how you think,
How you act,
How you conduct yourself in this present moment,
Will define your next present moment.
So if you find yourself living in the past,
Running over the same stories,
The same problems,
The same pain,
Or you are anxious about the future,
Worrying,
Or fantasising what might be or what might not be,
This will just define your next present moment,
Causing more anxiety or more depression.
But if you can be with your breath,
If you can be with your body,
You will be in the present moment,
With the qualities of peace,
Love,
Compassion.
And these qualities will define your next present moment.
So cut your ties with the past,
You don't need to live your story.
You can be free.
That doesn't mean you have to forget everything in the past.
It just means you can let go of the attachments,
The attachments to the stories,
Because this just defines you,
It defines your life,
And it defines your future,
Running over the same stories again and again.
You can still have all these memories,
All these lessons that you can learn and grow from,
Become more courageous,
Stronger,
More kinder,
Loving and compassionate.
And you can use these life lessons to embody good qualities in the present moment.
Even cut the ties to all of the stories to the good memories in the past.
You can still have the memories,
You can still feel the beauty and see the beauty,
And have them memories stored in your heart and in your mind,
But you can even cut the attachments towards them,
Because they can often cause anxieties of what it used to be like,
Or what relationships you used to have,
And what people were around,
And it's not the same anymore.
Nothing is impermanent in the physical world.
We can still have the love,
We can still have the memories,
It's just cutting the attachments to the stories behind them.
And we can still enjoy the beauty,
The beauty of every single present moment that has ever happened to us.
And we can carry that love and that joy into our present moment,
Which creates our next present moment.
You are constantly making a brand new ending.
Forgive yourself what you have done towards yourself or others,
And forgive others for what they have done to you or to others.
Cut ties from the past,
Stop repeating your stories,
Stop letting these define you and limit you.
Be present,
Be present with love,
With compassion,
Embody these qualities,
Let these qualities be you,
Let these be your present moment.
You can take your attention off your breath now and just sit in the stillness around you.
Keeping your eyes closed,
Start to listen to the sounds that are around you and start to get a sense of your surroundings.
You can start to move your fingers and your toes,
Your hands and your feet,
And slowly stretch out into the space around you.
Starting off gazing down at the floor,
You can begin to slowly open your eyes,
Taking your time coming back around.
Thank you for meditating with me.
