Settle into your whole being with a gentle body scan, and then explore the Three Thoughts, which can be summarized as Gratitude, Impermanence, and Meaning. Meditation concludes with a brief Metta reflection. No bells, to allow continued meditation after guidance ends.
Meet your Teacher
Crawford, CO, USA
Transcript
Get into your comfortable posture. It might be sitting, It might be reclining. Whatever your posture is, Let your spine be essentially straight and strong. But not rigid, Not tense, So that your back body is strong and your front body is soft and open. And give yourself permission to be present in this moment. Not somewhere in the future, Not somewhere in the past, Right here in this body, In this moment. And bring your awareness inward with three full deep breaths, Inhaling as deeply and slowly as you're able. Feeling your body stretch and open and move as you inhale. And exhale completely through an open mouth and release. And take two more full deep breaths and complete exhalations. Before letting your respiration just settle back to its natural rhythm. And let your awareness rest on your breath, In particular, Letting your attention follow your exhale. And the inhale takes care of itself. And then again, Let the attention just ride out on that exhale. And as you continue resting your attention in the breath, As you exhale, Let every exhale be a release, A letting go, A softening and settling into the surfaces that support you, Feeling the weight, The body, The shape. How gravity holds you. Let yourself surrender and relax. Now with each inhale, Bring your attention to a different area of your body and you'll start with the top of your head. Inhale, Bring your attention up to the crown of the head. Exhale, Let that soften. And at your own pace for the next few minutes, Inhale and bring your attention into another area in the body, Maybe starting with the forehead. Exhale, Letting any unnecessary tension melt away to the side. And continuing this compassionate body scan down through the eyes, The muscles of the eyes. And just let your attention follow this rhythm, Inhaling, Bringing attention to an area, Exhaling, Inviting that to soften or release. The mouth and the jaw. The neck and the shoulders. And if your pace is a little faster or slower, That's fine. Try not to miss any area. The arms, The hands. Moving down through the torso. Into the low belly and the low back. Releasing in the hips and the buttocks. Down through the legs. Feeling the feet on the floor or the heels. Become aware of the sense of grounding that awareness of your feet gives you. And awareness of your seat. If you're reclining, Awareness of your whole back body. And that awareness dispersed through the whole body now, Aware of all the sensations, Aware of the sensations of movement associated with the breath. The obvious movement, The lifting of the chest or shoulders, The rise and fall of the abdomen. And more subtle sensations of movement. Letting each exhale be a release of unnecessary tension. And for the next few minutes, We'll practice calm abiding. Shamatha meditation, Training our attention on the sensations of the breath. And so be aware of the breath, Not in a grasping or clinging way, Not in a rigid way, Just feeling each inhale. Feeling each exhale. Aware of all the movements. Feel of the air flowing in and out. Rising and falling various parts of the body. And anytime you notice that you're no longer aware of the breath. That you've jumped onto a train of thought carried off by one association after another. You realize that you're not feeling the breath anymore. That's a moment of mindfulness, A moment of awareness in which you have the opportunity to let go of the distraction, Relax the body again. And we let the attention drop back into the experience of breathing. And we'll sit like this for a few minutes. Letting everything be just fine, Just the way it is. And softening into this rhythm of noticing, Relaxing, Releasing, And returning. And where is your attention now? Are you resting comfortably in the breath? Are you lost in thought? Are you agitating over an uncomfortable sensation? Any of those things is fine. Just noticing, Just being aware. Where is my attention right now? And take the opportunity of this interruption to examine. The body again with a brief, Gentle scan. Is there anywhere that you've tensed up? You're contracted. That you can soften again. Anywhere that wants to soften for the first time and relax. And then come back to the breath. The mind is overactive and challenged. Rest with the exhale. Follow it all the way out. If you find your mind getting lethargic and dull and you're starting to nod off, Focus more on the inhale and follow the inhale all the way in. If your mind feels balanced, Let the attention rest equally on the inhale and the exhale. And now with a relaxed body and an alert mind. We'll turn our attention to a contemplation of three thoughts. These three thoughts can be helpful anytime that you find yourself with unhealthy or unhelpful thoughts. They're an excellent practice to do first thing in the morning as soon as you wake up. And the first thought is. . . What's it like right now? Take an accurate assessment of the current conditions of your life. You have a roof over your head. You have running water. Food in your pantry. You have all the basic necessities of life. In this way, You're more fortunate than many, Many humans. Of the 8 point something billion people on the planet, Your blessings exceed those of most. You have an education, You may have a family, Friends, Community. You have electricity, Technology. The ability and the interest to pursue mindfulness and meditation. And so just starting with these basics, Take the next few minutes to do a mental inventory of all the things that you have that you can be grateful for. And now take a few moments to wrap up that inventory and maybe reiterate it to yourself, Lock it in. And we'll turn our attention to the second thought. You have all these wonderful benefits, Blessings in your life. You have your health to some extent or you wouldn't be able to be here. Even though your health isn't perfect now, It's adequate. But you are of the nature to grow old. As human beings, We are of the nature to grow old, To sicken, And to die. And because all the good things in our life that we can be thankful for are all arising out of conditions, They are subject to change. There's no permanence. So recognizing impermanence, This is the second thought. Anything can change at any moment. That home could be blown apart by a tornado or a hurricane. That favorite plate you're eating from could be dropped and smashed in the next moment. Our beloved pets die. Our beloved people die. And so take a couple of minutes now to contemplate impermanence. To face the staggering truth that everything you love in this life, You'll be separated from one way or another. Whether through the changing of impermanence. Or through your own mortality. Let this reflection be an opportunity not to be morbid or to get depressed. But to savor. All these good things I have, I have now and only now. I don't know what will happen in the future. Let this be a motivation to really appreciate and experience gratefulness and cultivate the values that you'd like to bring. To experiencing your life. You might bring to mind people in your life, Beings in your life that you've loved, That have died. Sometimes suddenly, Sometimes after long declines. Some of them old, Some of them young. You might bring a sense of gratitude for having the experience of having known and loved them. As you recall, Some of these beings, Human or otherwise, You might feel some memories arising, Memories that bring laughter. Warm heart, Joy. Allow yourself to feel those things. This is the nature of conditioned existence. Remembering impermanence can help us live more fully in each moment of our lives, Choosing wisely in each moment where we place our attention. Now recognizing the conditions of our lives for which we're grateful and the impermanence, The certainty that everything is going to change. Consider the third thought. When you come to the end of your own life and look back, What will have been important to you? Will it have been the material successes and acquisitions? Will it have been winning every argument or beating everyone at Scrabble? Will it have been who you loved and how you loved? Will it be what you've brought to the world? What did you find inside yourself to give? What did you spend your time doing? Acquiring, Or connecting. Savoring or judging. Giving or taking. Rest for a couple of minutes as you consider what would you like to be looking back on when you come to the end of your life. What gives your life meaning? Fulfillment. And as you consider this third thought, In light of an entire life. Can you also think of it in light of just one day? When you do this reflection in the morning, Can you think ahead to the evening, Looking back on your day? What would it feel like to look back on your day and have no regrets? And let this be an inspiration and a motivation for how you live each day. And day by day how you live your life. And now for the last few minutes of the meditation, Letting your attention come back to the breath. Back to the movement in the body. The support of the earth. Come home to the rhythm of the breath. Rest here. And you might offer these phrases silently after me. May I be well. May I be happy. May I be safe and free from inner and outer harm. May I grow in compassion and understanding for myself and for all beings. May I live each day with a joyful ease. Now offering these wishes for all beings, May all beings be well. May all beings be happy. May all beings be safe and free from inner and outer harm. May all beings grow in compassion and understanding for themselves and for one another. May all beings live each day with a joyful ease. Knowing that we can't make or guarantee all these good wishes. That our intention can make the world a kinder, Happier place. And as you're ready, Coming back into your body. Stretching in a way that feels comfortable. Opening your eyes when you're ready.
