Drop into your body.
Find a posture where you can be both relaxed and alert.
Now turn your attention to your breath.
Nothing to fix or correct.
What do you notice about it?
Your breath is magnificent.
It's been operating in the background whether you are paying attention to it or not.
Just like your heartbeat.
Both being lovingly supported by a force greater than your thinking mind.
Feel another cycle of breath from the inside out.
And consider this,
What if,
As BKS Iyengar says,
Breath is a prayer of gratitude to life itself.
That means when you sit in meditation and you observe your breath and you listen for your heartbeat,
You are listening for the presence of the divine.
And when you turn your attention to the expansion of possibilities on your inhale and you practice surrender on your exhale,
That is your prayer.
Take this next breath as a prayer.
Inhale gratitude.
Exhale surrender.
Inhale acknowledge a higher power.
And exhale release your ego.
Continue breathing intentionally as we begin the body scan practice.
And let this practice be a communication between you and whoever or whatever you consider your higher power.
And no matter what your religious or spirituality,
You don't have to follow a certain belief or faith to try this out.
And so breathe again.
And imagine repeating these words quietly to yourself like you are saying them to your higher power.
Let's begin.
Bring awareness to the top of your head,
To the space between your ears.
And let this physical space represent your mind.
I pray for a calm,
Clear mind,
That I may receive the next right thought to think throughout the day.
Thank you for these eyes.
May they see the beauty of your creation.
And may they allow me to observe the world around me.
Thank you for these ears.
May they allow me to listen for truth.
May my ears help me to connect as I listen to other people.
I am grateful for my mouth,
My lips,
My tongue,
My throat.
Just for today,
May I speak beauty and kindness to everyone.
May I use my voice to sing,
To create boundaries,
To share ideas.
May you give me the right words to say and show me how to trust the messages I receive from you.
May I use my voice correctly today.
I thank you for the shoulders that you've given me,
For the weight that they symbolically carry.
I remember that I don't have to carry it all alone,
That you'll give me only what I need to be responsible for the day.
As I bring awareness to the heart in my chest,
There's so much that happens in this space.
Love,
Connection,
And joy,
But also heartbreak,
Rejection,
Grief.
You've given me this heart to feel all that there is to feel in this lifetime.
May I have the courage to feel it all.
May I have the courage to honor my heart.
God,
May I see the beauty in my heart as you intended me to be.
Help me to discern the desires that you've placed on my heart from the ones that I've absorbed from elsewhere,
Like my ego,
Like society,
Or other places.
Use my heart to guide me in the fulfillment of your divine will.
I breathe,
And now I feel the length of my arms extending to my wrists,
My hands,
My fingers.
Isn't it interesting that my arms emanate from so close to my chest?
I imagine this could symbolize that my arms,
Meaning my actions,
Are guided by my heart.
Higher Power,
I ask you to show me what actions to take.
What would you have me do today?
I pray that I may use the gift of my arms,
My hands,
My wrists,
My fingertips to carry out your divine will.
And now I bring awareness to descend the length of my spine.
May I stand tall and with confidence.
May you help me manage the everyday aches and pains that I may carry here.
I feel my abdomen,
My tummy.
And I ask that with my conscious contact with you,
Creator of the universe,
That I can trust my gut instincts,
That I know you are guiding me through these instincts.
I pray that this body be nourished and hydrated,
That I make mindful choices about how to support my physical body through food,
Through sustenance.
And God,
I ask that you ground me through my foundation,
My hips,
My legs,
My feet,
That I might always remember to be where I am,
To be present.
And to remember that I must go where I'm called,
That I am not stuck.
Remind me when I forget that there are forces outside of me working on my behalf.
Gravity,
Sunlight,
My breath,
My heartbeat.
My creator,
I am humbled in gratitude for the gift of this body,
My breath,
My heart,
And the fact that you've given me this day to get up and try again.
Thank you for waking me up today.
And if I start to get distracted by my ego,
My humanness,
I ask that you help to remind me that you are always there.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
That completes the body scan.
So feel your body now as one whole system.
Feel again for your breath.
Use it as that prayer of gratitude.
And whenever you feel complete,
Bring your awareness back to the space in your body.
Bring your awareness to your surroundings.
If your eyes are closed,
Gently blink them open.
And have a great day.
