Body Scan 20 Minutes (The Mindful Christian)

This is a body scan in the MBSR tradition, set within a Christian worldview through the use of Scripture and reference to God's presence. The guide serves as a companion to the book, The Mindful Christian: Cultivating a Life of Intentionality, Openness, and Faith.

Transcript

Welcome to the Body Scan.

In this practice,

I will invite you to move awareness through the body,

This body of yours that God created,

While cultivating an attitude of friendly curiosity and openness to whatever sensations you find there.

While the Body Scan is traditionally done laying down on the floor,

You are welcome to modify this to fit any position that feels right for you,

Such as sitting or standing.

As you move through each part of the body in turn,

You will notice sensations that are pleasant,

Unpleasant,

And neutral.

In some parts of the body,

You may find no sensation at all.

All of this is okay,

And you can experiment with a gentle and friendly attention to whatever is there for you in each moment.

The goal of the practice is not to achieve any particular experience,

Not to feel more relaxed or calm or happy.

This may happen,

And it may not.

The goal is simply to be with whatever is here in this moment,

To notice and observe things just as they are,

To spend some time being curious about this masterpiece of the body that God has created.

So if you choose lying on your back on a firm surface,

Such as a mat,

A rug,

Or a firm mattress,

And making sure that you're warm enough as you prepare to enter this Body Scan practice,

Perhaps having a blanket available.

If you tend to experience lower back pain,

You might want to put a support under your knees to relieve any potential strain in that area,

Or you can pull your knees up,

Leaning them against each other with your feet slightly apart on the floor for stability.

If your legs are outstretched,

Allowing the toes to fall away from one another,

And extending the arms by your sides with palms raised up toward the ceiling,

If that's comfortable for you.

And if you choose,

Closing your eyes or allowing your eyelids to close halfway.

Beginning here with a couple of slow,

Deep breaths before allowing your breath to return to its normal rhythm.

Settling into this lying down posture,

As you bring your attention now to the physical sensations of breath entering and leaving the body.

As much as you're able,

Being present for the sensations of breathing in,

And the sensations of breathing out.

Noticing that the body is breathing itself without any conscious effort on your part.

And as you settle into this awareness,

Receiving these words from Psalm 139.

It was you God,

Who formed my inward parts.

You knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you,

For I am fearfully and wonderfully made,

Wonderful are your works,

That I know very well.

Taking a moment to rest in your body is God's creation,

A temple of the Holy Spirit,

Fearfully and wonderfully made.

And remembering that the intention of this practice is not to change anything or to judge any sensations that you find,

But simply to become aware and curious,

To explore the moment to moment sensations in this body that God has given you,

Whether you like them or not.

And accepting what you find here as your experience in this moment.

As much as is possible for you,

Meeting these sensations with gentleness and kindness toward yourself as you rest here in God's presence.

And so aware of the sensations of breath in the body,

And beginning to sense the whole body as it's lying here.

You can sense the length,

All the way from the head down to the feet,

The back of the body,

The front of the body,

The sides of the body.

Notice where the body is bearing weight,

Perhaps noticing at the heels,

The buttocks,

The back,

The head.

Where is the body lighter and where is it heavier?

Simply observing your body as you find it to be right now.

And then if you choose,

Moving your attention from your lungs down through the abdomen,

Through the pelvis,

Through the left leg,

And down into the left foot,

Noticing sensations in the left foot.

The toes,

The sole of the foot,

The sides of the foot,

The top of the foot,

And also the ankle.

Aware of sensations of contact with any surfaces,

And experiencing sensations down into the bones and joints of the left foot and ankle.

Being curious about what you find here.

Perhaps temperature,

Pressure,

Pulsing,

Tingling,

Or perhaps no sensations at all.

Noticing can you feel your big toe,

Your little toe?

How about the toes in between?

Letting go of the left foot and moving your attention,

If you choose,

Into the left leg,

The shin,

The knee,

The kneecap,

The thigh.

Becoming aware of sensations in the left leg and noticing whatever is there to be felt.

Aware of whether the knee is bent or straight,

And how it is you know that it is bent or straight.

Tuning into the variety of sensations in the left leg,

Watching them coming and going,

Moment to moment,

And noticing any thoughts or feelings that might arise as you attend to the left leg in this way.

Letting go of the left leg now,

And moving your attention up,

If you choose,

Across the pelvis,

Down through the right leg,

And into the right foot.

Aware of sensations in the toes,

The sole of the foot,

The sides of the foot,

The top of the foot,

And right into the ankle.

Directly exploring sensations here,

Both inside and outside of the right foot.

Seeing if it's possible to have a direct observation of experience outside the filter of labels,

Thoughts,

And judgments,

Simply being present to your foot as it is in this moment.

And as you're ready,

Letting go of the right foot,

Moving your attention now into the right leg.

Noticing the shin,

The knee,

The kneecap,

The thigh.

Seeing any sensations you might find with an attitude of acceptance,

Observing here whether your knee is bent or straight,

And perhaps appreciating your right leg as it is.

And aware that if there's ever a point during the body scan,

A thought,

A feeling,

Or a physical sensation becomes too powerful,

It's okay to shift your attention to something else,

Perhaps another part of the body,

Or even to something outside of the body,

Like a sound or a color in the room.

Just being aware of what you're doing with your mind when you do it.

And then when you're ready,

You can always bring your attention back to the body scan at any time that you choose.

So aware now of the right leg,

Being as precise as you can about experiencing any sensations,

Whether they be a warmth or tingling or heaviness or lightness,

Blood flow,

Whatever's here.

And as you're ready,

Letting go of this region and moving your attention if you choose to the pelvis and hip region.

Aware of sensations moving from one hip to the other,

Sensations coming and going.

Also aware of the organs in this region,

The inner systems of illumination and reproduction,

The pelvic basin.

Aware of any thoughts or feelings that might arise as you bring awareness to this area of the body.

And remembering that you have choices as you practice awareness of the body.

Treating yourself with kindness and gentleness as you connect with this body that God has made.

So if you choose staying present to sensations in the pelvic region and then letting go of the pelvis and your awareness,

If you sink into a deeper awareness of physical sensations in the body,

Nowhere to go,

Nothing else to do except being here now.

Turning your attention now to the back,

The lower and upper back,

Perhaps even noticing the ribs moving with the back as you breathe.

And if you experience strong sensations here,

Recognizing that you have options in managing these sensations,

You might experience your back just as it is,

Doing your best not to move or shift if that's possible for you.

You might practice breathing into it,

Using the in-breath gently to bring awareness right into the sensation and as best you can having a sense of letting go or releasing on the out-breath.

Or you might choose to move in such a way as to relieve the tension,

Moving with intentionality and focus and noticing any changes in sensation as a result of the movement.

In whatever way you choose to respond to sensations,

Noticing what you're doing as you do it and bringing your awareness to shifting sensations in the back and in the rib cage as you breathe,

Perhaps feeling the breath move into and penetrate every area of the back.

If you choose,

Moving your attention now to the abdomen,

Noticing sensations in the region of the stomach and the organs in this region,

Aware of any movement in the diaphragm with the movement of the breath,

Noticing sensations both inside the body and on the surface of the skin as you breathe.

And expanding this awareness now from the abdomen into the chest region,

Seeing if it's possible to tune into the beating of your heart if that is accessible to you,

Bringing awareness to the movement of the breath and the lungs on either side of your heart.

Aware of this capacity of the body to breathe itself without any conscious direction from you.

You're simply here moment to moment receiving breath as a gift from God,

Nurturing yourself with a gentle awareness of sensations in this moment.

And if thoughts arise during the course of this practice,

You might practice a gentle noticing of where the mind is drawn to.

Thoughts are not the enemy.

We do not need to eliminate thoughts,

Nor could we if we tried.

Rather,

We can be curious about thoughts coming and going,

Smiling at the thoughts and gently returning our attention to wherever we intended it to be in the moment.

Such distractions are not an interruption of the practice.

They are the practice.

Over and over,

We return our awareness to the body,

Practicing a gentleness and lightness of attention.

And so now releasing the chest from your awareness and moving attention into the arms,

Beginning with the fingertips.

Aware of the fingers,

The palms of the hands,

The tops of the hands,

And the wrists,

Seeing if it's possible to detect blood flow moving from the hands through the wrists back and forth into the arms.

Aware now of the lower arms,

The elbows,

And the upper arms,

Holding all of the arms in awareness,

Moving attention into the shoulders,

An area of the body where we often store accumulated tension,

Noticing if there is tightness or stiffness or anything else to be felt here in the shoulders,

Breathing into the shoulders,

Aware of any movement that might occur in this region with the breath.

Moving now into sensations in the neck region,

Noticing the air moving through this region of the body,

Through the throat,

The lungs supplying the brain with oxygen to do its work.

Aware of the muscles in the neck,

Connecting with the head and the shoulders,

And then releasing the neck from awareness as you move attention now into the face region.

Aware of sensations in the mouth and jaw,

Both inside and outside of the mouth,

Including the chin and the jawbones.

Aware of the nose and the sensations of breath moving through this region,

Cool air below the nose as air comes in,

And warmth as the air leaves the body warmed by the lungs.

Moving attention into the cheeks,

Both lower and upper cheeks.

Now into the eye region,

The eyes,

Eyebrows,

Forehead,

And then the ears,

Giving yourself permission to release any tension you might find in the face region of the body if you choose.

And releasing the face now from awareness as you become aware of the back of the head and the top of the head.

Perhaps aware of the weight of the skull and the brain,

Aware of any sensations of air that might be present at the top of the skull.

Feeling the whole head now resting on the surface beneath you.

And now moving your attention once again to the whole body.

The whole body lying here as God's creation,

Fearfully and wonderfully made.

Aware of the skin wrapping around your body as one cohesive whole.

Aware of sensations throughout the body moving from the top of the head to the bottom of the feet.

Resting here in this moment,

In this experience of the body,

Resting in this stillness that you've cultivated.

Flashback mediłam of various words,

Body expressions and thoughts.

Preparing now to bring this awareness into the rest of your day as you hear the sound of the bell,

Listening from the beginning of the ring until it can no longer be heard.

And as you're ready,

Slowly opening your eyes if they're closed,

Taking in colors and shapes around you if that's available to you,

Acknowledging God's presence here in this space.

And bringing some gentle movement into the body,

Perhaps by taking a couple of deep breaths,

Wiggling fingers and toes,

Stretching arms and legs,

Moving the body in a way that's comfortable for you.

Taking your time as you broaden your attention to the space around you and prepare to move on to your next activity.

Go in peace.

Reviews

excellent!!

It was wonderful to combine meditation with my Christian faith! what a blessing! thankyou!

Thank you, refreshing ready to take on the day one moment at a time in His Grace.

Body scan with a thorough and unique approach. Excellent!

Truly wonderful 😊 Thank you 🙏