Now before we get started,
Let's set the intention for this meditation.
First I would like to invite you to let go of any expectations,
To not try to recreate a previous experience,
But to come into it with a beginner's mind as if you were meditating for the first time.
I'm also inviting you to give this meditation your gentle,
Focused,
And non-judgmental attention.
There is no right or wrong during the meditation,
Only the present unfolding itself moment by moment.
Find a comfortable position.
If you are sitting in a chair,
Make sure your feet are flat on the floor.
Your spine should be relatively straight without forcing anything.
You can let your hands gently rest on your lap and your chin should be parallel to the floor.
If you want to imagine a thin thread pulling you by the top of your head towards the ceiling very gently.
Take some time to adjust the position to make it comfortable,
Stable,
And yet alert and dignified.
And when you are done,
Gently,
Slowly close your eyes.
Now take a moment to come back into the present,
Into your body.
Drop your shoulders if necessary to relax the tension there.
Check your forehead,
Your jaw,
Your facial expression.
Make sure everything is relaxed,
Peaceful.
Now very slowly and very gently take some deeper breath through your nose,
Inhaling slowly,
Gently,
All the way into your belly.
Inhale and exhale through your nose,
Slowly,
Gently,
Intentionally,
All the air out.
Again breathe in through your nose if possible,
Slowly,
Gently,
All the way into your belly.
And then slowly,
Gently,
Exhale all the air out.
Do it three more times on your own.
And when you are done,
Go back to your normal breathing,
Let your breathing be natural.
And we're going to do it again one more time,
A set of five.
But this time I would like you to hold your breathing between the inhale and the exhale,
Maybe for two seconds,
Three seconds,
Five seconds,
Whatever is comfortable for you.
So inhale again,
Slowly,
Gently through your nose,
All the way into your belly.
And then stop breathing for a few seconds.
And then let go gently,
Slowly,
Let go of all the air.
And then breathe in again slowly,
Gently,
Intentionally,
All the way into your belly.
And stop breathing for a few seconds.
And then slowly,
Gently,
Let all the air out.
Now do it again three times on your own.
And hold your breath only as long as is comfortable for you.
And when you're done,
Go back to your normal breathing.
Let your body do the breathing for you.
And observe the gentle movement of your belly rising up and down as a result of your breathing.
Feel the gentle movement of your belly moving up and down as you inhale and you exhale.
Do not change your breathing.
Let it be natural.
Slowly observe the gentle movement of your belly rising up and down.
And use that gentle movement of your belly rising up and down as an anchor into your body into the present.
And if you ever get lost in your thoughts,
Find yourself wandering in your mind,
You can always come back here observing the gentle movement of your belly rising up and down as you inhale and you exhale.
Land.
And now keeping that gentle movement in the background,
Bring your attention to the sound of your breathing.
Listen to the sound of your breathing.
From the beginning of the inhale,
All the way to the end.
And then from the beginning of the exhale,
All the way to the end.
Listen attentively to the sound of your breathing.
Listen attentively to the sound of your breathing.
And now bring your attention to the sound of your breathing.
Bringing your attention to the sensation of breathing.
The feeling of breathing as the air is coming through the tip of your nose,
All the way to the top,
Then down to your throat,
Into your lungs.
And then back from your lungs to your throat,
Top of your nose,
And then the tip of your nose.
Feel all the sensations as the air is moving through.
Maybe cold air coming in,
Warmer air coming out.
Feel the full spectrum of sensation as the air is moving through from the tip of your nose all the way to your lungs and back out.
And now bring your attention to the sound of your breathing.
And now focus your attention.
Focus your attention on that single space.
Feeling the cold air coming in,
Warmer air coming out.
Focus all your attention on that single space between the tip of your nose and your upper lip.
And now bring your attention to the sound of your breathing.
And now bring your attention to the sound of your breathing.
Focus all your attention on that single space between the tip of your nose and the tip of your nose.
And as you keep your focus on that little space between your upper lip and the tip of your nose,
Start counting your breath.
Using one on the exhale,
Then two on the exhale,
All the way to ten and then back down from ten to nine all the way to zeros and then you start over again.
Now be silent for a few minutes.
I will keep track of the time and let you know when it's over.
Keep track of the time and let you know when it's over.
Now be silent for a few minutes.
Now be silent for a few minutes.
Now be silent for a few minutes.
Now be silent for a few minutes.
Now be silent for a few minutes.
Now be silent for a few minutes.
Now be silent for a few minutes.
Now be silent for a few minutes.
Now be silent for a few minutes.
Now you can let go of the counting.
After focusing on that small space between the tip of your nose and your upper lip and come back to the gentle movement of your belly rising up and down as you inhale and you exhale.
And slowly,
Gently come back into the room where you are.
Remember what time of the day it is.
Feel your feet on the floor,
Your hands on your lap.
You can wiggle your toes,
Your fingers if you feel like it.
You can stretch if you want.
And when you are ready,
Slowly,
Gently open your eyes.
