Hello,
My name is Vivian,
Creator of A Mindful Mind.
Welcome to today's practice,
Tadasana for the Mind.
This practice is designed to help you find stillness when life seems chaotic.
Just like Tadasana is the perfect grounding yoga pose,
This is a beautiful grounding practice for your mind.
I invite you now to find a comfortable seated position,
Perhaps on the floor or on a chair.
Lengthen your posture by straightening your back,
The crown of your head reaching to meet the ceiling.
Allow your shoulders to fully relax and place your hands on your knees.
Close your eyes and bring your attention to the flow of your breath,
Feeling each in-breath and each out-breath.
We're just observing the breath here,
Not trying to change it or regulate it in any way.
Allowing the body to remain still,
Notice how you sit with a sense of dignity,
A sense of resolve and a feeling of being whole in this very moment.
Notice how your posture reflects these feelings.
And as you sit here,
I invite you now to picture in your mind as best you can,
The most beautiful mountain that you either know or can imagine.
Always hold the image and feeling of this mountain in your mind's eye,
Gradually allowing it to come into greater focus with each breath you take.
Observe the mountain's overall shape,
Its lofty peak high in the sky,
The large base rooted in the rock of the earth beneath it,
Its steep or gently sloping sides.
Notice how solid,
Unmoving and how strong this mountain is.
Our mountain may have snow at the top or trees on the lower slopes.
Perhaps it has one defining peak or a series of high peaks.
Whatever its shape or appearance,
Observe all its qualities.
When you feel ready,
See if you can bring the mountain into your own body,
So that the body sitting here and the mountain in your mind become one entity.
Notice the features that you and this mountain share.
The feeling of being grounded by your seated posture,
Your head like the highest peak resting on the slopes of your necks and shoulders.
All this supported by the strength in your core.
Experience a sense of uplift from deep within your pelvis and spine with each breath you take.
Take as if the breath is rising from the base of the mountain to the peak.
Notice yourself transforming into a breathing mountain,
A centered,
Rooted,
Unmoving presence.
A mountain's magnificence and strength is not changed one bit by the way people see it or by the weather.
Day or night,
Rain or shine,
It just sits,
Being itself.
Through it all,
The mountain remains as is,
Unmoved by what happens on the surface.
We too can manifest the same unwavering strength in the face of change in our own lives.
We constantly experience the changing nature of mind and body and of the outer world.
We have our own periods of light and darkness,
Our moments of joy and distress.
Even our appearance changes over time.
So we experience a weather of our own.
As we sit in meditation,
We can learn to ride the highs and lows with the same grace as a mountain.
By embodying the mountain in our practice,
We draw upon an inner strength and stability.
We practice encountering each moment with mindfulness and clarity.
We see that our thoughts,
Feelings,
Our preoccupations,
Even the things that happen to us,
Are very much like the weather on a mountain.
These experiences are not to be ignored nor denied,
But rather encountered and accepted for what they are.
And in doing so,
We come to know we possess strength and wisdom within.
In these last few moments,
I invite you now to take three slow and filling breaths.
With your eyes remaining closed,
Begin to gently rub your thighs with your palms,
Creating movement and warmth.
Bring your palms to cover your eyes.
And thank yourself for taking this time to connect with your inner strength.
Blink your eyes open and drop your hands to your lap.
Thank you for joining me.
I hope you found some light in this practice.
And until next time,
May you be happy and healthy.
