Welcome to your Shavasana practice.
Let's begin by coming into any comfortable position where you can find some ease and relaxation for the next 15 minutes or so.
You might like to lie down on your back with a folded blanket beneath your head and a bolster or pillow under your knees.
It might also be comforting to cover yourself with a blanket for warmth.
If you prefer another position or setup,
Please feel free to follow what feels right for your body in this moment.
Take the time to make any adjustments that would allow this integration time to be as easeful as possible.
Once you are settled,
I invite you to soften your gaze or close your eyes and take three full breaths,
Inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth,
Sighing out the exhale.
See if you can let go even a fraction more with each exhale,
Releasing anything you don't need.
Notice the sensations of your body resting in this space,
Cradled by the support beneath you.
Allow the belly,
Chest,
Throat and tongue to be soft and to move freely as you come back to settle into the flow of the natural breath.
With each inhale,
Let the belly balloon as the air enters the nostrils and with each exhale,
Let the belly soften back down as the air leaves the nostrils.
In and out.
Now invite your attention to gently shift from the breath to the feet and legs.
Become aware of any sensations in this part of the body.
There's nothing to judge here.
You are simply noticing,
Observing.
If you'd like to make any adjustments to the feet and legs to add to your comfort,
Go ahead and do that and then settle back into stillness.
Now move your attention up to the hips and torso.
Become aware of any sensations in this part of the body.
There is nothing to judge here.
You are simply noticing,
Observing.
If you'd like to make any adjustments to the hips and torso to add to your comfort,
Go ahead and do that and then settle back into stillness.
Now move your attention up to the shoulders and arms.
Become aware of any sensations in this part of the body.
There is nothing to judge here.
You are simply noticing,
Observing.
If you'd like to make any adjustments to the shoulders and arms to add to your comfort,
Go ahead and do that and then settle back into stillness.
Now move your attention up to the neck,
Face,
And head.
Become aware of any sensations in this part of the body.
There is nothing to judge here.
You are simply noticing,
Observing.
If you'd like to make any adjustments to the neck,
Face,
And head to add to your comfort,
Go ahead and do that and then settle back into stillness.
If it feels supportive to do so,
Allow your attention to come back to the natural breath.
Taking notice of where the breath is easiest to feel in your body right now.
If focusing on the breath isn't nurturing for you,
See if you can locate another part of the body where you feel sensation and can rest your attention there instead.
If your focus is on the breath,
It might be the rise and fall of the belly or chest,
The sensation of air entering and leaving the nostrils,
The swirl of air in the back of the throat,
Or it might be something else entirely that catches your awareness.
Choose one of the sensations that is easiest to notice and very gently settle your attention there,
Focusing on one breath at a time or one sensation at a time.
When your mind wanders from your intended focus,
Which it likely will,
Without judgment,
Softly bring the attention back to the natural breath or any other bodily sensation.
You may do this over and over again,
Coming back.
It's normal for the attention to wander,
And this is the practice,
Bringing it back again and again with compassion.
I invite you to rest here for the next several minutes,
And I will bring you out with three sounds of the bell.
I invite you to rest here for the next several minutes,
And I will bring you out with three sounds of the bell.
I invite you to rest here for the next several minutes,
And I will bring you out with three sounds of the bell.
I invite you to rest here for the next several minutes,
And I will bring you out with three sounds of the bell.
I invite you to rest here for the next several minutes,
And I will bring you out with three sounds of the bell.
I invite you to rest here for the next several minutes,
And I will bring you out with three sounds of the bell.
I invite you to rest here for the next several minutes,
And I will bring you out with three sounds of the bell.
I invite you to rest here for the next several minutes,
And I will bring you out with three sounds of the bell.
To close,
If you would like,
Please take one hand to the heart and one hand to the belly,
Repeating the following aloud or silently.
May I greet my body with gentleness.
May I soften when life invites me to harden.
May I listen to my intuition with wisdom and trust it with ease.
And may I appreciate my body a little more in this moment,
Just as it is.
Now,
I invite you to take one full breath in through the nose and sigh out the exhale through the mouth.
Thank you for your practice.
