Autumn Equinox Meditation On Impermanence

Autumn equinox is one time of year when the day and night are of equal length. It is also when we transition from the green seasons to the brown. This transition reminds us of the impermanence of life. Join Anne-Marie in this guided meditation on the theme of impermanence and change.

Transcript

Welcome to this meditation at the autumn equinox and the harvest full moon.

At this time of the year,

We end one season starting new.

And an equinox is when there is equal light,

Both in the day and the night.

And in the fall,

It's a time when the green that has been around during spring and summer gives way to yellows and oranges and reds and brown.

And that greenery goes into slumber or another way of thinking about it is that the green ends.

So it's a time of transition,

As is any change in seasons.

And of course,

At this time,

We also have a full moon.

So lots of ending energy and starting energy.

It's a really great time to make intentions that that we would like to rebirth or to birth.

So the intention that I have chosen for this meditation is I am flexible and flowing.

So being flexible at a time of transition I think is really important.

And to flow into the next phase,

Season,

The next time,

The next chapter takes flexibility.

So this intention seems appropriate for this time.

So let's begin by choosing a posture that works for us.

And if you're sitting in a chair.

Notice your feet flat on the ground and your back is either supported by the back of the chair,

Or you hold yourself upright.

And when we're sitting on the ground we do the same thing.

We're closer to the earth and maybe our legs are in contact with the ground as opposed to just our feet when we're sitting in a chair.

Our back is alert and relaxed.

The visual that I like to use for this kind of posture is that our head is reaching the sky and our sitting area,

Legs and feet are grounding are settling into the earth.

And so at this time of Econoxa that visual and the metaphor of reaching up and settling in seems very meaningful for this change of season.

And then notice different parts of your body.

See if there's any area that is asking for for attention for extra breathing maybe even stretching,

Feel free to stretch you can stretch your head and your neck,

Doing circles with your neck and your head from one shoulder to the other.

You can stretch your shoulders up to your ears,

Making circles in one direction and circles in the other direction.

You could even stretch the side of your body to loosen that up by leaning over to one side and reaching over your head with the arm that is an extension of the side that you're stretching.

And switching sides for the side stretch is a good idea as well to balance things out.

Then when you're when we're ready we can bring our focus to the anchor of attention.

And of course the breath is the most common anchor that we use in meditation.

I invite you to make the decision the choice for yourself,

Whether you'd like to follow the breath,

Or whether you'd like to follow sound.

I will ring the bell three times to start and open up our practice.

And at the end,

I will seal our practice with the bell as well.

If your practice is to have your eyes closed and join me in that.

And if you prefer to have your eyes,

Slightly open gazing at a neutral spot in front of you,

Maybe on the ground,

Then do what is right for you.

Notice where you put your hands whether you want them clasped on your lap or palm up or palm down on your thighs.

Let's begin to bring our attention inward.

So at this equinox let's allow balance to come into our posture.

And on the inhale,

Reaching our head up to the sky,

Lengthening our back.

And on the exhale we can notice ourselves settling and grounding into the earth.

So there's a balance between between the reaching up and the settling down.

Bring curiosity to this balance of the reaching and the settling.

Notice for yourself what happens in your body when you intentionally breathe in as you reach up and breathe out as you settle into the earth.

A few more quiet breaths.

Silent introspective breaths and bring some curiosity to the breath if you're using the breath and if you're using sound,

Bring a sense of curiosity to whatever sound is coming into your awareness.

Using beginner's mind of just noticing what is and actually noticing it from the start of when you first notice and then when you don't notice it anymore.

So in the breath it's the full flow of the breath in and the breath out.

When you're using sound as your anchor,

Seeing if you could notice when it first comes into your awareness.

And when it leaves,

Noticing the silence between that sound and the next.

Let's sit with that for a bit on our own,

Exploring together and separately.

Being flexible,

The flow.

And autumn being a time when trees change the color of their leaves as they get ready to go into a type of dormancy for the winter.

I'd like to read a poem about trees.

And what do they think about in the morning.

This poem is by Kai Seidenberg from a book of poems entitled Poems of Earth and Spirit,

A lovely book of poems for meditation.

What do trees think about in the morning,

As the sun's golden light touches each other branches,

Gently awakening them to a new day.

Do they give thanks just to be alive.

Do they lift their branches in heartfelt gratitude for the generous gifts on of this green earth for neighbors and friends,

Both near and far for the parents who gave them life,

And the ancestors who came before them.

Are they proud to be part of a vast and ancient guild of skilled artisans,

Performing the essential alchemy of transmuting sunlight,

Water,

And air into leaves and branches fruits and seeds and air for countless creatures to breathe.

Is it thrilling to work this everyday magic to create so much from such simple materials.

How does it feel to do this noble essential work to give so much to so many and ask so little in return,

Day after day,

Year after year.

Do they ever get tired of giving.

Do they ever want to be appreciated more.

What do trees think about in the morning.

So allowing that to settle like a co on a Zen meditation co on.

What do trees think about in the morning continue on focusing on your anchor choice.

Two minutes of silent meditation together.

Okay.

Okay.

We get distracted by sounds that we aren't actually focusing on for anchor or we get distracted by maybe a little pain in the body twitch,

Maybe a thought comes into our mind.

We know that that's part of meditation we know that it's okay.

And so,

I invite us to smile at the distraction.

And then gently non judgmentally return to our anchor.

In this moment,

Coming back to the breath,

Or coming back to a sound that helps us stay focused.

And noticing it again from the start to the finish.

Beginning and the end.

The cycle of life cycle of the seasons.

One season giving way,

Welcoming the next season endings beginnings.

The impermanence of life.

All that was permanent is this moment.

Let's enjoy that quietly together.

Okay.

Every so often,

Just notice if we need to reach up to the sky,

With our head on the beginning of our anchor and settling into the earth with the,

The end of our anchor,

Whether it be the breath or sound,

Reaching up and grounding down the balance of the seasons,

The balance of our body,

The balance of the moon.

And finishes up a cycle of being full moving towards another cycle of being new being flexible and flowing with what is.

Let's keep going.

Okay.

Okay.

As we get to the last couple minutes of this meditation together let's reaffirm our posture,

The balance between reaching up and grounding down the flexibility and being in the flow.

I am flexible and flowing.

Let's listen to the sound of the bell to seal our practice.

And when you're ready.

Only when you are ready.

If your eyes have been closed open them up gently.

If your gaze has been neutral,

Or to the ground you can open them up your eyes up a little bit more and look around your space where you've been sitting.

I invite you to choose an object or an item that you haven't noticed in a while,

And really look at it as if you have not seen it before,

As if it is new.

What colors do you see what shapes.

Are there emotions that are conjured up by this object or item.

This reintegrates the brain into the body again at the end of meditation.

So I thank you for joining me for this autumn equinox change of season meditation,

Also honoring the harvest moon harvest full moon.

At this time,

And I wish you a wonderful rest of your day.

May all beings,

You come in contact with feel the balance flexibility and the flowing nature that you have.