Jump Right In

This is an introductory session which guides you in settling in and closing your eyes and finding the objects that we can start to pay attention to, while using a simple technique to help keep us focused without straining or losing sight of the "object".

Transcript

Please find a good quiet place to sit down and let's get started.

We begin by sitting.

So please take a posture which you plan to sit in for the duration of the short guided meditation.

Also,

Make sure you're sitting in a relatively comfortable clothes that are not too tight or constricting your breathing or the free movement of your abdomen.

As we begin,

It can sometimes be helpful to run our attention through our body and to notice if there's any undue stress or strain.

So starting with the head,

We bring our attention to the forehead,

The eyes,

The cheeks,

The mouth.

And if you feel any stress or strain,

Just let it go.

We continue to direct our attention to the neck and the shoulders,

The arms,

And allowing ourselves to release any tension or stress that we're holding.

Continuing to bring our attention through the chest and the abdomen,

Our buttocks touching the seat,

Our thighs,

Knees,

Calves.

And ultimately,

Our feet touching the floor.

Now that we have finished this quick scan of the body,

We should find that we're sitting still.

And we can note or label this awareness of the body as sitting,

Sitting.

Of course,

With our eyes closed,

And as we start to be aware of our new internal surroundings,

Our attention may move quickly as we become aware of numerous sensations,

Such as feelings,

Sounds,

Or perhaps even mental images or thoughts.

For this practice,

Because we want to systematically develop our ability to aim our mind and our attention,

We use the breath as our primary object.

As we're now sitting still,

And as we've released any excess stress and strain in the body,

There really should only be one part of us that's actually moving.

Although it's moving subtly,

And that's our abdominal region,

The midriff or the tummy area.

As we sit still,

As the breath comes into our body,

And as we expel the breath from the body,

This area,

The abdomen,

Moves naturally with the breath in a rising and falling movement.

Although the breath can be felt anywhere from our nose to our abdomen,

Because the abdomen is actually moving with the breath,

We'll use this as our object of attention.

Because we're sitting still,

If we start to pay attention to this abdominal area,

We should start noticing the movement.

So take a few moments now,

Sit still,

And start to bring your attention to the rising and falling of the abdomen as it happens naturally.

We don't want to control the breath or the breathing,

But just as we sit still,

At some point,

We'll start to feel our stomach,

Our abdomen moving.

With the in-breath,

The abdomen will rise,

And as the breath is expelled,

The abdomen falls.

So I'll be quiet for a few minutes so you can connect and direct your attention to these sensations of the abdominal movement,

The rising and falling.

Now as you pay attention and as you feel these sensations of rising or falling,

To practice properly,

We want you to label the rising as rising and the falling as falling.

So take a few more minutes to try to bring your attention to the abdominal area.

And as the sensation of rising happens,

Label it with a soft mental label or tag in your mind as rising,

Rising.

And likewise with the falling,

Label it as falling,

Falling.

Saying the phrase falling,

Falling silently to yourself.

In the beginning,

We may find that one note is not enough and two notes are not enough.

In the beginning,

We may find that one note is not enough and two notes is what it takes to note the rising or two notes to note the falling.

Or we may find that the time it takes to note rising or falling two times is too much.

So we need to work with and find out what is the appropriate noting to use.

As we settle down and as we continue to try to focus on our abdomen,

If your attention should wander or move away from the rising and falling of the abdomen,

Recognize that the attention has wandered,

Let go of those other thoughts or feelings,

And then try to redirect to the natural movement of the abdomen as it rises and falls,

Labeling the rising as rising and the falling as falling.

If your attention has wandered and moved off of the breath,

Once we notice the mind has wandered,

We can label it as wandering,

Wandering,

And then consciously redirect the attention to the next breath as it becomes apparent and obvious,

Labeling it for what it is.

The rising is rising and the falling is falling.

For some people,

Because this is a new habit,

It can be difficult finding the rising or falling of the abdomen.

And there's nothing wrong with placing your hands on your abdomen or stomach to help direct your attention to that area.

Placing your hands there can also help you soften your attention.

You can relax that you're not going to miss it.

And as the abdomen starts to rise and when you feel the movement in your hands,

You can note it as rising then.

And as the abdomen falls,

Note it as falling,

Falling.

We want to try and pay attention to the full rising and falling,

The full experience,

The full breath.

But of course,

Along the way,

Our attention may get distracted.

And so we just begin again.

We aim our attention,

We try to pay attention,

We note it,

We label it as rising and falling.

Today we're primarily focusing on connecting with the rising and falling,

And becoming a little familiar with it.

So I'll be quiet for a few more minutes and give you the opportunity to try to focus your attention on the natural rhythm and movement of the breath.

Okay.

So trying to closely establish our awareness on the breath and focusing for two more breaths,

Two more risings and fallings.

And after noting rising and falling and experiencing two more breaths,

When you're ready,

You can open your eyes.

So that's the introduction to mindfulness of the breath.

You've now tried it for the first time,

And hopefully you've been able to recognize and locate the breath,

Our primary object.

And you've had a little taste of what that's like.

You may also have experienced some of the difficulties that we experience when we try to focus our mind and pay attention.

At this point,

You're just beginning,

So it will take time to see the breath more clearly.

In the coming days,

We'll work to develop our skill at paying attention to what's happening in our minds and our minds.