So you're beginning by settling into your meditation posture,
And that's the one that feels right for you today.
So if you usually sit for meditation and today you feel very tired and you need to lie down,
Then giving yourself permission to do that.
Meditation isn't about rigidity,
It's about meeting ourselves moment by moment.
And taking a nice deep breath in.
Breathing out.
Gently close your eyes.
And just begin by sitting,
Noticing how your mind is right now.
And however it is,
Bring some acceptance to whatever's here for you.
There could be a lot going on in your life at the moment.
There could be many thoughts pulling you in,
Demanding your attention.
So as an act of kindness towards yourself,
Knowing that you can leave these thoughts alone,
Accept that they are there,
And see to what extent you can let them go.
And paying particular attention to that judging mind,
That one that thinks something is good or bad.
You are that something that arises before thought,
Awareness,
A loving presence.
And as you sit,
Letting go of effort.
And we can give ourselves a bit of a helping hand in doing this non-doing by allowing our bodies to relax.
So relax your shoulders,
Your face,
Your arms,
Your hands,
Your chest,
Your abdomen.
Letting your belly fall out.
So often we're self-conscious of this area,
We hold it in.
So see what it's like to really let your belly just fall out.
Allowing yourself to be just as you are.
There's no one to impress.
There's no performance.
There's nothing to be done.
Just sitting with yourself as you are,
In a kindly,
Gentle presence.
And relaxing your legs and your feet.
Making sure you take care of every toe as well.
So see what it's like to consciously relax each of your toes.
Allowing the weight of your body to sink into your chair.
Softening into this moment,
Whatever it brings.
And you can scan through your body,
Notice if there's any tension there as well.
And in the same way you did with thoughts,
Leaving it alone,
Letting it be.
So if there's pain or discomfort,
Noticing to what extent,
You can let it be there.
Knowing that you can move if you need to,
Adjust yourself,
Even get up if it's too much.
But knowing that it's also okay to leave it be,
Allow it to soften.
Allowing any anxiety to bubble up,
Move back down.
Allowing any tension to be there.
And this is how you are.
There's nothing to change.
Cradling your experience in a wide,
Spacious awareness.
And tuning into your breath as well.
Noticing it in your whole body.
Feeling your breath making your body rise and fall.
Noticing that expansion and contraction in your chest.
Feeling your shoulders rising and falling.
All the while allowing any tightness or tension that appears in any of these areas to be there.
There's no need to change what you notice.
It's here.
You breathe in.
Your chest expands.
Maybe you notice a tightness in your belly.
You breathe out.
Allow your shoulders to fall down.
Allow your belly to move outwards.
Soften and release.
Let it fall away.
And then the next breath.
Letting go.
And beginning again.
Moment by moment.
Now just inviting you to continue to sit with your breathing wherever feels best for you.
So noticing it in your whole body,
Maybe at your nose.
Or you can put your hands on your chest and feel it in the centre of your heart.
So continuing to breathe and sit with a kindly presence.
Thank you.
Thank you.
And if the outside world or a story in your head seemingly invades your space,
Welcome it all in.
It's come to visit.
Offer it presence.
Offer it kindness.
And know that you don't need to dive in and try and figure it out.
Sitting alongside it and allow it to move on whenever it's ready.
Continuing the practice of no effort.
And even if your mind wanders off away from my guidance,
That's okay.
Allow your mind to wander.
Allow your thoughts to flow.
Why change something that naturally occurs in every human being?
We have the gift of thought and we also have the gift of presence.
And we have the choice not to follow our thoughts.
So notice what it's like to allow your mind to wander without judgement.
Those thoughts that pop up and say that you're not a good meditator.
That you're not doing it right.
That you are away for the whole meditation and only noticed a few words.
See what it's like to let that be your experience today.
To be the mind wanderer.
Continuing to sit and allowing those moments of presence and stillness to come in.
Clarity.
Peace.
And then it can seem like we're off again.
Somewhere else other than here.
But you're still here.
As awareness.
Welcoming everything in.
All experience.
Knowing that when the thoughts and the emotions arise.
The could have's and should have's.
The why's and the what if's.
They're not who you are.
You are always and always have been the presence underneath all of this.
Just you.
Perfect.
Beautiful.
And whole.
And continuing to sit in presence.
A presence that can hold anything and everything.
Even the feelings of vulnerability.
Fear.
Anxiety.
Depression.
There is no other way to be.
Other than how you are.
All rivers return to the sea.
So I invite you to continue to sit and breathe in presence.
And then it can seem like we're off again.
As awareness.
And all experience.
All experience.
And whole.
And whole.
And whole.
And whole.
And whole.
And whole.
And whole.
And whole.
And whole.
And whole.
You You You You You You Peace is life love is life No River holds a grudge against a rock in its path No leaf refuses to blow in the breeze No plant denies water or sunshine We as human beings have the gift of self-awareness But this gift quickly turns into self-destruction if we do not learn to use it We must learn to turn our minds towards the peace and love that we have flown within any given moment This is the key to serenity Allowing those words to settle and go wherever they need to Or continuing just to sit with your own sense of presence Leaving those words be if they don't mean anything to you right now You You And then moving your senses more into the outside world Noticing the space that your body takes up in the room that you're in Noticing the light through your eyelids And noticing the energy rising as thoughts begin to move in about the rest of your day Seeing what it's like to continue this thread of presence And you might want to pause throughout your day for 20 or 30 seconds and just reconnect with your body A sense of care and kindness in the way that you have done in this meditation And now gently open your eyes as we end this meditation wishing you a wonderful morning day or night You
