So let's sit and be with our joyful breath together.
You know what you're doing now.
Setting or lying down,
Pull a headstand if you want to.
Take a nice deep breath in.
Breathing out.
Gently close your eyes.
And let's begin by giving ourselves a hug.
So bring your right hand over to your left shoulder.
Bring your left hand over to your right shoulder.
Or you can swap them around if that feels better.
Then gently press down on your shoulders,
Pushing yourself down into the ground.
Taking another deep breath in.
Breathing out.
Pushing yourself down a little bit more.
Physically bringing yourself back down to earth.
Feeling held by the surface that you're sitting or lying on.
Then bring your hands down to your upper arms and give them a little squeeze.
And then place your hands wherever you need to,
Around your sides,
Around your arms,
To give yourself a hug.
And if you notice that there's anything from the day you can't quite shake off right now,
Just give your arms and hands a little shake.
Then gently bring your hands down to a comfortable place.
Now gently bring in your awareness to your breath,
As it moves in and out of your nose.
You might feel it just at the tip of your nose.
And feeling the cool air coming in,
And the warm air going out,
Keeping it simple.
Softening your face,
No need to make any effort,
Just being with your breath,
Being breathed,
As if the universe is breathing you,
Air is moving into your body and out,
Without any effort at all.
And maybe noticing the tone of your breath,
Does it feel rough or smooth?
Does your breathing feel long and drawn out,
Or maybe shorter and shallow?
No need to judge,
Letting your breath be how it is.
Feeling the in-breath,
A crescendo that builds,
Then fades,
Then a short pause,
Then the out-breath,
Building again,
And then gently fading at the end,
And then another pause.
And as you sit here breathing,
Imagine that you're breathing in light.
And with each out-breath,
Imagine breathing out what no longer serves you.
And as you breathe in light,
Breathing in a sense of joy,
Connecting with your inner smile.
Smiling throughout your body.
And now also breathing out joy and light,
As an exchange with the universe.
So breathing in joy and light,
And breathing out joy and light.
And then imagining your whole body dissolving into this light,
And this sense of joy.
Your whole body breathing,
Breathing in life,
Giving out life,
Breathing in joy and light,
Breathing out joy and light.
And continuing to sit,
Being breathed by the universe.
And you also might want to take a few breaths for someone else,
Someone else that could use some kindness right now.
Someone else that could use some space,
Some joy,
Some light.
Or you may wish to take a few deep breaths for this planet.
Time is but a stream I go fishing in,
I drink at it.
But while I drink,
I see the sandy bottom,
And detect how shallow it is.
It's thin current slides away.
But eternity remains.
Henry David Theroux Now gently bring your awareness to your whole body,
Sitting here.
Feeling grounded and safe,
And held.
Then take a deep breath in.
Breathing out.
And gently opening your eyes,
As we end this meditation.
