30-minute sitting meditation.
Throughout this meditation today,
We'll be using breath as the primary focus.
I'd like you to find a time and a place where you know you will not be disturbed and you know you can be comfortable.
For this particular exercise,
It is best to sit upright in a comfortable position,
With your back upright but relaxed.
You can be either seated on the floor or in a chair.
Just make sure you allow your spine to support itself if possible rather than leaning back in the chair.
If this is uncomfortable,
Then you may use a cushion to support your seated position,
As long as your back is still upright.
It's important to be able to relax whilst letting your head balance carefully.
It's important to be able to relax whilst letting your head balance on your shoulders and your arms keeping them relaxed in your lap,
With your hands open and unclenched.
This is a time of allowing yourself to change from doing,
Thinking and acting to simply being.
Being aware to what is happening within your own attentiveness right here,
Right now.
And as you sit,
Just noticing sensations of breath.
Noticing how your belly moves on each in-breath and on each out-breath.
Notice the movement of air through your nostrils and the gentle movement of your chest and your shoulders.
Bringing awareness now to whichever part of the breath cycle and whichever part of the body where the effects of the breath are most strong for you today.
That could be your belly,
Your chest,
Your shoulders or the movement of air through your nostrils.
Observing the entirety of the breath,
Observing the entirety of breath.
From the movement of the air coming in and filling the lungs,
Moving the abdomen and the movement of air going out.
And being aware of the pause.
The stopping point between the in-breath and as the out-breath.
And the out-breath and the next breath in.
Seeing and feeling that this breath is all one movement.
Just noticing where that brief pause is.
And then seeing if you can observe the whole cycle again and again.
And then the next breath in.
Recognizing that each part of the breath cycle differs slightly from the last time through.
Notice the intricate differences in your breath rhythm.
Become aware that your attention from time to time shifts away from the breath.
You may find the mind may drift away to concerns,
To memories,
Thoughts of the day,
Anxieties or worries,
Things you need to do,
Lists you need to make,
Conversations you've had,
Or ones you wish to have.
When you notice that this drifting has happened,
Be kind to yourself and gently but firmly bring your attention back to the physical sensations of breathing as the breath moves through your body.
Notice where the mind goes when it wanders away.
Shift your awareness to the sensations of breath,
Without judgment for where the mind has been.
Observe your desire to want to control your breathing as you watch it.
Allow the attention you give to your breath to be light and easy,
Unforced,
And one of gently observing and noticing,
Not of doing and controlling.
And watch the air,
And watch the rise and fall of the breath,
Of the air coming in and out.
And watch the rise and fall of the breath.
And from wherever you were,
Letting your thoughts move away,
Letting them go,
As you come gently back to the physical sensations of breathing.
And watch the rise and fall of the breath.
As you sit here,
Listening to this meditation,
You may notice there are sounds in addition to the sounds that come from this track.
Sounds of traffic perhaps,
From movement nearby or something else going on.
And just notice that your attention is drawn to that perception of sound.
Staying with the sound just long enough to notice the quality of that sound.
The volume,
The pitch,
The vibration,
The tone.
What's the intensity?
Being aware of your tendency in your mind to label the sound as traffic or as voices or as music.
And coming closer to the experience of the sound as it comes to your eardrums.
The shape of the sound.
The rise and fall of the sound.
The length of the sound.
The rhythm.
The pitch.
Its duration.
Then we feel compelled to label a sound,
To give it a name,
To categorize it.
See if you can separate the actual reception of the sound from the name and the label you want to place on it.
Notice that your mind has wandered.
And kindly,
Without judgment,
Bring your attention back to the breath.
Letting your breath be the anchor for your attention.
To be your central point.
So that every occasion that your awareness goes somewhere else,
Rather than the breath,
You can just gently come back to the breath without any judgment,
Without any upset or any internal recrimination.
Just think to yourself,
Oh,
My attention has wandered.
And come gently back.
And let them rest.
Observe opinions you tend to have about things.
Maybe about what you like or about what you don't like.
Perhaps about how this meditation is going,
How you're doing,
Or whether you are comfortable.
Just notice that you have an opinion.
Think to yourself,
Oh,
There's my opinion again.
There's my judgment.
You can notice that judgment,
That opinion.
Notice you've had one and let it drift away.
Let it go.
Building the capacity to notice your liking or disliking and not having to do anything about it.
Observe how freeing it can be to let go of that like or that dislike,
To let that thought drift away.
And as you notice that opinion,
That like or that dislike,
Just bring your awareness to the physical sensations of breath,
Wherever that is most noticeable for you.
Watching one breath cycle after the other.
Feeling and experiencing one breath cycle after another.
In and out.
You may become aware of thoughts about body sensations,
Perhaps of aches or discomforts,
Of pain or of tension.
And as you notice these sensations of discomfort,
If that is happening for you,
And if that is something you've been aware of,
You can choose your response.
Either you can notice the sensation and move to alleviate it with the full intention of shifting the pain.
Either you can notice the sensation and move with intent to shift it.
Or you can bring that sensation or discomfort into your full awareness.
Become curious about that discomfort.
Observe its length,
Its shape,
Its duration.
How your experience is of it at this moment.
The actual physical sensations of tension.
The throbbing,
The tightness,
The pulling or the tingling,
Rather than the story of that discomfort.
Watch your experience of it and staying with the discomfort without having to react to it,
To judge it,
At least for the moment.
If your attention keeps getting pulled back to that area of intense sensation,
Knowing that you have two choices,
Of forming an intention to do something about it and mindfully doing that something but forming the intention first,
Or bringing an attention to it,
A full awareness of how big it is,
How long it is,
What is the duration,
How is it changing over time.
Being aware that you have choice in how you respond.
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And wherever the mind goes in terms of thoughts,
In terms of liking or disliking,
Or perceptions or sensations of hearing,
Of sound,
Of feeling of peace or sadness,
Of frustration or anticipation,
Just noticing that these are all thoughts of form,
Just noticing that all of these are thought forms and that you can bring your attention to the movement of breath.
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