As I create this,
I am sitting in front of the ocean.
It is calm,
Vast,
With no impediments to the view.
The pencil-thin line of the horizon separates the deep blue of the water from the pale blue of the sky.
Can you imagine what I am seeing?
There is a warm,
Balmy breeze blowing,
The air that gently massages you with its tenderness,
So comforting and embracing.
The waves are glistening,
But the waves' white hems that can light up a nighttime sky are not always tiptoeing in today,
But are restless and raucous at times as they hit the shore with frothy playfulness,
Shedding effervescence across the earth's stones,
Coating them and polishing them as they meander amongst them.
And whilst it is a relatively calm sea,
The waves are still coming to me quite loudly,
It seems,
Demanding me to pay attention to their arrival.
Here I am,
They say.
Here I am.
And then they recede back out,
Knowing I've had to heed their call.
I don't think there is a more beautiful sound than this,
That of the waves speaking,
And the waves are always with us.
As you sit or lie down comfortably,
Let us enter our practice by envisaging waves coming into shore,
Like waves of breath.
Take soft,
Long breaths,
Emulating the waves coming in,
And long,
Slow breaths out as the waves recede back out into the vastness of the ocean.
Waves do not necessarily come and go at the same pace,
And each are unique.
So as you envisage waves coming and going,
Just settle into your own rhythmic breathing pattern,
Calm,
Soft,
And restful with every round,
Inhaling cool,
Briny air,
Exhaling warm,
Soft breath,
Waves in and out,
Up and down,
Rising and falling.
Think of the breath riding on each wave,
Becoming the waves.
At times,
The mighty ocean is restless,
And at times,
The ocean is placid,
Always in motion,
Always changing.
Just like us,
Dreamy or lucid,
Grumpy or patient,
Icy,
Tepid sometimes,
Waves of sadness,
Waves of joy,
All will pass just like our emotions,
Waves symbolic of change,
Renewal,
Beauty and chaos,
Just like our mind,
Breaths in and out,
Up and down,
Rising and falling.
You will hear my voice occasionally gently enticing you back to sense and envisage the waves coming forth,
Receding,
Coming forth,
Receding,
Coming forth,
Receding,
Resting,
Reviving with all their healing glory,
The waves inhaling and exhaling,
Just like you.
It is the glistening that catches the eye,
As though the heavens have accidentally dropped handfuls of stars on top of the ocean,
The stars reflecting the sun through a myriad of gleaming beads,
Arriving,
Leaving,
Each wave can be a thought,
Here for now,
And then leaving,
Leaving,
Each wave an emotion,
Here it is,
Leaving,
Leaving,
Each wave a goodbye,
Each wave a letting go,
Each wave a release,
Each wave receding to freedom,
Envisage the ocean,
Hear the waves,
Observe their strength and power,
Change and emotion,
Ebb and flow,
The waves,
Our thoughts,
Our emotions,
Receding back out into vastness,
Waves,
We move,
Adapt,
Transform,
Grow,
And flow,
This is our human experience,
And then the ocean rests and becomes as calm as a mirror,
So that the sun and the moon may look down and admire their reflections,
Each wave a thought,
Here for now,
Leaving,
Leaving,
Each wave an emotion,
Here it is,
And then leaving,
Leaving.
Each wave a goodbye,
Each wave a letting go,
Each wave a release,
Each wave receding back out to freedom,
The ocean vast,
Deep,
Constant,
The waves,
The thoughts and emotions rising from its depth,
Rising from the subconscious mind,
The realm of emotions,
This is our human experience,
Observe them and let them go,
In the words of the yoga master,
Swami Sivananda,
In the interval which separates two desires,
A perfect calm reigns in the mind,
It is at this moment freed from all thought,
Love or hate,
Complete peace equally reigns between two mental waves,
And then just like the waves,
The breaths return to their source,
Rest,
Rest with peace in your heart,
Om Shanti,
Shanti,
Shanti Om,
Peace,
Peace,
Peace.
