Hi,
Hello,
Bonjour,
And namaste.
This is a daily gratitude practice.
I hope that you will find it to be supportive and that you come back to it again and again.
Finding a comfortable seat or lying down if that feels more supportive for you in this moment.
Close your eyes.
Let yourself settle in.
Take a moment to feel into the points of contact between your body and either the seat or the floor,
The cushion,
The mat underneath you.
Noticing any sensations of support,
Weightiness,
Texture.
Notice that your body is being held and supported in this moment.
Putting your attention on the breath,
Either at the nostrils,
At the chest,
Or at the belly.
Or perhaps connecting to a sense of your whole body breathing in this moment.
Noticing the movements that come with the inhale and the exhale.
Gathering your attention.
Noticing the quality of your breath in this moment.
Is it long,
Deep,
Or shallow?
Noticing the quality of the breath can give us a sense of how we are doing.
Because the breath is the language of our nervous system.
Notice that you can move the breath to your will,
So you can elongate it,
Making the next inhale a longer inhale to the count of five,
And following it with a long,
Slow,
Smooth exhale also to the count of five.
A couple of more rounds in your own time.
Now,
Placing your attention at the chest area,
At the heart.
Can you feel a sense of your heart beating in this moment?
Perhaps sensing pulsations,
Even if very subtle.
If that feels too faint,
You can place one or both of your hands right at the heart center.
As you make this connection to your own beating heart,
I'd like you to bring to mind someone that you feel grateful for in this moment.
It could be a friend,
A family member,
Anyone that comes to mind.
It could be a pet.
Who are you grateful for today?
I'd like you to visualize this person or this being,
And to connect to a moment in time where you felt a strong connection,
Deep feeling of love and affection belonging to this being.
Can you let your whole body receive the memory and feel the feeling of gratitude?
Right now,
Can you relax open with this feeling of gratitude,
Of love?
Noticing the swelling and the moving of the sensations that come with the feeling of gratitude.
Can you let yourself revel in the feeling,
The connection,
And the sensations?
Now letting go of this being,
I'd like you to connect to something that you are grateful for in this moment.
It could be the most mundane and casual of things.
It could be your cup of coffee or tea.
It could be an item that makes you feel connected and supported.
Whatever it may be,
What are you grateful for?
In this moment,
It could be a practice,
A discovery.
What are you grateful for today?
Again,
If you can,
I'd like you to project and connect to the experience.
And feel the feeling of gratitude move within you throughout the body.
Notice the dance of sensations and stay with it.
Connecting to whatever you are grateful for today.
To close this guided practice,
I'd like you to send yourself some wishes of well-being and loving-kindness.
Repeating silently,
May I be well,
May I be happy,
May I feel peaceful,
May I feel loved,
May I remember these feelings of gratitude throughout the rest of my day.
Thank you so much for meditating with me.
I am grateful for you and your practice.
Om Shanti.
Namaste.
