Namaste and welcome to the fourth day of our meditation journey.
I hope that this is proving to be a safe daily check-in space for you.
Today I'm excited to introduce the ideas of mantra,
Sankalpa,
And affirmation into our practice.
This is my favorite way to sit in meditation and one that I have the most experience in guiding.
Mantra comes from the tradition of Hinduism.
Traditionally it is a sacred utterance that is thought to possess mystical spiritual quality.
It is repeated throughout meditation.
The most well-known mantra for this tradition is probably OM.
OM is believed to be the sound of creation,
The sound of the universe.
This style of meditation can also involve a repeated statement or intention.
Examples of this could be healing,
Gratitude,
Or rest.
This is known as a sankalpa and is most used in nidra meditation.
There's a huge array of nidra meditation here on Insight Timer.
A repeated affirmation can also be used.
An affirmation is a positively loaded phrase or statement that is used to challenge unhelpful negative thoughts.
Affirmations can motivate,
Encourage,
And boost self-esteem.
Our mantra for today falls most closely into this category.
We will use it as a guiding principle for our session that we will repeat.
It will anchor us in practice.
It is about remembering our worth.
The statement is,
I have enough.
I am doing enough.
I am enough.
I think that this is an important piece of information to hold near to our hearts in this world that frequently tells us the opposite.
Let's find a comfortable position now so that we can settle in for our guided mantra meditation.
As we have been doing,
We'll spend a little bit more time in quiet than we did yesterday.
We are up to nine minutes today.
The time will signal the beginning and end of practice.
Gently close your eyes.
Check in with the breath.
On your inhale,
Feel the ribcage expand,
Belly rise.
Exhale slowly and gently.
Let this breath anchor you in your practice and in presence.
Notice the sounds,
Near and then far.
Let them move through you without judgment.
Now let's check in with touch.
What can you feel?
The earth supporting you?
The fabric of your clothes on your skin?
What else is here now?
Check in with your mind.
Is it in a monkey mind,
Jumping from this to that?
You can imagine your thoughts as clouds moving across the sky as we have done before.
Or perhaps today,
Experiment with your mind being a deep,
Still ocean.
Our thoughts are like waves on the surface.
They can be there and not stir up what is deeper.
Inhale to really notice the inhale.
And when you exhale,
Really notice what it feels like to exhale.
Now I would like to reintroduce our mantra for this practice.
I have enough.
I am doing enough.
I am enough.
I am doing enough.
Let the truth of those words really sink into your soul.
I will repeat the mantra once more,
And then we will continue silently inhaling.
I have enough.
I am doing enough.
Now repeat silently in your mind.
Let's have a quick check in.
How is your breath?
Return to the inhale that allows your ribcage to expand and your belly to rise.
Let your exhale be slow and gentle.
If your mind has wandered like a playful puppy,
Gently welcome it back.
Come back to our mantra.
It is,
I have enough.
I am doing enough.
I am doing enough.
Continue this silently in your mind.
Gently open your eyes if you haven't already.
Notice how you feel.
Would you like a stretch?
Listen to your body.
I want to thank you so much for joining me today.
I look forward to the next time that we meditate together.
Next class is the final class of our journey.
Let's end by bringing our palms together at the chest in Anjali Mudra.
Namaste.
