Hello there,
And welcome.
I'm Azya,
And today I will be guiding you through a practice to support you in navigating emotions and nurturing yourself as you are experiencing emotions,
Specifically water emotions,
As I like to call them.
Now,
I invite you to find a space where you may allow yourself to soften,
Even if just a little,
And even if just for a short while.
A space where,
Ideally,
You will not be interrupted or distracted.
A space that may remind you that,
For now,
There is nothing you need to do,
No one you need to be,
And nowhere you need to go.
I encourage you to bring to the practice anything that may envelop you with a sense of warmth,
Kindness,
And compassion for yourself.
Whether it's an attitude or an item you bring with you,
Such as a blanket,
A mat,
A cushion,
A pillow,
Or loose or warm clothes,
The choice is really yours.
In your own time,
You may find a position where your body is at ease,
Knowing you can make any adjustments at any point throughout the practice if needed.
You might decide to stand,
Lie down on a mattress or a mat,
Sit cross-legged,
Or on a chair with your feet flat on the floor and a straight spine.
Now,
I invite you to bring your hands together over your heart and set an intention to support your practice.
What has brought you here today?
What does your heart yearn for?
Allow the answer to come to you in its own time.
When you're ready,
You may release your intention and trust that it will unfold during the practice in a way that is beyond your control.
Hence,
I encourage you to remain open-minded.
At this point,
I invite you to gently close your eyes and slowly adjust your vision to your inner landscape.
Remember that you are free to pause or interrupt the practice at any point if you wish to.
To anchor your attention,
You may place one hand on the belly and the other on the chest,
Or both hands on the belly if you prefer.
Let your whole body and breath settle into this space.
Notice your breath as it cradles you with each in-breath and out-breath.
There might be sensations that demand your attention as well as more subtle ones.
Allow yourself the time and space to become familiar with what you're able to sense at this moment,
Without trying to make sense of anything or judge your experience.
You may become aware of your mind as an active mind or a more placid mind.
Whatever the case may be,
Your job isn't to fix or change anything,
But to merely become aware of where your mind wanders off to whenever it does.
As you become aware of your thoughts,
Kindly stir your attention back to the breath without giving yourself a hard time.
Now I invite you to become aware of your body,
Its weight pulled by gravity.
You may bring your attention to the areas that make contact with the ground below you.
See if on an exhale you can allow the weight of your body to sink even more deeply into the ground through these points of contact.
Starting from your feet,
I invite you to scan the whole of your body.
Remember not to seek sensations,
But to merely notice whether any sensations arise without assigning any particular meaning to them.
At your own pace,
Allow your open awareness to move from your toes,
Base and top of your feet to your heels,
Ankles,
Shins and knees.
You might become aware of specific sensations such as tingling or itching or the fabric of your clothes covering or brushing your skin.
If you don't notice anything,
That's okay too.
Whatever your experience may be,
Know that it is valid.
I invite you to shift your awareness from your knees to your thighs,
Waist,
Hips and pelvis,
Seeing if you can sense them,
The feeling of them,
Rather than think about them.
Then,
In your own time,
You may move your awareness to the upper part of your body,
Scanning the areas of your belly,
Lower back,
Chest,
Ribs and upper back,
Sensing any areas of tension,
Discomfort,
Ease,
Tightness,
Expansiveness or openness.
I now invite you to bring your awareness to your fingers,
Forearms,
Upper arms,
Shoulders,
Neck and throat,
Simply noticing what is present.
You may then gently move your attention to your chin,
Lips,
Mouth,
Cheeks,
Nose,
Eyelids,
Eyebrows,
Forehead,
Ears,
Scalp and hair,
Curiously wondering what is there.
Now that you have drawn a map of your whole sensed body,
You might have become aware of any emotions or perhaps you were already aware of them.
Every emotion is in fact a sensation or a cluster of physical sensations coupled with a thought or a narrative about ourselves,
Others and the world.
It is helpful to hold this idea in mind and to remember that in order to connect to our emotions,
We must ground our awareness into the body.
If emotions are present,
I encourage you to consider,
On a scale,
Whether you'd describe them as being more on the pleasant or unpleasant or difficult end of the spectrum,
Without judging yourself or your experience.
Where might you place them on a scale measuring arousal?
I encourage you to be with your sensations,
Focusing on them through a compassionate lens,
A lens that reminds you of your humanity and that what you are experiencing is valid and deserves attention.
You might notice the story playing out in your mind about your current experience.
For now,
I invite you to gently loosen your grip on the story as best as you can by anchoring your awareness in your body.
Whenever you notice yourself tensing up against the sensations that are present,
Resisting them,
Your first step is to gently acknowledge your resistance and stir your attention back to the breath or the body,
Allowing yourself to sink into it and be cradled by it a bit more each time.
Give your emotions permission to be here and,
Just as if they were uninvited guests that will eventually leave,
Can you give yourself permission to be in their presence without pushing them away or striving for anything to happen or not happen?
Congratulate yourself for making it thus far in the practice.
Water emotions do not ask you to take action but to merely surrender to them,
Allowing them to wash over you as you nurture yourself.
At this point,
I invite you to bring on board a wise,
Kind,
And compassionate companion.
This may be a best friend,
A beloved relative or partner,
A devoted pet,
Or an imaginary or fictional character.
Imagine them by your side,
Offering you a warm blanket and words of wisdom as you bravely sit with your water emotions.
I encourage you to ask your companion of choice,
What might my emotions need from me right now?
This may be a sincere hug you give to yourself,
Reassuring kind words,
Rest,
A space allowing your authentic self-expression,
Or anything else that may arise for you right now.
As you await the answer,
Tune into your heart and listen as if you could pierce it open with the power of your awareness.
Rather than seeking the answer or expecting it to immediately arrive,
Allow the answer to find you as if it were to be released from the depths of you,
Floating to the surface of your awareness through the swelled waters of your heart.
Whenever the mind wanders off,
Gently stir your awareness back to the sensations in the body or the rhythmic movement of your breath.
When the answer arrives,
Deliver.
Now,
What might this emotion need to hear or know?
Say it out loud.
Your voice is powerful and your words can have a profound effect on your emotions and on your body.
Notice any internal shifts,
However small.
You may repeat the words as many times as you might need.
Perhaps a gentle softening,
Release,
Or relief might take place within you,
Or not,
And that's okay too.
Whatever the case may be,
Trust the process,
Trust your body,
Trust your inner resources for healing,
And trust the wise and compassionate part within you.
Hidden in each emotion is a treasure,
A jewel of profound wisdom,
Which you can only access when you welcome it and allow it to express itself through you.
Your tears prepare the ground for future growth.
You may wish to pause the recording to be with whatever may have emerged for you throughout this process.
Be gentle with yourself as you allow your whole being to return to a state of equilibrium.
To end,
A prayer from my heart to yours.
May you be happy.
May you be well.
May you be free from suffering.
May you come to love and accept all that you are,
Even your mistakes.
May you live with ease.
May you give yourself permission to rest.
May you remember that you are enough,
And may you know joy.
Until next time,
Just love.
