Welcome to this visual meditation.
I invite you to take a comfortable seat.
You can sit cross legged keeping the spine nice and tall,
Pulling the shoulders back and down.
Maybe you are on a chair or couch or maybe you are leaning up against a wall for support.
Just find a comfortable seated spot.
Now close your eyes down,
Just start to notice your breath.
Don't change it,
Just notice each inhale and exhale.
As you stay focused on your breath begin to relax the body,
Unclenching your muscles.
Take a full body scan beginning at the top of the head and working your way down.
Letting any tension you are holding on to leave with each exhale.
Notice your breath,
Notice the air entering your body in your inhale,
Your lungs expanding,
Your tummy filling.
On exhale notice the air leaving your body,
Your belly dropping,
Your lungs contracting,
The air coming out of your mouth or nose.
I invite you to breathe through your nose from this point onwards.
So in through the nose and out through the nose.
Take another deep breath here,
Deep breath in,
Deep breath out.
Notice your breath is becoming more slow and controlled.
Just allow each breath to relax your body as you release tension each time you exhale.
We will now get ready to go on our journey.
Keeping your eyes closed I want you to create a picture in your mind of a quiet retreat in the mountains.
Imagine yourself in a cozy cabin,
Looking out the window you can see the snowy landscape and you notice the cabin is on a mountainside surrounded by trees and boulders.
Looking out the window you can see a crack in between two large rocks and you notice there is a trickle of steaming water.
The snow all around this trickle of water is melted exposing the grey rocks.
You can see the water flows down into a natural pool with steam rising above it.
Imagine you are wearing sandals and a warm bathrobe over a bathing suit,
Prepared to go explore the hot springs.
You begin opening the front door of the cabin and step out into the snow.
As you walk briskly along the path some of the snow touches the top of your bare feet.
It's so cold.
You feel a tingly almost burning sensation where the snow has touched your skin.
As you rush towards the water seeing the steam rising from the hot springs there is so much steam the air around you is foggy.
You reach the side of the hot springs where the water has melted the snow all around and the springs are perfectly clear and made of rock.
The water at the side of the springs is shallow.
You take off your bathrobe,
Lay it on the warm rocks where the snow has melted and step out of your shoes into the steaming water.
The water at the edge of the pool is ankle deep.
After the feeling of the cold snow the water feels hot on your feet.
The air around you is cold and you notice snowflakes begin to fall softly.
To get relief from the cold you step further into the hot springs and can see that the rocks make natural seats in the water.
You begin to slowly lower yourself down into the water which comes up just below your chin.
You feel the luxurious warmth all around you,
Your hands and feet feel tingly and hot at first eventually settling into a pleasant feeling of warmth.
The water is just the right temperature,
Your feet rest on the smooth rock bottom of the hot springs and you can lean back against the gently sloped stone sides of the pool.
Imagine leaning back and closing your eyes with a sigh.
Allow your body to completely relax,
The warmth of the water surrounds you.
Let your arms rest at your sides floating just a little.
Allow the muscles of your arms to relax completely.
Your arms feel heavy and relaxed,
At the same time weightless.
It is such a calm and pleasant feeling.
Feel your neck and shoulders relaxing,
Surrounded by warmth.
The healing water brings relaxation and calm.
As your shoulders lower slightly relaxing and easing the tension away,
Becoming loose and relaxed.
Feel your upper back relaxing,
Your collar bones and chest.
You are so relaxed,
You can feel the water against your skin gently moving.
You feel the occasional bubble tickle your skin as it brushes against you while it rises to the surface of the water.
Allow your stomach and lower back to relax,
Let go of any tension left in your body.
Feel your legs relaxing all the way from your hips to your knees to your feet.
Your legs are so warm and relaxed,
Like your arms your legs feel heavy but also weightless as they float slightly in the water.
Feel the warmth all around you,
The hot springs soothe your muscles,
You can relax completely.
Feel the coolness of the snowflakes on your forehead,
It feels so pleasant,
A wonderful contrast from the hot water.
Let all your stresses escape,
Drifting away like the rising steam.
Notice the beautiful scenery around you,
Snow,
Trees and rocks peering through the fog.
It is so quiet here,
The only sound is a quiet trickling of the water from a crack in the rocks,
You can hear the water as it flows into the pool.
Just relax,
Enjoy these beautiful hot springs.
When you are ready to reawaken and return to the hours ahead,
Imagine stepping out of the hot springs onto the warm dry rocks beside it.
See yourself putting on your bathrobe and sandals and going back inside the cabin.
The snow that touches your feet feels pleasantly cool and helps you to wake up.
Imagine opening the cabin door and going inside,
The cabin is warm and dry.
You keep with you a feeling of warmth and calm as you gradually return to the present.
Notice your actual surroundings and become orientated to where you are right now.
Move your arms and legs and feel your muscles waking up.
Sit quietly for a moment with your eyes open,
Just to return to full wakefulness.
Thank you for coming on this journey with me,
Enjoy the rest of your day.
Namaste.
