Lying Body Based Meditation

Lying body-based meditation to improve sleep quality and body relaxation using body awareness, breath, and visualization. Can be done on a bed, floor, or yoga mat. Useful for all levels of experience and ages.

Transcript

Find yourself a comfortable lying position.

You may be lying on a bed,

Lying on the ground,

Lying on a yoga mat.

The main thing is whatever position you're in,

Just make sure that the body is long,

Comfortable,

Relaxed.

Put the back,

Legs,

Head and arms in contact with the ground.

During this meditation,

We're going to use those points of contact against the ground to help us relax the body,

Settle the body and release any tension throughout the body.

Take a moment to adjust yourself,

Adjust the head,

Adjust the arms,

The hips,

So that you can find that position that you're able to rest in for the next 15 to 20 minutes.

We're going to bring our attention just to the breath to begin before we move through those points of contact.

Just want you to bring your attention to your belly.

Just place two hands on your belly.

As you inhale slowly,

Feel the belly rise like a balloon on the inhale and deflate like a balloon on the exhale.

Inhale inflate,

Exhale deflate,

Inhale inflate,

And exhale deflate.

Just continue working through breathing into the belly diaphragmatically.

Feel the hands lightly rise on the inhale as the belly expands.

Feel the hands lower on the exhale.

From here if you're comfortable,

Remove the hands back to your sides but still have this awareness of the belly.

Feel the belly rising,

Feel the belly falling.

Every time your mind wanders,

Which it naturally will,

Bring your attention to the belly rising on the inhale and lowering on the exhale.

From here,

Keeping your awareness with your breath,

You can release the belly a little now and let the breath be more natural.

I want you to draw your attention to the back of your head,

To the point of contact against the ground,

The pillow,

The floor,

And every time you exhale I want you to let that point become heavier,

Emptier,

Softer.

It's nearly like an experience of it spreading out across the ground,

The pillow,

The floor.

With every exhale the muscles of the face release,

The back of the head releases,

And the muscles in the neck.

Everything releases away into that point of contact at the back of the head.

From here,

Still keeping an awareness of the back of the head,

Draw your attention to your left shoulder blade.

Feel the weight and the shape of your left shoulder blade.

The pressure against the ground,

The bed,

The floor.

Again with every exhale just feel the muscles around the shoulder blade release.

Feel the sensation as if the shoulder blade was spreading out against the ground,

The floor,

The bed.

Go on heavier,

Emptier,

Warmer,

Softer.

Every time your mind wanders,

Which it naturally will,

Just bring your attention back to this point of contact and back to the release on the exhale.

Keeping your awareness with the back of the head and the back of the left shoulder blade,

Draw your attention to the forearm,

Elbow,

And hand as one long contact point.

Feel this long contact point against the ground,

The bed,

The floor.

Every exhale,

That point of contact releases,

Spreads out against the ground,

The floor,

The bed.

The fingers relax,

Elbow,

The upper arm.

Feel the area becoming heavier,

Emptier,

Warmer,

Softer.

Spreading out against the ground,

The floor.

Keeping your awareness with the back of the head,

Back of the shoulder blade,

Left side and back of arm,

Left side.

Draw your attention now over towards your right shoulder blade.

So there's still a background awareness of the left arm,

Left shoulder blade and back of head.

But now most of our awareness is with the right shoulder blade.

The weight and the shape of the right shoulder blade against the ground,

The bed,

The floor.

Every exhale,

Feel that point of contact become heavier,

Emptier,

Softer,

Warmer.

All tension releases away into the ground,

The floor,

The bed.

Still keeping that awareness in the right shoulder blade.

Bring your attention now to the forearm,

Elbow and hand of the right arm.

Feel it as one long contact point against the ground,

Bed,

Floor.

Every slow exhale,

Feel the muscles in the hands,

Elbow,

Forearm,

Upper arm release.

Feel that point of contact becoming heavier,

Emptier,

Warmer.

Just feel the whole upper back,

Arms and head warm,

Heavy,

Relaxed.

Feel that movement through the back of the head,

To the back of the shoulder blades,

To the back of the arms,

The upper back.

With every exhale,

Feel this as if it was one big point of contact.

Every exhale,

That point of contact releases,

Becomes heavier,

Warmer,

Softer.

Keeping that awareness on the contact points of the upper back and arms and head.

Feel more of your attention now to the back of your left butt.

Feel the contact of your left butt,

Hips against the ground,

The bed,

The floor.

From your exhale,

Feel that point of contact becoming heavier,

Emptier,

Warmer.

Keeping that awareness of the back of the left butt.

Keep your attention now to the back of the left leg,

Especially the back of the heel and the back of the calf of the left leg.

Feel that stronger point of contact of the heel and the back of the calf against the ground,

The bed,

The floor.

That was one long point of contact.

Again with every exhale out,

Just feel all tension drain away.

Heavier,

Heavier,

Warmer,

Heavier,

Emptier.

Keeping that awareness with the left butt,

Left calf and heel.

Feel your attention to the right butt.

Feel its weight and shape against the ground,

The mat,

The bed.

With every slow exhale,

Feel that area becoming heavier,

Softer,

Warmer,

Emptier.

Keeping that awareness of the right butt,

Draw your attention to the right heel and calf as one long point of contact.

Again with every exhale,

Feel a release,

Feel the area becoming warmer,

Heavier,

Softer,

Emptier.

Now feel the left and the right butt and the left and the right calf and heel as one long point of contact.

Feel the area becoming heavier,

Emptier,

Softer,

Feet and toes relaxing and releasing.

Now layer on top the back of the head,

The back of the shoulder blades and the back of the arms.

So we're feeling the body as one full unit against the ground,

The floor,

The bed.

Try and give in to the letting go and the weight in the contact points.

Work through five breaths to really deepen this experience.

We'll be inhaling for a count of four and exhaling slowly out for a count of six.

As you exhale out you can release through the mouth or the nose but you may find that the mouth gives you a deeper release and you'll be inhaling through the nose.

I'm going to count you through those five breaths.

Inhale four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Exhale out six,

Five,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Inhale four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Exhale four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Exhale six,

Five,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Inhale four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Exhale six,

Five,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Final breath.

Inhale four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Exhale six,

Five,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Exhale six,

Five,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Close the practice in the more traditional Tibetan way dedicating this practice not only for our own better but the benefit of all beings we come in contact with.

As you hear the dedication just have a sensation in your heart of compassion for yourself and passion for all beings.

Om Dari Dari Bandarisvaha Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya.

Reviews

Just what I needed after not the greatest or longest sleep. Just a little bonus to make me feel rested before I begin my day. Thank you!

Lovely instructions and great chant at end. Didn’t use it as sleep aid, but I imagine it’d be good for that. Thank you.

Very relaxing, thank you.