Welcome to this meditation.
I'm your guide Billy and I'll be leading you through today's meditation.
So let us begin by getting into a comfortable position,
Either sitting in a chair in a dignified posture with your back away from the back of the chair,
Chest proud,
Feet flat on the floor,
And hands wherever they're most comfortable.
Or if you prefer,
You can lie on the floor with your feet uncrossed,
Falling away from each other,
Arms at your side.
And now that you've found a comfortable position,
I invite you to close your eyes,
Or if it's more comfortable,
You can simply lower your gaze.
And let's take a moment to settle in using our breath with a long,
Slow,
But even inhale through the nose,
And then slowly letting that air back out at the same slow,
Even rate through the nose on the exhale.
Taking a few deep breaths like this,
Inhaling slowly and evenly,
Focusing on filling your belly with air,
And then slowly and evenly,
Gently letting your belly fall on the exhale.
And now find the natural rhythm of your breath,
Still taking in the air through the nose,
And filling your belly with that air,
And on each exhale,
Letting the air pass through the nostrils gently,
While softening the belly.
Using these breaths to quiet the mind by just focusing on your breath,
Each inhale and each exhale,
Allowing yourself to simply just be.
And during this practice,
You'll notice that your mind may wander or get lost in thought.
Just know that's very normal.
It's what the mind does.
So when that does happen,
Bring awareness to where the mind went,
And then gently bring your attention back to our intended focus.
Allow your body to settle and rest down into gravity,
Letting it be supported by the floor beneath you.
Gradually allow your awareness to gather around the sensations of the breath in your body.
Pay attention to where you feel your breath most strongly.
Be curious about your actual experience,
Letting go of what you think should be happening,
And being with your experience without judgment.
Now very gently,
Rest your awareness within the whole torso.
Feel your belly swelling on the inhale and subsiding on the exhale.
Feel any movement and sensations with the breath in the sides of the body and the back of the body.
Gradually inhabit your body a little more deeply,
With a sense of kind curiosity towards whatever you're experiencing as you breathe.
Remember to be accepting of whatever's happening.
See if you can cultivate a precise awareness of the sensations and movement of the breath in the body as they happen,
Moment by moment.
Allow your awareness to be utterly receptive as it rests upon the natural movement of the breath.
Allow the breath to be saturated with kindness as it rocks and cradles the body,
Soothing any stress,
Pain,
Or discomfort you may feel.
Now become aware of any thoughts and emotions.
Remember,
Mindfulness isn't about having a blank mind.
It's normal to think.
Mindfulness is the training whereby you cultivate awareness of what is actually happening physically,
Mentally,
And emotionally.
Through mindfulness,
You can gradually change your perspective and feel you have more choice in how you relate to life.
Be aware of what you are thinking and feeling without either blocking the experience or getting overwhelmed by it.
Remember that you are not your thoughts,
Even though we often think that we are.
As you develop perspective on your thoughts and emotions,
Especially the undermining ones,
Let those go.
They no longer serve you.
Notice how your thoughts are continually changing one moment to the next,
Exactly the same way your breath is always changing.
Use awareness of the movement and sensations of the breath in your body as an anchor for the mind over and over and over again.
Follow the breath all the way in and now all the way out.
Each time your awareness wanders,
As it will,
Simply note this and return to the breathing anchor time after time after time,
Moment by moment.
Make sure you're very kind and patient with yourself,
Even if you have to start over a hundred times.
Mindfulness is all about failure.
Remember that each time you notice that you have wandered away from your breath is a magic moment of awareness,
A moment where you've woken up from a distraction,
A moment of choice.
So when you catch yourself having wandered off,
You're succeeding in the practice,
Just as you're succeeding when you manage to stay with the breath.
And as we bring this practice to a close,
Allow yourself to come back to your breath,
Feeling the air pass through the nostrils on the inhale and on the exhale,
Expelling the air evenly and naturally through the nose.
And when you're ready,
I invite you to open your eyes and take inventory of the sensations of your body and bring awareness to your surroundings.
