Welcome my friends to this meditation for January.
Find a comfortable seat.
You may be sitting in a chair,
On a cushion,
Or allowing yourself to lean back gently against a wall if that will help you remain present and at ease.
Invite your shoulders to soften away from your ears,
Lift your heart just a little,
Creating some space for your breath.
Let your hands rest easily,
Maybe in your lap or on your knees,
Or you could use a mudra,
One that feels familiar and supportive.
If it feels comfortable,
Allow your eyes to gently close,
Otherwise lower your gaze.
Find a soft,
Unfocused point to look at.
Take a few long,
Slow,
Deep breaths here.
Inhaling through the nose.
Exhaling fully through the mouth.
Again,
Breathing in through the nose.
And letting that go through the mouth.
With each deep breath you take,
Feel yourself arriving more fully into this moment,
Into this practice.
And then just releasing the breath back to the body.
Take a moment to reflect that the busyness of the festive season is now behind you.
The invitations,
The expectations,
The movement,
The noise have softened.
And here we are in January.
January offers us something quieter,
An invitation to lean into the energy of winter,
And to remember the quiet magic of resting in stillness.
Your meditation practice,
No matter how short,
No matter how infrequent,
Creates an oasis of stillness.
A place you can visit where you're not required to fix or improve or become anything else.
It's a place where you can listen.
Noticing what arises in the silence.
The silence that lives at the heart of stillness.
Now this quiet,
Inward energy of winter doesn't always sit comfortably alongside the cultural pressure of New Year,
New You.
But the season invites reflection rather than reinvention.
This gentle turning inward.
It's a chance to notice what you might like to nurture,
Protect,
Or tend quietly now.
So when the awakening energy of spring does eventually arrive,
Something has already taken root.
So in this meditation,
This meditation for January,
We're going to use stillness not to change ourselves,
But to meet ourselves.
To accept whatever thoughts,
Feelings,
And physical sensations are present here today.
No old you,
No new you,
Just you,
Exactly as you are.
For the next couple of minutes,
I invite you to gently observe what's occupying your mind.
Noticing thoughts as they arise without trying to change them,
Chase them away,
Or follow them too far.
If it's helpful,
You might softly name the thoughts as they appear.
Planning,
Worrying,
Remembering,
Judging,
Daydreaming.
And there's no need to label these thoughts as good or bad.
Just notice their tone,
Their repetition,
Their movement.
And if you get too caught up in one,
As soon as you notice,
Just gently return to observing.
And you can do this again and again,
It doesn't matter how many times.
I'll keep a track of the time.
Now we're going to see if we can turn down the volume of the monkey mind.
Imagine yourself taking a few steps closer to that oasis of stillness and silence.
We're going to do it with a body scan.
Taking our kind,
Loving,
Accepting awareness down through the body,
Very slowly.
So let your attention go up to the crown of your head.
Become aware of the space above you and around your head.
And let your awareness slowly move down over the scalp and the face.
Softening the brow as you go and clenching the jaw.
Bringing awareness to your neck and throat.
Noticing if there's any tightness or holding.
Can you let that go?
Inviting this area to soften,
Creating space for expression and ease.
Let your attention now move to your shoulders.
Places that often carry so much.
Imagine them melting downward without any effort.
Bring awareness into your arms,
Your elbows,
Wrists,
Hands and fingers.
And as your attention moves through the body,
Becoming aware of sensations.
They may be physical,
They may be emotional.
Those thoughts and feelings that come up.
Might be warmth,
Coolness,
Heaviness,
Lightness,
Happiness,
Dissatisfaction.
Or maybe very little at all.
Gently shifting your attention to your chest and upper back.
Maybe you notice the rhythm of your breath here.
Feeling the rise and the fall of the body as you breathe.
Moving awareness down into the belly,
Allowing it to soften and receive the breath.
Continue down through the hips and the pelvis.
Feeling the support beneath you,
The chair,
The floor,
Or maybe the wall behind you.
Bringing your awareness to your legs,
Your knees,
Calves,
Ankles and feet.
Feel yourself rooted,
Supported and held.
And then just for a moment or two,
Resting in awareness of the whole of your body.
Just aware of all of you,
Just as you are.
Now gently bring your attention to your heart centre.
That's the space in the middle of your chest.
Begin to notice the breath moving in and out of this space.
Going to take some heart centred breaths.
That means as you inhale,
You're imagining the breath flowing directly into your heart space.
And as you exhale,
Just being aware of the breath softening and releasing from the heart.
You're not looking to create a particular feeling,
Just noticing what's already there.
We welcome whatever arises.
We're not trying to fix or understand.
Just to allow.
Be present with what is.
Breathing in,
Receiving the breath into the heart.
Breathing out,
Releasing the breath from the heart.
We'll do this for another couple of minutes.
Again,
I'll keep track of the time.
And if the mind wanders,
And it probably will,
Gently escort it back to the breath in the heart.
Breathing in,
Receiving.
Breathing out,
Releasing.
Going to give the breath back to the body,
But keep our awareness in our heart space.
And we'll finish our meditation with a short mantra practice.
So the silent repetition of a short phrase.
And today we'll use Aham Premah.
This simple phrase simply means,
I am love.
Aham Premah.
You might choose to repeat Aham as you breathe in.
And Premah as you breathe out.
Equally,
You could just allow the mantra to settle into its own rhythm.
Allow it to be steady and gentle,
Unforced.
If thoughts arise,
Let them come and go.
Softly return to the mantra each time.
You're not trying to create love here.
You're simply remembering it.
Aham Premah.
I'll keep a track of the time.
I invite you to release the mantra.
Rest here for a few moments in a gentle,
Open awareness.
Nothing to do.
Nowhere to go.
A few moments to simply be.
As this meditation for January comes to a close.
Gently noticing your body once more.
Aware of your breath.
Aware of the support beneath you.
Before you open your eyes,
I offer you these words.
May you honour the quiet wisdom of winter.
May you trust the value of rest and reflection.
May what needs to lie fallow be allowed its time.
And may what is ready to grow be gently tended.
In its own season,
At its own pace.
Take a final deep,
Long,
Nourishing breath in.
And slowly breathe it out.
When you're ready,
You can softly open your eyes or lift your gaze.
I hope you can carry this stillness with you.
Within you.
A place you can always go back to whenever you need it.
Until next time.
Goodbye.
