Today on the Bodhi Effect,
Feeling happiness when life is difficult.
We'll begin by lying down or coming to a seated position.
Wherever you are,
Draw your shoulders away from your ears.
Soften your face.
Release your jaw.
Relax your fingers.
Relax your feet.
Release your hips.
Focus on having a strong back and a soft front.
Begin to inhale through your nose powerfully,
Filling the heart,
Filling the belly.
Start your lips and exhale,
Let everything go.
Again,
Deep inhale.
And exhale.
Deep inhale.
And exhale.
Continue your breath just like this.
And while you're breathing,
Notice any places or spaces in the body where you are holding tension or tightness.
Drawing awareness to this,
Without any judgment,
I want you to imagine that this tension is like a big ball of string.
And as you breathe into it,
Breathing right into that place,
I want you to watch that tight ball of string begin to unravel.
Begin to free up that space,
Allowing that breath to begin to move into that tight place.
Seeing how that feels.
Continue like this,
Scanning the body.
And when you feel ready,
Begin to draw awareness to your throat.
The throat,
That fifth chakra,
The gift that gives you the ability to speak what you think,
How you feel.
And as you draw awareness to your throat with no judgment,
Just notice if you feel tension,
If you feel tightness or any sort of a grip in that space.
Begin to breathe into it again,
Making sure that those breaths are powerful.
Every word that we speak has an energy behind it.
Whether you realize it or not,
The words that we carry,
The words that we use,
Whether we speak to others or ourselves,
Have so much energy and so much power.
Words are symbols of an energetic vibration.
When we use low level words,
We have low level experiences.
We need to choose our words wisely.
Our words matter.
You matter.
And the space that you hold inside yourself matters.
Happiness comes and goes.
This is part of being human.
But how do you transition to a space of happiness when you feel that darkness come over?
Happiness is a choice,
Even when life is difficult.
When you change your narrative,
When you change your words,
You can change your life.
Continue deep breathing here,
Powerfully into the heart,
Powerfully into the belly.
I'm going to read you a series of words here,
And I just want you to draw awareness to how you feel.
Notice how you feel when I say the following words.
Deep breath in.
Exhale.
Anger,
Guilt,
Fear,
Hate,
Jealousy,
Sadness,
Shame,
Grief,
Depression,
Anger,
Fear,
Fear,
Jealousy,
Sadness,
Shame,
Grief,
Depression,
Frustration,
Doubt,
Terror,
Judgment,
Panic,
Failure,
Anxiety,
Stress,
Confusion.
Deep breath in.
Part your lips,
Exhale.
Two more.
Joy,
Peace,
Love,
Happiness,
Serenity,
Calm,
Laughter,
Bliss,
Radiance,
Confusion,
Fear,
Contentment,
Playful,
Encouraged,
Supported,
Acceptance,
Harmony,
Inspire,
Optimistic,
Smile,
Excited,
Surprised,
Successful,
Relaxed.
Deep breath in.
Exhale.
Two more times.
How do you feel?
How do you feel?
Notice the differences between each word.
Notice the energetic vibration that you feel between each word.
You have the power to change your narrative.
You have the power to change your words.
And you have the power to change your life.
It's a practice.
It's a muscle to build.
To find small joys every day.
Share them.
Speak of them.
Write them down.
You can find happiness when life is difficult.
This doesn't mean that it cancels out the hard.
This doesn't mean that this cancels out the difficulty.
But soon,
I promise,
The joy will outshine the darkness.
Happiness is a choice,
Even when life is difficult.
Last body scan before the end of your practice.
Notice the tension,
The tight spaces that you may still be feeling inside.
Breathe into it.
Feel that release.
Feel that softness.
Before you open your eyes,
Let's end the practice with one thing that we are grateful for in our lives today.
What is your small or big joy?
Now go share it.
Say it out loud.
Write it down.
You can find happiness even when life is difficult.
Come back into your body.
Begin to flood your eyes open.
Come back into your room.
Thank you so much for sharing your practice with me today.
Much love.
