So we're lying comfortably on the floor.
And if that's not going to work,
We're going to sit comfortably,
Propped in a way where you can be as still as possible for the next several minutes.
At any point you do need to move to sew very slowly and mindfully and find a place of stillness again.
We'll be moving our attention through our body and asking each part of our body to relax and let go.
There's no need to move the body.
It's simply a message we're going to send that part of the body.
So as you bring your attention to each area,
Send a mental message to that area to relax and let go.
So begin,
Feel your body on the floor and notice your whole body lying on the floor,
Especially the points of your body that are in contact with the floor.
If you're seated,
Notice the parts of the body that are in contact with the chair,
The cushion,
The floor.
We're going to bring our attention down to our feet.
Notice both feet.
Notice the soles of your feet.
The sides of your foot and the top of your foot.
All your toes.
And then feel your feet relaxing and letting go.
Feel your feet relaxing and letting go.
Move the attention to the ankles,
The outer ankle,
The inner ankle.
Feel the tension expand into the ankle joint itself.
And ask the ankles to relax and let go.
The ankles relaxing and letting go.
Notice the attention moving up into the fronts of the lower leg,
The shins,
The bones of the shins,
The muscles attached to the shins.
And feel that area relaxing and letting go.
Notice the attention moving to the calves,
The backs of the lower legs.
Feel that area of your body relaxing and letting go.
Feel the attention to fluid up to the knees.
Feel the kneecap,
The back of the knee,
The knee joint.
All the muscles that attach to the knee relaxing and letting go.
Let the attention flow to the front of the thigh,
The big muscles on the front of your thigh,
The bones in your upper leg,
The muscles in the back of your upper thighs,
Relaxing and letting go.
Feel your thighs relaxing and letting go.
Notice the attention move into the hip joints and the outer hip.
And then feel the whole pelvis relaxing and letting go.
Feel the pelvis and thighs relaxing and letting go.
Let the attention move into your lower back,
The bony structures and muscles of your lower back.
Feel your awareness and attention expand there.
And ask that whole area to relax and let go.
Lower back relaxing and letting go.
Bring the attention to the mid-back,
All the structures in the middle of your back,
The bones,
The ribs,
The muscles.
And ask all those structures to relax and let go.
Middle back relaxing and letting go.
Let the attention move to your abdomen,
The muscles and organs in your abdomen,
Relaxing and letting go.
The attention up towards your chest,
Feel the muscles and bones in your chest,
Relaxing and letting go.
Whole chest relaxing and letting go.
Now bring the attention to the hands.
Notice your fingers,
Palms,
Backs of the hands and wrists.
Ask your hands to relax and let go.
Feel your hands relaxing and letting go.
Allow the attention to move to the forearms,
Fronts and backs of the forearms,
Muscles and bones relaxing and letting go.
Feel the forearms relaxing and letting go.
Move the attention to your elbows,
Fronts and backs of your elbow area,
Relaxing and letting go.
Allow the attention to move to your upper arms,
Bones in your upper arms,
The muscles in the fronts and backs of your upper arms,
All relaxing and letting go.
Asking them to relax and let go.
Allow that attention to move into your shoulders,
The bones and structures of your shoulder joint and all the muscles that attach to your shoulders.
Asking them to relax and let go.
Shoulders relaxing and letting go.
The awareness moves into the neck area,
Your cervical spine,
The muscles in the front and back of your neck,
All relaxing and letting go.
Asking them to relax and let go.
Allow the awareness to move into your facial muscles,
Muscles of the jaw,
The face,
The forehead,
Even the eyes.
All those muscles relaxing and letting go.
Ask all the structures in your face to relax and let go.
Now bring the attention to your skull,
The bony structures in your head,
All the little muscles on top of your skull,
All the way up to the top of your head,
All relaxing and letting go.
Asking your whole head to relax and let go.
Now bring the awareness to your entire body.
Allow yourself to feel your entire body all at once.
Feeling your body relaxing and letting go on the floor you're lying on or in the seat you're sitting on.
Whole body relaxing and letting go.
Whole body relaxing and letting go.
Now bring your attention to your breath and notice that you're breathing.
And gently begin to extend the breath and allow that breath to bring your consciousness not only into your body but into the room you're lying or sitting in.
Take a few deep breaths.
Send a message to yourself thanking your mind and body for practicing today and this will conclude our body scanning practice for the day.
Aum Shanti,
Thank you for your practice.
