A breath meditation.
I'm going to sit so that you feel comfortable,
But awake and alert.
Making sure that you can sit comfortably for about 10 minutes.
Sitting,
Just allowing the weight to sink down into the chair or the floor.
Just allowing the weight of the body sink down into gravity.
And being aware of sensations in the whole body as you sit here.
Noticing how you're feeling.
Perhaps asking yourself,
How do I feel?
Not trying to change anything,
Just acknowledging what's going on for you right now.
What's the emotional landscape like?
Gathering up your attention now.
Just noticing the breath.
Noticing the breath moving in the body.
We're just noticing it.
The movement of the chest with the breath.
We're not thinking about the movement,
But feeling it.
Where can you feel the expansion of the lungs?
Perhaps take your attention there.
Not trying to breathe in any certain way.
There's no right way to breathe.
Just allowing the breath to breathe itself.
Come in and go in.
Noticing that sense of expansion of the lungs inside the ribcage.
The whole of the ribcage moving with the breath.
Coming down now to pay attention to the movement of the stomach and the abdomen.
Just being aware of the gentle rise and fall of the tummy as you breathe.
The whole of that soft part of the body from the bottom of the ribs right the way down to the pelvis.
Gently moving with each breath.
Perhaps the breath is deepening as you sit here in the stillness and the calm.
Where have your thoughts gone?
They've probably taken you away as they do over and over again.
Try not to be critical and not to get carried away with the thoughts,
But just to gently bring your attention back to this part of the practice.
Where we're just following the breath in the body.
The whole of the front of the body breathing.
Gathering up your awareness now and taking it round to the back of the body.
The base of the spine and all across the lower back.
Just being aware of the movement of the breath there.
More subtle at the back of the body than the front of the body.
But it's still moving with each breath.
Just noticing the rhythm of the breath there in the bottom of the back of the body.
Coming to the middle of the back,
The waist,
The movement of the breath there.
The top shoulder blades,
The space between the shoulder blades.
The back of the body gently moving with the breath.
And as we notice the back of the body breathing,
It's usually gently deepening that breath as we relax into the practice.
Just noticing the breath in the body.
Coming up to the shoulders now.
Perhaps noticing some more movement there.
A gentle rise and fall of the shoulders with each breath.
Noticing the changes from breath to breath.
The rhythm of the breath.
Each breath different.
Perhaps being aware of the natural rhythm.
Gently coming and going.
Like waves on a beach.
Gently coming in and going out as you sit here.
And where's your attention now?
If it's gone out of the window,
Rushing off into the future or thinking about the past,
Then just gently,
Gently bring it back to what we're doing now.
Let's take our attention now to the very tip of the nose or maybe the mouth.
But just looking at where the air first enters the body.
Noticing any sensations there.
What can you feel?
Just being curious and responsive to the movement and the sensations.
Perhaps just inside the nose.
Perhaps on the lips.
But just noticing any sensations.
Really narrowing that spotlight of attention.
Just being aware in this moment with this breath.
Broadening out now.
To be aware of the whole breath again.
Flowing all the way in and all the way out.
And imagine it filling the whole body.
From the tip of your nose right the way down to your feet.
Every part of the body.
The front and the sides and the back.
Filled with your breath.
Being aware of your whole body sitting here.
Whole body sitting here.
Dropping now all effort and all focus.
We're just sitting here doing nothing.
Nothing to do.
Nowhere to be at this moment.
Letting go.
Just before we move allowing the effects of the practice just to settle.
And once again asking yourself how do I feel?
How do I feel now?
Becoming aware now of the sounds in the room or outside.
Just awareness of the weight of your body on the chair or the floor.
Gently starting to move at the edges of the body.
The fingers and the toes.
Before gently,
Gently,
Gently opening your eyes.
Carrying on with the activities of your day.
