Take a moment to find a comfortable position,
Whether you are seated or lying down,
Or maybe you choose to stand for this meditation.
If you're seated,
You might rest your hands on your lap or against your thighs,
And if you're standing,
Let there be a soft bend in your knees,
Resting your arms along your side.
And wherever you're at,
Find some length through the spine and soften the shoulders.
And we'll begin with a few rounds of what is referred to as a physiological sigh.
And this is just two inhales,
The first one longer than the second,
And then an exhale out the mouth.
So begin by letting out all the air you currently hold in the body,
And then take a deep inhale through the nose,
Pausing when you still have a little bit more air to take in,
And then take a shorter inhale,
And then exhale out the mouth.
So again,
A deep first inhale,
Pause,
And then a second shorter inhale,
Followed by a slow exhale out the mouth.
And one more at your own rhythm.
And then just letting your breath return to its natural rhythm.
Do a brief scan through your body,
Noticing if there's any areas that are already ready to let go of any tension,
Maybe areas that have just been waiting for a little space in the day to soften,
Maybe in your forehead or your jaw,
The shoulders,
The hands,
Maybe in the chest or in the torso.
And as you move through the body,
Just giving yourself a moment to settle here,
To give yourself permission to soften a little bit more and to breathe a little bit deeper in this intentional space in the day.
And now tune into the points of the body where you can most easily feel the pressure of the surface below you.
So this might be in your tailbone or in your sit bones.
If you're lying down,
Maybe it's in your upper back,
Or if you're standing,
It might be the soles of your feet.
And see if you can let your full awareness be here,
Whether it's in one part or multiple parts of the body that are connected to the floor.
And you might imagine that these points are connected directly to the earth,
And that you can feel the solid support system of the dense earth and the soil and all the roots that are connected to each other beneath your body.
And if it's helpful,
You might imagine roots growing from these points of connection between your body and the earth,
Roots coming out of the soles of your feet,
Or from your tailbone,
Your sacrum,
And let them grow as deep as they need to,
Maybe 20 feet,
50 feet,
Sensing how much support you need now.
And now as you feel those roots tethering you to the support of the earth,
You might imagine branches growing upwards through the crown of your head,
Or if you're lying down through the heart center,
Growing your branches long and wide,
Connecting you to the expansiveness of the sky.
Now bringing your awareness to the breath,
And just noticing the natural in and out flow of the breath as it comes into the body and as it releases.
Feeling your torso expand with each gentle inhale,
And then feeling it contract as you release,
Soften.
And just being here in this silence and in this spaciousness for these next few moments as you tune into your root system and your branches,
Each connecting you to earth and sky,
And to your breath,
Connecting you to life.
