Welcome to this 10-minute morning motivation meditation.
I'm Karen Baginski.
We'll combine a little bit of movement along with meditation to shake off dullness and lethargy so you can show up with a natural sense of motivation for the day.
First,
Arrive in a comfortable seated position of your choice,
Whether on the floor or a chair.
You can visualize any of these movements we're about to do rather than actually moving your body.
Do what's available and best for you today.
Now empty all your air out the mouth until you feel an emptiness in the pit of the navel.
Inhale and reach or visualize both of the arms moving up overhead.
Exhale as you interlace the fingers at the top and turn the palms upward.
Inhale and reach upward from the armpit area,
Feeling your ribcage expand.
Exhale and keep the reach upward but soften your face,
Neck,
And shoulders.
Continue to breathe in and out,
Closing your eyes if you like,
Breathing generously here and filling yourself up like a balloon.
Let the front,
Back,
And sides of your body expand outward three-dimensionally as you breathe in,
And then relax and release inward as you breathe out.
Become aware of any sensations you're noticing in the arms and torso.
Feel this from the inside,
Radiating outward.
Be present with the breath as it moves in and out of the nostrils for one more complete round of breath.
Now as you breathe out,
Release the grip of the fingers and slowly lower your arms outward and downward to your lap.
Rest the hands in the lap or on the knees with the palms up or down.
You may choose to touch the index and thumb tips together in Yana Mudra.
Settle your body comfortably,
And if your eyes are open,
Gently close them.
Allow your natural breathing to return.
Sense your pulse and breath slowing and relaxing to an effortless pace that's right for right now.
Now soften the lips and jaw.
Open yourself to a new way of thinking and being today.
What has come before is in the past.
Be gentle with yourself,
Especially if you've been feeling down,
Depressed,
And unmotivated lately.
It's okay to feel like this.
And in this moment,
You can shift your focus to something different.
You'll continue to use the breath to create a profound feeling of steadiness and calm energy in the body.
Begin by locating and sensing the breath in the throat center.
Imagine as if you were breathing out your mouth to fog up a mirror.
You can try this now if you like.
Exhaling and feeling the muscles of the inner throat contract slightly to create that sound,
Like hh,
Hh.
Now create this sound internally.
Closing the lips,
Breathe in and out gently with a soft whisper-like sound in the inner throat.
Use just enough effort so that both the in-going and out-going breaths sound like a soft,
Gently rolling ocean wave.
This is Ujjayi Pranayama,
Or victorious breath.
As you continue with the sound,
Listening through your inner ears,
Sense that in this moment you are calm and secure.
Nothing else needs to happen in this moment,
Just you and your breath.
Now begin to lengthen out the breath in both directions.
Keep the sound and simply add a little more to the end of the inhale and the end of the exhale.
The breath becomes longer without strain or great effort.
Continue for some time in silence.
Add a quality of smoothness to the longer breath.
Smooth out any sharp edges in the breath and feel it pool and swirl from inhale to exhale and exhale to inhale.
The whisper sound becomes smoother.
Continue smoothing out the breath now.
Finally,
Experience a softness in the texture of the breath.
Continuing with the sound,
Feel a softness arrive in the whole region of the throat.
Jaw,
Tongue,
Mouth,
All relaxed.
Softness in the whole neck,
The shoulders,
And collarbones.
Wrap yourself in the experience of softness as you listen to just your breath.
Sense all three qualities riding the wave of your breath.
Longer,
Smoother,
And softer.
Feel a deep steadiness abiding in your heart.
A natural motivation that arrives from connecting with your center.
The true self who is unburdened and free from limitations.
As you continue Ujjayi Pranayama,
Receive these words spontaneously as your own.
I am grateful for this new day.
I embrace the possibilities today may bring.
I experience natural motivation when my body and breath are connected.
I welcome support and guidance in all its forms.
Sense the whole body,
Breath,
And mind connected,
Stable,
And serene.
Flowing with positive energy and motivation for this day.
Now allow your breath to return to an effortless natural pace.
Release the muscles of your throat and the sound.
Stay present and aware of any sensations and feelings that are here with you now as a result of your practice.
Begin to move and stretch yourself however you like with the support of the universe within and around you.
Slowly open your eyes to end the meditation.
