Body Scan For Clarity, Presence & Stability

A 17-minute body scan meditation appropriate for any time of the day, including right before going to sleep. While doing this practice, you apply your faculty awareness to the variety of body sensations in order to establish greater clarity, presence, and stability.

Transcript

So I'll be leading you in a body scan meditation for about 20 minutes.

By doing this body scan,

You are taking an active role in your own well-being.

And as you practice,

I invite you to tap into your innate capacity for awareness to support a sense of wakefulness and alertness throughout.

It is the bringing of this awareness to what you are experiencing that is important.

So don't get caught up in any specific experience itself.

Instead,

Rest in your awareness as you continue to generate that ease and relaxation.

I invite you to find a stationary position that's comfortable for you.

Something where your spine can be straight and something that allows your body to assume a posture where you feel filled with dignity.

Feel free to close your eyes or if you're feeling too tired right now,

Lower them gently so that you can let in a bit of light and maintain your level of awareness.

If it helps,

Look down a few feet in front of you on the floor and just keep your gaze easy and soft.

The first step,

As always,

Is just to relax.

To settle down and let your awareness descend deeply into the space of the body,

Going right into this mode of immediate awareness where your body is in contact with the ground.

Begin by bringing your full attention to your belly.

Notice it rising and falling.

And as you do this,

Allow the breath to be natural.

You may find in this moment that your breath is fast or slow or it might be deep or shallow.

And simply notice the experience in your body and the way it feels right now in this moment.

If an urge to control the breath wells up inside of you,

Just watch it and let it go.

And observe the breath as it does exactly what it wants to do.

Bring your attention to your left foot.

You can wiggle your toes if you like,

Then let them be.

Consider what sensations you notice here.

Is there tingling or warmth or coldness or no sensations at all?

All you need to do is notice what's there for you right now in this moment.

When it feels right,

Let the left foot dissolve in your awareness and bring your attention to the lower left leg.

The area between the ankle and the knee.

If it's available to you,

Tense the muscles in this area,

Then let them relax.

What do you feel?

Does it change when you bring awareness to it?

Notice sensations as they come and as they go.

And on an out-breath,

Gently refocus your attention and experience the sensations in the upper left leg.

Feeling the top,

Bottom,

And sides of this area.

Consider any sensations that you notice.

If there's tension,

Just let it release on an out-breath as you go deeper and deeper into a state of stillness and relaxation.

Simply remaining aware of whatever is present for you.

And now bring your attention to your right foot.

What sensations do you notice here?

Is there any tingling or warmth,

Any coldness,

Or maybe no sensations at all?

Again all you need to do is notice what's there for you in this moment.

And when it feels right,

Let the right foot dissolve in your awareness and bring your attention to the lower right leg.

The area between the ankle and the knee.

You can tense the muscles in that area if you like.

Then let them relax.

How does this feel?

Does it change when you bring awareness to it?

Notice any sensations as they come and as they go.

And on an out-breath,

Gently refocus your attention and experience the sensations in the upper right leg.

Feeling the top,

The bottom,

And sides of this area.

What sensations do you notice?

If there's tension,

Let it release on an out-breath as you go deeper and deeper into a state of stillness and relaxation.

Continue being aware of whatever is present.

When you're ready,

Bring attention to your buttocks and pelvic area.

If you like,

You can tense the muscles in this area and then let them relax.

Feeling the top,

Bottom,

And sides of this area.

What sensations do you notice?

Just observe anything,

Any sensations as they come and as they go.

And on an out-breath,

Gently refocus your attention on your torso,

The area above your pelvic floor,

Your stomach,

All the way up to the top of your diaphragm.

Noticing any sensations that arise here.

Continue to bring your awareness upwards through the body to the chest.

What do you notice here?

Is there warmth or coldness,

Any tightness or looseness?

If there is tension,

Release it on an out-breath as you go deeper and deeper into a state of stillness and relaxation.

Simply remaining aware of whatever is present.

When you're ready,

Bring attention to your lower back,

The area above your pelvic girdle.

Remain curious and open.

Tune into whatever rhythms are present in your body.

Notice the intensity and quality of each sensation and allow yourself to be curious.

Allow the in-breath to fill any areas of tightness and to the extent possible for you,

Expel the discomfort with the out-breath.

And on an out-breath,

Let your attention focus on your upper back,

The area between your shoulders.

What do you notice here?

Simply be aware of whatever is present for you.

Gently focus your awareness on your shoulders,

The round top,

Back and sides.

Notice the intensity and quality of sensations in your shoulders.

Allow the in-breath to fill any areas of tightness and to the extent possible,

Expel the discomfort with the out-breath.

Bring your attention to your left hand.

You can wiggle your fingers if you like,

Then let them be.

What sensations do you notice?

Tingling or warmth or coldness?

No sensations at all.

It doesn't matter.

All you need to do is notice what is there for you in this moment.

And when it feels right,

Let the left hand dissolve in your awareness and bring your attention to the left arm,

The area between the wrist and the shoulder.

You can tense the muscles in that area if you like,

Then let them relax.

What do you feel?

Does it change when you bring awareness to it?

Observe any sensations as they come and as they go.

And on an out-breath,

Gently refocus your attention and experience the sensations in the right hand.

Again,

Wiggling your fingers if you like or if this is available to you,

And then let them be.

What sensations do you notice?

Is there tingling or warmth?

Is there coldness?

Or maybe no sensation at all?

All you need to do is notice what is there for you in this moment.

And when it feels right,

Let the left hand dissolve in your awareness and bring your attention to the left arm,

The area between the wrist and the shoulder.

If it's useful,

You can tense the muscles in that area as well,

And then let them relax.

What do you feel?

Does it change when you bring awareness to it?

Notice sensations as they come and as they go.

And when you're ready,

Let your awareness travel to your neck and head.

What do you feel here?

Whatever sensations arise are okay.

Simply notice.

Simply observe.

And allow the in-breath to fill any areas of tightness,

Any heaviness or cloudiness,

And to the extent possible,

Expel the discomfort with the out-breath.

Being aware now of your face,

What do you feel there?

Is there warmth or coolness?

Any tingling?

Does it feel solid or more fluid?

Maybe there's tightness or looseness.

Being completely curious and open,

Allow yourself to tune into whatever rhythms are present in your body.

Noticing the intensity and quality of each sensation,

Allow yourself to be curious.

Allow the in-breath to fill any areas of tightness,

And to the extent possible,

Expel the discomfort with the out-breath.

And now expand your field of awareness to include all the sensations throughout the body,

From the soles of the feet to the top of the head,

Allowing each in-breath to completely fill the body,

And each out-breath to settle and relax both body and mind.

And delight in the opportunity to experience the body in its natural stillness and ease,

And allow yourself to indulge in what's arising for you.

In this moment,

Know that you have the opportunity to accept yourself just as you are,

Knowing there is nowhere to go and nothing to do.

Feeling complete,

Feeling whole,

Feeling at ease and at peace,

Knowing that whatever it is you are experiencing is what it's like to be alive at this point of your life,

In this moment.

In a moment,

I'll invite the bell,

Signaling the end of our meditation.

And in your own time,

Gently return to your normal state of awareness.

Until then,

Rest in your own stillness and silence,

Knowing that this state of peace can be yours at any time,

Simply by taking a few deep breaths and cultivating a gentle sense of stillness and ease.

Reviews

Speaking voice and pacing are wonderful. Calm and matter of fact. I stayed focused and present the whole time and wasn't ready to end.

Wonderful & Clear. Xx
Namaste 🙏🏾

It's a nice body scan, in a slightly different order than I'm used to. The bell at the end is a bit jarring/loud, though.

Beautiful, thank you!

Feel soooo calm, peaceful and grounded now, beautifully soothing voice, thank you so much 🙏🏻💗

Amazingly effective. No ‘stories’ just awareness. Loved it!
Thank you so much 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

Lovely
Thank you

🌿✨💜✨🌿 Thank you. Xxx

Thank you. 🙏🏾🧡

Thorough and gentle, a perfect start to the day. Thank you!

I love this it’s what I need EVERYDAY MOMENT BY MOMENT. Thank you so very very much

Excellent. Thank you!

Very relaxing- wonderfully paced !
Thank you 🙏

Great job- I just got confused between right and left arm . Soothing voice

Your voice is enough. Thank you for not including background sounds or music.

Very nice! Thank you 🙏

Great!! Thank you!!

Lovely, thank you 😊

Extremely powerful - highly recommended

Thank you, perfect pace & just what I needed to re charge ❣️