Welcome.
Find yourself a quiet place to sit and settle into a chair,
A cushion,
The couch,
Whatever is most comfortable for you,
Keeping in mind your intention is to be wakeful and alert through this meditation.
Notice the contact that your body is making with the seat,
How it supports you,
Sensing the body breathing,
Noticing where the breath is most vivid for you.
Not judging how the breath is,
Just a gentle awareness that you are breathing.
In the way a butterfly touches down on a flower,
Touching gently on the sensation of the breath as it flows in and out,
In and out.
Let's begin by bringing your awareness to the top of your head,
A gentle awareness of any sensations that are present here.
I will pause to allow you to settle and take some time to notice.
Allow your awareness to explore the sensations arising in the scalp,
In the forehead,
Receiving sensations that are generated in the forehead.
Allow yourself to feel all sensations completely and non-judgmentally.
Notice how the forehead connects to the temples and receive this area with a soft willingness to let all feelings just be.
Inviting the tension around the temples and eyes to relax,
Bringing a gentle awareness to the eyes resting in their sockets,
The bone that supports and cradles the eyes.
Continue to explore and notice sensations in the cheeks,
Or perhaps no sensations at all,
Just a gentle awareness.
Feeling the teeth within the mouth cradled in the gums,
Moment to moment arising of sensation.
How does the tongue lie in the mouth?
Is it pressed against the upper palate?
Does it lay on the floor of your mouth or curled against the teeth,
No right way,
Just exploring?
The lips,
The softness here,
Exploring the jaw muscles,
Inviting the jaw to soften and open to mercy and kindfulness.
Receiving life within the body as you are aware of sensations.
Meeting all sensations with a merciful awareness,
With an open-heartedness.
Sensing the nose,
Any tingling,
Sensation of the air's temperature.
The ears have a great deal of sensations and tend to hold tensions.
So how are your ears in this moment?
Softening and just allowing sound to be received by the ears,
Rather than straining to hear sounds.
Now aware of your entire face,
The whole head,
Soft skin,
Hard bone,
The vibrational quality of your head,
Nothing to do,
Just receiving the sensations as they are generated by the body's aliveness.
Receiving the awareness of sensations and moving down into the throat,
Softening more deeply here to become aware of any tension in the throat and neck.
Perhaps there is some fear,
Tension of things left unspoken,
Or the tensions of swallowed anger,
Inviting compassion here,
Breathing in and out,
Softening into this region of the throat and neck.
Bringing kindness and mercy to this area that may be holding old pains.
Breathing in,
Breathing out,
Gently receiving this mind-body which wishes to be whole and to heal,
Sending well-being into the neck and the throat.
Softening to receive your old compassion for old experiences.
Sensing the weight of the head,
Resting on the neck muscles or on the pillow,
And how the muscles flow down to form the shoulders.
Allow your awareness to receive these muscles with gratitude,
Receiving the aliveness that's vibrating here.
Perhaps feeling the breath gently moving the muscles of the neck,
Exploring the sensations in your shoulders and how these muscles flow down the arms,
Through the biceps,
The elbows,
The forearm,
And the energy that moves into each palm and finger.
Is there an awareness of tingling,
Warmth,
Or coolness?
Perhaps aware of multiple sensations arising at once and also dissolving,
Receiving the life force moment by moment,
Exploring the aliveness and vibration of being in a body,
Breathing,
Trusting the breath to flow in and the breath to flow out,
Sensing the heart beating within the body as it brings nourishment to each cell,
Sensing the lungs receiving the breath of life,
Feeling the presence of life in each sensation,
Feeling into the torso region,
Inquiring what's here,
Warmth,
Coolness,
Perhaps new sensation,
Or discomfort,
Pain,
Inviting healing to enter wherever your awareness is directed,
Sensing the miracle of body as it's touched by loving awareness of a clear mind and a softening and compassionate heart.
Inviting now this kind awareness to move into the back at the top of the spine and moving down the spine,
Aware of each vertebrae after another,
Being bathed in loving kindness,
Moving very slowly down the spine to the base,
Connecting into the pelvic region,
Sensing into the wonder of the spine supported by strong muscles of the back.
Now bringing your focus to the pelvic region with a gentle awareness to whatever thoughts,
Emotions,
And sensations arise as we explore the body down towards the lower torso,
Lightly exploring this area,
The stomach,
The intestines,
The kidneys,
Bladder,
Sexual organs.
Just bring a very gentle awareness to this region,
Noticing sensations,
Sounds,
Movement,
Dullness,
Feeling the movement as the breath moves in and out of the torso.
Moving your intention down into both legs,
The thighs,
Knees,
Lower legs,
All the tiny bones that make up the ankles,
The feet,
And any sensations here,
Warmth,
Coolness,
Tingling,
Or numbness.
Grateful for the feet that carry us.
Now expanding your awareness to include your entire body as a whole,
Breathing,
Perhaps sensing the whole body breathing in and out,
In and out,
Whole body connected to the breath,
To the air,
And to the world.
Settling here for the next few moments,
Sensing your wholeness,
Your completeness,
Your beauty just as you are.
Returning awareness back into the room and inviting this awareness and kindness for the body to return with you,
Taking time to move slowly and gently as you return to your daily life.
