Settling,
Grounding and resting with the support of sound.
So to begin with this practice,
Finding a comfortable posture,
Sitting with our back straight in a dignified position.
So finding a posture that is stable,
Alert,
With a straight back,
But also one that is kind to this body.
So a posture that is also comfortable,
With a sense of ease to it.
And then bringing to mind,
Setting our intention for practicing meditation to cultivate mindfulness.
And recalling our motivation.
Why do you want to cultivate mindfulness?
How do you hope that the practice of mindfulness will be of benefit to yourself and others?
And beginning to settle the mind,
So gently guiding our attention inwards,
And becoming aware of the rhythm of our breathing,
Noticing where we can feel the breath in the body,
And gently resting our focus in a very relaxed,
Gentle way on our breathing.
And then gently inviting our breathing to deepen,
Without forcing the breath,
In breath and out breath,
A little bit deeper than normal.
So breathing in a little bit deeper than normal,
And then gently releasing the breath,
And seeing if it's possible to make the in breath and the out breath of a similar length and rhythm.
And to help us,
We might use counting,
So breathing in on a count of 3 or 4,
And then breathing out on a count of 3 or 4.
So breathing in to a count of 3 or 4,
And breathing out to a count of 3 or 4.
And if counting does not work for you,
You can use phrases,
So breathing in,
I know I'm breathing in.
Breathing out,
I know I'm breathing out.
Breathing in,
I know I'm breathing in.
Breathing out,
I know I'm breathing out.
So breathing in and out a little bit deeper than normal,
With both in breaths,
And out breaths being gentle.
And you might notice that thoughts will continue to arise within the mind,
And that we might find ourselves lost in thinking.
And it is totally normal.
It's part of the deal,
That's what the mind does.
So letting thoughts go free,
Without attempting to suppress them,
Or getting involved with them.
So during the practice of meditation,
We are not trying to have no thoughts,
Or make the mind go blank,
But to notice when we become involved with thoughts,
And thoughts become thinking.
And whenever we notice that,
Acknowledging it,
Letting go of thinking,
And gently bringing the mind back to the breathing and counting.
Breathing in,
I know I'm breathing in.
Breathing out,
I know I'm breathing out.
Breathing in,
I know I'm breathing in.
Breathing out,
I know I'm breathing out.
So once again gently noticing if we're lost in thought,
Wandering off in thinking and reminding ourselves that this is part of the deal,
There is nothing wrong,
And gently bringing the mind back to breathing and counting.
Breathing in,
I know I'm breathing in,
Breathing out,
I know I'm breathing out.
So gently once again noticing if we're lost in thought,
And gently bringing our minds back to the breathing and counting.
Breathing in,
I know I'm breathing in,
Breathing out,
I know I'm breathing out.
And now letting our breath fall into its natural rhythm,
And focusing our attention a little bit more on our out-breath,
And maybe noticing if there is a tendency for the body to relax as the body releases the breath,
And allowing the releasing quality of the out-breath to spread down into the body,
And just as the body releases breath and relaxes,
So the mind releases involvement with thinking,
And begins to settle.
So body releases breath and relaxes,
Mind let go of involvement with thinking,
And begins to settle.
Moving on to grounding,
And becoming aware of the body,
Noticing any sensations within the body,
Noticing the areas of pressure created by the points of contact between the body and the chair,
Or the cushion,
The feet,
And the ground we're sitting on,
Noticing the weight of the body resting here on the ground,
And then becoming aware of the whole body,
And noticing the general felt patterns of feelings or sensations within the whole body.
Maybe there are feelings of warmth or cold areas,
Perhaps there are areas of discomfort,
Tension,
Or relaxation.
What are the patterns of sensation like that we call tension,
Pain,
Or relaxation?
So becoming aware of all the multiplicity of sensations within the body,
Whatever they might be,
And we can do this by gently scanning through the body systematically,
Or just gently opening to whatever sensations draw our attention,
And then becoming aware of the space around the body,
And noticing how all of this body we are inhabiting is surrounded by space and resting on supported unconditionally by the ground beneath us,
And allowing ourselves to rely on the support of the ground,
To give in to this unconditional support of the ground,
While at the same time remaining dignified in our posture,
So as we breathe out,
Letting go of the body into the unconditional support of the ground beneath us,
So breathing out and letting go of the body into the unconditional support of the ground beneath us,
So mind resting in the body,
Body resting on the ground,
Mind resting in the body unconditionally supported by the ground beneath us and surrounded by space,
Resting here now,
And gently allowing our minds to open up to the space,
Nowhere to go,
Nothing to do,
Just being here now at this moment,
At this time,
Nothing to do and nowhere to go,
Nothing to fix,
Nothing to get wrong or right,
Nothing to achieve or strive for,
Not even trying to meditate,
So for a moment just feeling the simplicity of our embodied presence here,
And then when we begin to notice thoughts arising,
Maybe turning into thinking,
Gradually introducing the support of sound,
So coming from the body and with our awareness resting within the body,
We're opening out our awareness to receiving sounds,
So whatever sounds arises is the object of our practice,
And not seeking out any particular sounds,
But remaining open and aware of the entire soundscape,
Watching the arising and passing of sounds,
And seeing if it's possible not to think about the sounds,
Not to get involved in stories or ideas about sounds,
But opening up to the availability of the sounds directly,
As it is,
As a sensory experience and nothing more,
So not thinking,
Analyzing or judging sounds,
So a bare attention of sounds,
And notice how a bare attention of sound can hold our attention in the present moment,
And you might notice that thoughts and emotions continue to arise and fall,
And allowing them to be,
Not trying to stop thoughts or making the mind go blank,
And whenever we notice,
The mind gets involved with thoughts and becomes distracted,
Just notice this without judgment,
Letting go of thinking,
And gently bringing our minds back to hearing sound,
So simply becoming aware of sounds that are occurring right now,
Letting sounds come to us,
So not looking or seeking sounds,
But a bare awareness,
So hearing,
Not listening and seeking sounds,
And we may be aware of distant sounds,
Or perhaps close up sounds,
Sounds within the room or within the body,
And again,
That anytime you notice,
You wander off into thinking,
Acknowledging that,
With no sense of striving,
Gaining or losing,
And gently guiding our awareness back to resting with the arising and passing of sounds,
And may be noticing,
If there is a preference for different sounds,
And if so,
Allowing every sound to be part of the ever changing picture,
As if it were a symphony,
And if at any time you notice thinking,
Gently bringing the mind back to resting within sounds,
Resting gently within a listening body,
And as we come towards the end of this practice,
Noticing the body,
Noticing the weight of the body on the seat or the cushion,
Noticing our breathing,
And acknowledging our presence in the room,
I am here,
And then just resting for a few moments without any particular focus,
And then taking a moment to appreciate the opportunity of familiarizing ourselves with the mind,
Something which we do that is in our deepest benefit,
And before ending this practice,
Forming the intention to carry the practice with us as we continue our day,
So that we embody mindfulness and kindness,
So that the benefits of this practice can spread to others in ever widening circles.
