Beginning by taking any seated position that feels most comfortable and appropriate for you.
Laying down is okay for this meditation,
But try not to fall asleep.
Simply becoming aware of the breath as it rises and falls.
Simply become aware of the sensations of breathing.
Allowing the breath to rise,
Crest and fall away,
Naturally,
In its own time.
There is no need to force the breath in,
Nor to force the breath out.
Simply noticing the sensations of breathing.
And as we do this,
Notice that the breath will naturally deepen itself.
As we focus on the breath as it rises and falls,
Open your awareness also to all of the sensations in your body.
But just for our meditation now,
Placing no opinion or image upon these sensations.
There are no good sensations or bad sensations.
Just see if it's possible to simply observe the sensation as it is,
Without placing any opinion or judgment upon the sensation.
Simply feel what is happening now.
A sense of allowing everything that is happening within the body.
Opening awareness out to all of the sounds around us.
And even if there is no sound,
Simply becoming aware of the silence.
And recognize that any sound that may arise does not have to pull our attention away from our meditation.
If there is sound and noise,
Simply be aware of this also.
Keeping attention on the breath as it rises and falls.
Becoming aware here of any thoughts and feelings that may be arising in the mind.
But just as we are not paying attention to any of the sounds around us,
Also pay no attention to any thoughts or feelings that may be arising within the mind.
Just as the breath comes and goes.
Just as the sensations in our body come and go.
Just as the sounds around us come and go.
So too,
All thought,
All feeling will come and go.
A sense of allowing all to come and go.
And for our meditation now,
We are simply not getting involved with any thought or feeling.
We are not going to analyze or interpret any thought or feeling,
Any sensation within the body,
Any of the sounds around us.
It is simply a sense of observing,
Accepting and allowing.
But there is nothing to be done.
No analysis required.
No judgment or opinion required.
Simply observe what is happening now.
Bringing attention fully into the here and now.
There is no past.
The past has been and gone.
And now can only exist in your mind as memory and imagination.
So no need to pay attention to any thoughts of past now.
Simply letting go.
So too,
The future does not actually exist.
The future can only exist in your mind as worry,
As planning,
As imagination and prediction.
And all of these things arise within the present moment.
So just for this time now,
No need to get involved with any thoughts of future.
Now we will find that the mind continues to chatter and will attempt to pull your attention away from the present moment.
And this is okay.
This is the mind doing what it does naturally.
But just for our time now,
Simply do not get involved.
Remain confident in your ability to keep attention on what is happening now.
Using the breath as an anchor point into this present moment,
As it rises and falls.
Keeping attention open to allow the sensations in the body to rise and fall.
And all of the sounds around us,
They arise within the present moment.
We cannot hear the past,
We cannot hear the future.
So all sounds arising can help us to remain present.
Now,
To deepen our practice and our sense of peace,
There are some things that we can safely let go of.
And letting go of these things will allow us to bring our attention fully into the present moment.
So we're going to take a balloon,
A helium balloon,
With a strong pull upwards.
And to this balloon we are going to attach some things.
Some things that do not serve us.
So firstly,
Attaching your name.
This could be your first name,
Last name,
Any nicknames you have,
And also any titles you may have.
These may be useful symbols,
But ultimately they are just symbols.
So placing any names to this balloon now.
And if you find at any moment that your mind has wandered,
This is okay.
But just for our meditation now,
Try to bring your mind back to this present moment.
There is no need to become frustrated if we find our attention has wandered.
Next,
We are going to be attaching any numbers that we feel might represent us in some way.
This could be your age,
Your height,
Your weight,
Your salary,
Even your phone number and address.
Ultimately these things are just symbols.
They may be useful symbols,
They may represent something about you in some way,
But ultimately they are just symbols and exist only in your mind.
So taking these numbers now and attaching them to the balloon.
Next,
The story of you that you have been telling yourself all of these years.
This story that continually plays in your mind.
This narrative that has built up.
Just for this time now,
Let us close this story.
We can get this back later on if we wish,
But just for now let us give ourselves a break from telling this story to ourselves.
And so closing that book now and attaching it also to the balloon.
Any thoughts of past,
Any and all memories actually,
They are just imagination.
Attaching these memories,
Thoughts and feelings to the balloon now.
Perfectly safe to do this.
We can get all of these things back later if we wish.
Any thoughts of future also.
Even our aspirations alongside our worries and anxieties.
Simply place any and all thoughts of future also to the balloon.
And finally,
Any self-image that you may have.
Any visual image that you hold about your body,
About yourself,
About how you look,
And even about how you are as a person.
Just for our meditation now,
We are simply not going to get involved with any of these thoughts.
So any self-image,
Any thoughts or feelings about who you are as a person can simply be attached to the balloon with its strong upwards pull.
We are holding on to this balloon now quite tightly as the upwards pull is so strong.
And let us make sure that our name is attached.
Any and all numbers are attached.
Any thoughts of past or future attached.
The story of you attached.
Any self-image or belief about yourself attached.
Now,
Let go.
Open,
Empty,
Spacious,
Clear and free.
Continue to breathe and keep attention on the breath and sensations in the body.
Noticing how much lighter this is.
Without images,
Labels,
Symbols and attachments.
Notice that your lungs continue to breathe,
That your heart continues to beat,
That the sounds around us continue.
But now with a sense of lightness,
A sense of freedom,
A sense of allowing and accepting,
And there is nothing to be done.
There is nowhere to go.
There is nobody you have to be.
You are already here and already you.
This is the true self,
The self without a name,
The self without numbers.
And this is always present.
This is always here.
There is no story.
There is no image.
There is no label.
There is nothing at all.
Nothing you have to fix.
Nothing you have to create.
Nothing that you have to be.
You just are.
Noticing how much simpler this feels.
If you find that some remnants of some images or story or label has managed to remain,
It's quite easy to just let this go now.
Just let this go.
Let this go.
Let this go.
Nothing to be done.
Simply remain open,
Empty,
Spacious and clear.
Taking some time now to simply rest within this present moment.
To rest within this spaciousness.
Safe in the knowledge that this is always available to you.
The present moment without a story,
Without an image,
Without any labels or judgments.
Simply what is now.
In pure awareness only.
You can choose to reopen your eyes here if you wish and perhaps adjust posture or position.
And take some time now to simply remain in this open space,
This peaceful space,
This clear space.
Thank you for joining me in this meditation today.
Take care.
And be peaceful and well.
