Lie down and make sure that your body is very comfortable so that you can stay in this position for a while and relax.
Close your eyes if you haven't done so already and let go of the outside world.
When we close our eyes,
In meditation,
The brain starts to get used to it,
Like a signal to say it's time to go inside,
It's time to pull away from the world,
Relax our bodies and bring some calm into our reality for a little while.
Take all of your focus and attention down to your feet and let your feet get heavy.
Imagine that they feel heavy and the weight of your feet from being tired or being stood on them all day makes them feel heavy and grounded and relaxed.
Just keeping them still is making them feel finally supported and relaxed.
The same with your ankles.
Put your focus and attention onto your ankles and let your ankles get heavy and relaxed.
Take a nice big deep breath and sigh the breath out.
Relax your calf muscles.
Your intention is to let your entire legs become heavy and grounded and still.
Imagine in your mind that the muscles are relaxing,
The bones getting heavier into your bed.
It feels so nice to just be still and finally lay down and let your body start to relax.
Just enjoy the sensations of doing nothing right now.
You're not walking,
You're not working,
You're not exercising,
You're not shopping,
You're not cooking,
You're not doing anything.
Nothing is required of you except to be still and just lay down.
This is some time for yourself,
Some precious time to focus on you and allow your body a little bit of pleasure.
Breathe and focus on your lower back.
Feel your lower back and the connection that you have to the bed.
As you breathe out,
See if you can let go of any tension that might be held or trapped in that part of your body.
Breathe it out.
Just release the energy.
Soften your spine and let your spine completely relax all the way up to the nape of your neck.
Let your shoulders fall deeper into the bed.
When you exhale,
Let your chest sink deeper into the bed.
Soften your abdomen and as you breathe out,
Pull your abdomen closer to your spine.
Let it fall and sink into the bed.
Allow a feeling of falling and relaxing into you.
A sensation of melting into the supported bed beneath you.
And your whole body is slowly sinking deeper and deeper into the mattress every time you breathe out.
Relax in more and more with every single breath.
Let your arms get heavy.
Your upper arms,
Elbows,
Wrists,
All the way down to your fingertips.
Focus on the back of your neck and let your neck get heavy.
The back of your head is completely rested and supported by the pillow beneath it.
You can let go.
Your whole body can sink down deep and let go.
And as you sink deeper and relax more,
Start to let your mind drift away.
Let it drift to another place.
Imagine that you are laid by the side of a very large lake.
The lake has big trees all around it.
Big,
Tall,
Green pine trees.
You can smell the pine and the earth as you lay down,
Listening to the gentle lapping of the water from the lake,
Just gently coming up the bank slightly.
It doesn't sound like the waves of the ocean.
It has its own musical sound,
Just gentle ripples of the water.
It's a cool,
Refreshing day.
One of those days where you need to wear a big snuggly jacket or a warm,
Comfortable cardigan and wrap it around your body so it feels like it's giving you a hug.
Maybe you've got a wooly hat on,
Nice,
Warm socks.
You're all bundled up,
Laid there looking at the sky.
After a while,
You sit up,
You get comfortable and stare out at the lake.
You can't see the end.
It's very big.
The water is clear.
You can see the pebbles and the rocks at the base of the lake.
You watch the ripples and the movement on the top of the water.
There doesn't seem to be a pattern.
It makes you think about your thoughts.
What if this lake was like the inside of my mind and every ripple,
The movement of the water represents a thought inside of my mind?
How can I calm my mind?
Just like calming these waters.
You take a nice,
Big,
Deep breath and slowly breathe out with control.
And as you do so,
You notice the waters calm.
Everything seems to slow down just a little bit.
You decide to practice something and you breathe faster in,
Out,
In,
Out,
In,
Out.
You notice the water gets more choppy.
It looks more erratic and distracted.
Like there's more wind in the air,
There's more thoughts in your mind.
Change your breath and breathe long,
Slow,
Deep breaths.
And the waters calm once again.
And as your breath changes,
Your mind starts to relax.
Your thoughts slow down.
And as your thoughts slow down,
The water gets stiller,
Even more peaceful.
Now you see the connection.
The water represents your thoughts.
And the more confusion and distraction and erratic your thoughts become,
The water does the same thing.
But as you slow your thoughts down and use your breath to help you,
The water becomes more peaceful.
Still.
Calm.
This is the perfect representation.
The visualization that you needed.
Now you think to yourself,
Whenever I want to calm my mind,
I'm going to imagine I'm sat by this lake.
I'm watching the water.
My mind is the water.
I can use my breath to slow my thoughts down.
I only need to do it for a few minutes.
Just to connect.
To reset my mind.
To change my thoughts and state of being.
Just a few minutes.
Is all it's going to take.
You sit quietly and watch the water.
For as long as you need to.
To come to a place of calm.
Namaste.
