Let's go ahead and start with the space around you and the outside of your body.
Just feel yourself in relationship to the air around you,
Whatever is touching your body,
Your clothing,
The furniture that supports you,
And then bringing awareness to the interior of the body.
Be aware first of the body as a whole,
Scanning the whole body,
Finding the places that are neutral or pleasant,
And being aware within those places.
If the feet feel neutral,
Really be present in the feet.
If the arms and shoulders feel neutral,
Be present there.
And keeping a wide focus on the whole body.
If you can also include any areas that feel uncomfortable or painful in the context of the whole.
So it's for example,
10 or 20% of your body feels uncomfortable.
And only 10 or 20% of your attention is with pain.
See if that can work.
Keep that wider awareness and keep attention throughout the whole body.
You might have a sense of gratitude for all that's working well in the body,
The organ systems that are doing their job properly,
The muscles,
The joints that work without pain.
And if an area of discomfort calls for your attention,
Explore,
See if it's possible to soften and relax that area,
Rather than tensing up against the pain.
Receiving the way that's pain,
Letting it move through.
And then returning to a more whole sense of the body.
Noticing any response that you have to discomfort,
To anything unpleasant.
Notice the no.
No,
I don't want it to be this way.
Allow the no,
And then try on the possibility of,
It is this way right now.
Can I be with it?
Can I allow this?
Just as with emotional pain,
When we go so far into it and it feels as though that's all there is,
There is only this pain,
And it can become overwhelming.
If we step back and take the wider view,
Feel the felt sense of the whole,
The whole body.
Remember there are other feelings,
Other sensations,
Other parts of experience in addition to the pain.
And bringing care and tenderness to the part that's hurting.
You might say to this part of you,
Or simply to yourself,
I care about this suffering.
I care that there is suffering.
This is hard,
And I care.
And so we'll sit silently for a few minutes and making use of whatever is most helpful.
You might sense that the whole internal space of the body is of a fluid quality.
That your body can be in a state of flow that allows the possibility of transformation and healing.
Allowing a melting quality.
Honoring the body's wisdom and its amazing potential for healing.
In the fluid state,
The body can release,
Realign.
Just holding that possibility for a moment.
The possibility of returning to the original blueprint of health and wholeness.
You might have a deep bell of gratitude to these bodies that carry us through this life.
These feet that carry our weight.
These hands that do so many tasks.
The whole skeletal structure that supports us.
And all the amazing processes of the internal body.
The immune system.
And the breath carrying oxygen,
Even when we sleep,
To every cell in the body.
Breathing in,
We touch the frailty and impermanence of this body.
And breathing out,
We send care and love and light to all the humans on earth.
All the bodies on this earth that also are frail at times and impermanent.
We are part of this human condition.
May the fruits of our practice today ripen loud and be of benefit.
