Hi,
Welcome to the third guided meditation in the Resonance series,
Thoughts.
One of the most challenging parts of developing a meditation practice is cultivating a sense of awareness in the midst of everything going on both inside of us and in the external world.
Learning to bring awareness to our practice can lead to an increased sense of staying in the moment and finding a still center.
Without awareness,
Our time sitting can become a frustrating string of thoughts that race from one extreme to the other,
Leaving us mentally tired and emotionally confused.
Thoughts are a normal and necessary part of meditation practice,
But learning to put them in context can make all the difference.
A decluttered headspace makes it easier for us to connect with the present moment and realize its abundant love and energy.
The more we practice awareness in moments of meditation,
The easier it becomes to experience awareness in everyday life.
Our goal is to allow our thoughts to pass in and out of consciousness and continuously draw ourselves back to an inward heart center that is unmoved and undistracted.
If you haven't already,
Take a moment to prepare your space for this meditation.
It's a good idea to disable notifications on your phone and other devices to prevent any unexpected interruptions or distractions.
These next moments are yours,
And it's okay to set boundaries to protect the time you have.
So light a candle,
Burn some incense,
And treat your body to some light stretching to prepare yourself for this experience.
You can pause now if you need to,
And when you're ready,
Press play and continue.
Find your place on your mat or cushion or chair and make some slow circles with your head.
You may notice some clicks and pops as your muscles and tendons relax and release.
Looking forward,
Tilt your head and bring your right ear down toward your right shoulder.
Feel that stretch on the left side of your neck through your left shoulder.
Take a slow,
Deep inhale and exhale here.
Then,
Slowly return to center.
Still looking forward,
Switch sides and let your head drift to your left shoulder now.
Feel gravity helping elongate the right side of your neck through the shoulder.
One slow,
Deep breath here and then return to center.
Let your chest come forward slightly as you sit up straight and place your hands and arms in a comfortable position.
Begin to notice your breath in this moment when you aren't attempting to do anything at all.
Notice the way your belly expands with each inhale and shrinks with each exhale.
Don't try to change your breath here.
Merely experience it.
This simple experience is a part of awareness,
Allowing what is happening in the moment to bring your focus to the pure experience of now.
Most people,
As they begin to build a meditation practice,
Are flooded with all kinds of thoughts and emotions.
When we attempt to quiet our minds and bodies,
Our information and experience-saturated brains have a harder time slowing down and acclimating to a different environment.
The term monkey mind has long been used to describe the incessant movement of our thoughts in our heads like monkeys jumping from branch to branch.
Our initial response is usually to try to stop the monkeys from jumping.
We feel as though we have to resist those thoughts and stop them completely.
Ironically,
When we focus all our energy on stopping our thoughts,
They only become stronger and harder to ignore.
Rather than attempting to stop our thoughts,
It's easier and more effective to allow them to flow through our consciousness,
Always returning to a still center and bringing our awareness back to the moment.
This practice integrates our thoughts into the meditation in a way that allows them to be de-emphasized.
Over time,
The frequency and obviousness of the thoughts will decrease,
But it's important that you are gentle with yourself and your expectations.
It might be necessary to faithfully return to a still center over and over again before you notice your thoughts becoming fewer and slower.
Whatever the case,
This process is a valid and important part of meditation and there's no reason to feel discouraged or inferior.
Take this opportunity to practice a visualization technique that can be helpful in dealing with thoughts as they come.
Imagine you are sitting on the bank of a beautiful river with a current that flows gently past you.
Try to see your thoughts as leaves that have fallen into the river and are floating downstream.
As they enter into your awareness,
Notice them and then watch them float past you and eventually out of sight.
Bring your awareness back to the moment and your still center.
Here's another visualization that might be helpful.
As you imagine yourself on that same riverbank,
Lie back in the grass and look at the blue sky overhead.
See your thoughts as a cloud that passes through your vision on the breeze.
Notice it,
See what shape it takes and then let it finally pass by and out of your view.
Each time your thoughts pass by like a leaf on the river or a cloud in the sky,
Return to your still center and remember that patience is the way to persevere in this practice.
Take a few minutes to try these visualizations as your meditation continues.
Scripture.
You you you you you you you you you you you you you you you take another opportunity to let your head drift again to your right shoulder just for a breath and then repeat that stretch on the left side with one deep breath on an inhale reach up with your arms above your head fingers wide and reaching to the sky let that inhale fill you up and then slowly exhale and allow your palms to come together at heart center thoughts are a normal part of meditation we can welcome them and let them go on their way they are a transient experience in the sea of your enveloping awareness thoughts come and go but awareness is part of the ever-present reality of each moment feel an intention now to reside in the moment of awareness and let go of any expectation about how things should be be in this moment thank you for sharing this meditation with me may you be aware of the love and blessings that surround you as you continue on your way you
