Nourish The Body

In Genesis, humanity begins with a vegetarian diet, eating the plants and fruits of the earth. After the flood, God permits Noah and his descendants to eat meat. This meditation explores that transition through a head-to-toe body scan, inviting you to consider what each part of your body needs to be nourished and well.
Bring your attention to your head, your eyes, your mouth, your shoulders, your heart, your lungs, your belly, your hands, your legs, your feet. What does each part need? What nutrients sustain its work? What foods help it flourish? Consider the gifts of plants, grains, fruits, and vegetables, alongside the nourishment found in animal products. Notice the complexity of our needs, the interdependence of living things, and the privilege and responsibility of eating. Let this be an exercise not in judgment, but in gratitude: for the food that sustains us, the bodies that receive it, and the remarkable web of life that makes our nourishment possible.

Transcript

Let's begin with the bell. Just sitting down. Or lying down. Or standing still, However you find yourself, But pausing. Coming into a kind of stillness and a deeper quiet. Just taking a break. At its least, Meditation is just taking a break. Taking a break from commitments and to-do lists. And action and achievement and just pausing to be. Just taking that long pause. Coming into a rest. Settling down. Just being with yourself, Enjoying the moment and the time. A little bit of ease. There will be distraction. That's kind of fun. You can follow it as long as you want and then just keep coming back. You listen to my voice, You. . . Settle down, You pause. Return to the moment. And the sensations. And enjoy the quiet and the stillness. Enjoy your own company. Not always easy. But always possible. Checking in with yourself, How do you feel? What's going on? What are you grasping for and need? What do you want or aspire to? Just noticing and then setting it aside. We can return to that later, But for now we're meditating on what is. How you feel. Emotionally and in your body. Tense, Relaxed. Eager, Nervous, Sad, Whatever is the feeling. And you might feel it in your muscles and bones and breathing. Just notice. Hey, That's interesting. You're not evaluating plus or minus, You're just. That's interesting. That's what I'm feeling right now. Tight shoulders. Or worry about my cat. No need to dwell on it. You can just keep coming back, Listen to my voice, Come back into your body and your quiet and your stillness and your enjoyment of this time. No bigger commitment than that. Even letting yourself be bored. How's your breathing? Deep, Slow, Fast, Shallow. Where is it at? And then maybe you want to slow it down, Take a little bit more deep. On the inhale, A little slower out. Then again, A little deeper, A little slower, Just a little. Fraction each time more. Maybe your breath helps you slow down your mind. Soften your face. See where your muscles in your face are holding tight, Cringing. Grasping, Just see what you can soften there. As if you could give yourself Botox. Oops, There goes the wrinkle, There goes the squeezing. Getting soft. Extending that softness, That kindness throughout your body as you breathe in and sate your body with air. And breathe out and release what your body doesn't need. Again and again. Maybe you take a little stretch, A little shimmy. Little shake, Little adjustment. Come back in, Getting heavy, Getting still. We will meditate on our body and its physical demands, What it needs for fuel and strength and courage. Specifically food and water. And what it doesn't need. Not much alcohol, Not much drugs, Not much junk food. What you need for health. And vigor. So we'll do a body scan. Starting from the top. With your hair! Maybe a lot or a little. What does your hair need to grow and be healthy? Strong. What nutrients do you seek from your food and environment? You may not name them biochemically, But you may know that there are things your hair and head need to be vigorous and healthy. What about your face and your skin and your eyes and your mouth? What do they need? To do their work, What nutrition do they seek? Again, You probably don't know it unless you're a nutritionist, But you sense that they need some things. Be their best self. Smile to see, To taste, Smell. Refresh, What do they need? What do they seek in your digestion? What do they seek from outside to nurture? Themselves to be healthy. What about your shoulders and your throat? Breathing and swallowing, Strong muscles across the top. Keeping your head up. Supporting you, What do they need? How do those muscles function and what do they need? For security and strength. So that you breathe and stretch, Swallow with confidence in good health. So that the blood can flow. Your arms. Lots of muscles and bones and sinew. Blood flow and nutrients, Iron and protein. Micronutrients all of it. Things we know, Things we don't yet know, Things you might not know or you may know. Doesn't matter, But you know your body needs fuel and strength and that is food and nutrition. Notice the demands of your arms. For health. Even to your hands, What do they require to grasp and stretch and wave and touch? Hug and hold. What can you do for them with food? And eating. Even holding the food. And then your chest and belly. Where your blood circulates and the actual digestion happens. So many organs that need their own specific nutrition and fuel and food. To consume and be vigorous and healthy. In a sense of it. And how they're working. My goodness, So many processes. Maybe you can even hear your stomach or your heart beating, Certainly your breath in and out, And all the ways it supports your activity. Just oxygen, Alone. But also calories and energy. Just breathing deeply when you get distracted, Exhaling slowly, Listening to my voice, Coming back, Noticing your body. It's normal for the mind to wander. That's great. That is a healthy brain. But come back. Notice your hips and groin. The organs of reproduction and elimination. Sitting. Pending. Big muscles. Important systems, What do they need? That you can feed them. Hydrate them. Keep them strong and limber. In good function and health. And then your thighs and hamstrings and knees. Such powerful instruments. They need a lot of food and nutrition. So much activity, Vigor, And strength. Through your upper legs. You gotta work. What lunchbox can you send them when they go to work? What can you provide them with? The right food, Healthy choices. Down from your knees to your calves and shins. Feet and toes. Lots and lots of work just to build the skin around the pad of your foot. Lift your leg to extend. All of it. Walk, Run, Play. Stand in the kitchen to make those meals. Do they need? How can you support them with good eating choices? Keeping your whole body vigorous and healthy and secure. You have the power. And then for the last moments, Just wiggling back around your body, Noticing anything that's calling out for a piece of fruit or some yogurt or something healthy. Or just need to stretch or wiggle. Just keep checking in with the whole body. Checking in what you need today, What strength and support you can give yourself. Feeling around. Breathing in deeply, Out slowly. Blessings.