Let's begin.
Start wherever and however you find yourself.
There is no perfect starting position,
No pull position.
You're simply at the beginning of a process of going inward,
Letting go,
Becoming quieter,
And becoming more still.
Meditation doesn't have to be abstract or extreme,
Confusing or intimidating.
It's just a way of giving yourself a gift of uninterrupted time.
Sometimes it's letting yourself be bored,
And in some ways it's just holding on to each precious moment.
It could be as simple as turning off your phone,
Locking your door,
Excluding yourself,
And giving yourself this moment as a gift.
Where are you when you're starting?
Are thoughts still swirling?
Is your body agitated?
Stomach rumbling?
Breath ragged?
There's data for the experiment.
You have to evaluate it,
Good or bad.
You're just acting as a witness,
A scientist in the laboratory of your body and experience.
Having taken stock of where you are as you enter this meditation,
Would you like to slow down?
Would you like to rest?
Would you like to be embraced by peace?
Go towards that,
If that's something you want.
Closing your eyes,
If you haven't already.
Letting gravity consume your mass and draw you down.
Perhaps you want to make your breath a little deeper,
Your exhale a little longer.
In deeply,
Out slowly.
It doesn't need to be more complicated than that.
You're just taking care of yourself with the quiet and the stillness.
It's settling.
When,
Not if,
When thoughts arrive,
Because your neurons will continue firing throughout this entire time,
Let them wander off and become disorganized,
As in a dream.
When anxieties or concerns arrive,
They can be like clouds that come and go across your awareness.
We're going to do an exercise in sevens,
The ancient tradition of sabbaticals and jubilees.
Seven years,
Seven cycles to care for the land.
Today we're going to do seven cycles of seven breaths to care for the self.
Begin the cycles with a quiet bell.
I invite you to breathe in deeply and breathe out slowly seven times.
Did your body settle a little in that first cycle?
Did your mind wander?
Was it a little stressful to count and attend to breath?
Did you notice any places that you released?
Let's begin another seven breaths.
If you lose track of the count,
That's just amusing,
Not a problem.
That second cycle,
Did you start to deepen?
Did any part of your body get softer?
Did relaxation creep in?
Let's do a third cycle of seven breaths,
Deeply in,
Slowly out.
Did you try anything new during that third cycle?
Did you notice anything different?
What was difficult?
Did your mind wander and you had to come back,
Or perhaps you're only now just coming back?
This is our fourth cycle,
Right in the middle.
Breathing in deeply and out slowly,
Seven times.
Maybe you noticed gravity during that.
Maybe you yawned from the stillness.
Let's go deeper again.
Seven deep breaths.
Is anything happening with your spine or your lungs?
Is there any expansion,
Perhaps contraction?
Is anything changing?
Be curious,
Not critical,
With a generous awareness as we enter into our sixth cycle of seven deep breaths.
Did you get lost at all?
Did you lose count?
Isn't that funny?
Can you be amused by the difficulty we each sometimes have in meditation?
Our brains don't always want to slow down.
That's okay.
We're going to take our seventh cycle of seven deep breaths.
Long in,
Slow out each time.
And then we'll have another bell for complete release.
As we conclude our seven cycles of seven breaths each,
Let's find a deeper,
More passionate release.
The wholeness of giving in and letting go,
Becoming free,
Surrender and go free.
