Body Scan - Moderate

The body scan is designed to come to know the body better and how it is in this moment. It is befriending the body in many ways, accepting it for how it is in this moment, knowing that no one’s body is “perfect,” and yet in many ways all our bodies are. The meditation provides a platform to see what skillful next steps arise, based on the messages that the body shares.

Transcript

So,

Taking a minute to settle in for a body scan meditation and typical position for this would be lying down,

But if you prefer sitting or standing that's okay.

And what we do with the body scan is work to fall awake rather than fall asleep.

And if we fall asleep,

Just don't judge yourselves about it.

It can happen.

But generally we're trying to be alert with this one.

And so as you find a position that's comfortable for this,

Just maybe doing a quick sweep of the mind,

Seeing what thoughts are here,

What emotions are here.

A little sweep of the body,

Seeing how it's feeling in this moment as we shift gears into this practice of being with the body.

And so here we're training our self-awareness to really deeply understand just how the body is in this moment,

But understand it with the qualities of non-judgmentalness and curiosity,

Acceptance,

Just allowing the body to be as it is in this moment,

Not needing it to be any other way.

Least for the next 20 minutes.

And then we're also working on training the mind to place it where we want to place it,

Which in this case is each and every part of the body,

Step by step.

But why don't we start first with checking into the body and particularly the parts that are connected with the surface that you're resting on.

So say if you're lying down,

It might be the back of the heels or the sit bones or back of the shoulders.

So whatever part of the body is connecting with the surface that you're resting on,

Just noticing those sensations of touch,

Pressure,

Seeing what's here.

And so then the next invitation is to start to guide our awareness to most of the parts of the body starting down the right leg as we bring our awareness into the right foot,

Ending up in the right big toe.

This may or may not be an area you think about much,

But how is it in this moment?

What kind of sensations are there or lack of sensations?

For example,

Can you feel the touch of a sock or a shoe or the wind?

Or if there's not much sensation,

Just noticing there's not much sensation,

Which is the case for a good number of people.

And then come on to be with a smaller toes in the right foot.

We're coming to know them just a little better right now.

Remembering we're training our mind right now in a place where we choose to place it,

Even if it's a little weird.

And we're training our self awareness.

So is there injury in those toes or lack of injury?

Or discomfort,

Warmth,

Coolness?

Continuing to train ourselves to shift our object of attention and to be there in this new place,

Which is the mid part of the right foot,

Perhaps along the bottom of the foot,

The arch of the foot,

Aware of all the muscles,

The tendons,

The bones within that are so important to support us as we move around throughout the day.

So what's being felt in this part of the foot?

Is it comfortable?

Is there discomfort?

Any sensations of touch?

If we're ever with a part of the body that is just not comfortable to be with,

Maybe it's had a major injury or a trauma,

And it's too overwhelming to be with that part of the body,

It's okay,

You can just skip it.

Or redirect attention to maybe an anchor point like,

Say the breath or maybe the parts of the body that are in contact with the surface that you're resting on,

Or you can even pause this meditation or stop the meditation,

Just always prioritizing self care and your own wisdom about if this meditation and this contemplation is a good fit for you.

So we continue to bring awareness through the right foot into the right heel.

Seeing what's here as we draw our awareness up kind of like a beam of light as we come into the Achilles tendon and circle around the right ankle.

Noticing if there's tightness in that right ankle or it's pretty loose.

Is it comfortable?

What's here?

It's just like with anything that we learn,

The more that we understand it,

The better we can harness its capacity and its potential.

And similarly,

The more that we understand our body,

The more that we can care for it in effective ways so that it's able to serve us and those that we care about as effectively as possible.

So here we are,

Coming to know the body,

Including the lower part of the right leg.

So what's being experienced in this part of the body,

Like the calf muscle or the shin,

The bones within,

The skin and circling at all,

What's being sensed,

What messages are here.

And continuing to draw awareness up now through the right knee and circling it with attention.

Sometimes knees can be places of injury and if there's an injury to there,

Just noticing it.

If there's a lack of injury,

Noticing that.

Sometimes we can wish for the body to be something other than it is and if we ever have those thoughts just noticing their thoughts.

And it's okay,

Can we allow the body to be just as it is for this moment,

Coming to know it a little better.

Continuing to draw awareness up through the upper part of the right leg into the thigh.

Big muscles here.

Everything encircling on,

Whether it's the skin or all the elements within,

Whether it's the nerves or whatever they're telling us.

Holding that entire right leg in awareness,

Including the toes and the feet and the ankle and the lower part of the leg,

The knee,

The upper part of the leg,

Even the hip.

Again what's being sensed in the right part of the leg compared to the left part.

How is the right leg feeling similar or different from the left?

And then inviting awareness to start to shift over to the left leg,

Particularly dropping into the left foot and into those left toes,

The big toe and the smaller toes.

And then allowing that beam of awareness to start to draw itself through the left foot.

It's the front of the foot or the mid foot,

The back of the foot,

The heel.

And continuing to draw awareness up at your own pace through that left ankle and into the lower part of the left leg.

Offering that mindfulness quality of curiosity as we come into the left knee and bring awareness to the front of the knee,

Whether it's the kneecap or the back of the knee,

Like that soft skin in the back and just seeing what's being sensed in the knee at this moment.

Continuing to allow awareness to drop through the left leg,

The upper part of the leg and into the left hip.

Holding that entire left leg in awareness,

Seeing how it's feeling at this point compared to when we began.

Bringing the left leg into awareness of what's here in the hip and the upper leg,

The knee,

The lower leg,

The ankle,

The foot,

The toes.

And then continuing up into the abdomen,

The organs within it,

Whether it's the lower abdomen and the pelvic region,

The organs of elimination and reproduction.

Or bringing awareness up into the areas of the stomach muscles,

Noticing any movement in the stomach muscles as we breathe in and out.

Even bringing awareness to the stomach itself,

Whether it's empty or full or somewhere in the stomach.

Shifting awareness if you like to encompass the lower back,

The muscles here,

The spine,

Where this can be a place of injury and if it is just noticing that with kindness,

Compassion.

Seeing how it's feeling,

Any messages it's offering at this moment.

So we shift into the mid-back.

And then continuing up into the upper back.

And then moving forward to encompass the chest,

Rib cage,

Noticing how it ebbs and flows with each in-breath and out-breath.

Aware of the lungs within.

And within the chest,

Aware of the heart as it's just steadily beating,

Circulating all the nutrients and oxygen and elements to every cell in the body.

We continue up now into the shoulders,

Noticing any tension or looseness in the shoulders.

And then starting to drop down into the right arm,

That upper part of the right arm is taking our time.

Coming to know the arm a little better right now.

So how is it,

What's being sensed here?

So we shift into the elbow and the forearm.

Going into the right wrist,

All the little bones and ligaments and muscles in this part of the body.

Allow our hand to move in all the many ways that it does.

And what is here in the right hand?

So many nerves in this part of the body,

What's being sensed here in the palm of the hand or the fingers or the thumb.

So the sensation of touch or lack of touch or moisture or dryness,

Warmth or coolness.

And then offering awareness of that entire right arm.

So we start to shift over to the left arm.

Spend your own time bringing your awareness down through that left shoulder,

Through the upper part of the left arm and the elbow and the forearm.

Spend some time with this part of the body to see how it's doing.

What's being sensed.

And then what's here in the left wrist and into the left hand including the fingers and the thumb and the palm.

Just remembering anytime the mind wanders,

Noticing where it went.

This good information helps us to understand how we are today.

And then without any judgment,

Spring the awareness back to that Adri Ked meditation which in this moment is the left hand.

Just seeing what's being sensed here.

And holding that entire left arm in awareness now from the fingers through to the shoulder and everything in between.

Seeing what messages are in this part of the body.

And noticing how the left arm is comparing to the right arm if they're very similar or very different or maybe there's some subtleties.

And then if you like,

Start to draw awareness up into the shoulders and then into the neck.

And aware of all the sensations in the neck whether it's feelings of the muscles or maybe sensations of the air coming in and out of the windpipe.

Aware of all the conduits in the neck that connect the head to the body.

Whether it's the nerves or the passageways for food and air.

All the blood vessels,

The muscles supporting it all,

The spine.

And then offering awareness to start to come up into the head including the jaw and the mouth.

Seeing sensations of dryness or moisture in the mouth or taste or lack of taste.

Seeing what's here in the nose.

What's the sensation of the air coming in and out or sensation of smell,

Warmth,

Coolness.

And coming to know the eyes a little better and how they're experiencing the world right now.

What's there around dryness or moisture,

Visual sensations or lack thereof.

And bringing awareness up into the scalp and the hair follicles.

Then bringing awareness down into the head,

Particularly into the brain.

Seeing what's here in the brain,

Allowing it to be just as it is,

Just like any other organ in the body.

But coming to know it a little better.

Then shifting awareness to the ears.

Temperature,

Touch,

Sound.

Lack of sound.

And starting to encompass the entire body and awareness.

So aware of what sensations are around in the head,

The neck,

The shoulders,

The arms,

The hands,

The chest,

The abdomen,

The hips,

The legs,

Upper legs and knees and lower legs and the ankles,

Feet,

Toes.

So holding the entire body and awareness and coming to just spend some time with whatever messages are arising in this moment.

Seeing if those messages are steady or if they shift and evolve moment to moment.

Taking a little time to notice how the body is feeling in this moment compared to when we began.

Has anything shifted and changed or is it feeling pretty similar?

There's no right answer here,

Just noticing.

Coming to know ourselves a little better in this moment,

This moment,

Which is the only moment we ever have.

And inviting you to bring forward the self-awareness that's been developed in this meditation,

If it has developed.

Also to bring forward your concentration to be able to place your mind where you're choosing to place it and bring those two skills into the next part of your day or your evening.