This cooling breath meditation will guide you into a state of relaxation and ease by focusing on your breath.
Begin by finding a comfortable seated position,
Sitting on the floor with your legs crossed or on a chair with both feet flat on the floor,
Whichever you choose.
Find a space you can be comfortable and relaxed.
Softly close your eyes.
As you come to sitting tall in your seat,
Slowly pull the shoulders up towards your ears and then softly roll them back and down your spine,
Perhaps doing this a couple times if it feels good.
With your eyes closed,
Begin to notice your breath.
Noticing the cool air drifting in through your nose or mouth,
The natural rise and fall of your belly and chest.
Start to feel the natural rhythm of your inhale and your exhale.
In this meditation,
We will be practicing breath control by adding some pauses during our inhale and then also during our exhale.
On your next natural inhale,
Part the lips slightly and let your breath glide in over the top of your tongue,
Creating a natural cooling sensation.
At the end of this breath,
Just gently breathing out through your nostrils,
Practicing each breath in this way,
Inhaling over the top of your tongue and exhaling through the nostrils.
Ance Zero lighthouse If you ever lose track of where you're at,
Just return to that natural pattern of breathing in through the mouth,
Over the top of the tongue,
And exhaling gently through the nostrils.
Sometimes it can help to include an image with a sense of your breath,
Maybe an image of a cool wave flowing up to the shore,
Turning and flowing back again,
Noticing how the movement of the breath has a rhythm very much like this.
You may have another image that you find relaxing and calming.
Just use your imagination in your own way to help the mind and the body settle around this breath,
Inhaling over the top of the tongue,
And exhaling through the nostrils.
If thoughts intrude as they sometimes do,
Just allow them to pass and return your attention to your breathing,
Noticing any stray thoughts but not dwelling on them,
Simply letting them pass along with each breath.
On your next natural inhale,
Take a short pause in the middle of your inhale breath,
Then finishing your inhale and exhaling as you were before.
Continue each breath like this,
Inhaling with a pause in the middle,
Then exhaling fully through your nostrils.
Feeling that natural rhythm vary just slightly with that pause in the middle of your inhale,
But still feeling that full inhale and full exhale.
Feeling that sense of control you have as you shift the pattern of your breath,
Not becoming discouraged if you get off sync,
Just returning to this rhythm,
Inhaling,
Pausing,
Continuing your inhale,
Then exhaling through the nostrils.
And on your next exhale,
We're going to add just a short pause in the middle of that exhale.
So just continuing your inhale with a pause,
And adding a pause on your exhale.
Continuing each breath with this new pattern,
This slightly different rhythm,
Pausing on the inhale,
And pausing on the exhale.
Noticing how this new rhythm,
These added pauses begin to elongate each breath.
See how your breath continues to flow deeply,
Calmly.
Notice how calm and gentle your breathing is,
And how relaxed your body feels.
It's now time to gently reawaken the body and the mind,
Keeping your eyes closed.
Notice the sounds around you.
Feel the floor beneath you.
Feel your clothes against your body.
Wiggle your fingers and your toes.
Shrug your shoulders up towards your ears and gently roll them down your back.
Open your eyes and remain sitting for just a few more moments,
Straightening out your legs and stretching your arms gently,
Enjoying how relaxed you feel,
Experiencing your body reawaken and your mind returning to its usual level of alertness.
And when you're ready,
Continuing on with the rest of your day,
Feeling reenergized.
Courtesy of French
