We're going to work again with following the breath.
Find a comfortable sitting position.
You can sit on a chair,
You can sit cross legged with a cushion beneath your seat,
Or if you wish you can kneel again with a cushion beneath you or a meditation bench.
Spread your knees so that you have a triangular base.
This grounded triangular quality in your base can allow your upper body to float upwards effortlessly.
And you can sway your body from side to side,
Backwards and forwards like a pendulum,
Until you can find the most comfortable upright position for you.
Have your spine long,
Have your neck long.
Cast your eyes downward along the line of your nose.
You can keep your eyes open in this position or if you wish you can close them.
Have your hands in your lap,
Your body relaxing here.
Breathing through your nose,
Have your mouth closed,
Your tongue resting on the roof of your mouth.
Feeling the breath rising and sinking in your belly.
Natural,
Relaxed abdominal breathing.
Previously we counted the breath to maintain and anchor the awareness.
This practice is more advanced in that we simply follow the sensation of the breath rising and sinking in your belly.
Obviously there are many places you can be aware of your breathing,
For example in your nostrils or in your throat.
In the zen school you particularly become aware of your breathing in your abdomen as this helps you to naturally become abdominal in your breath.
Relaxing as much as you can,
Allowing your body to become upright and begin to just follow your breath.
Follow the rising,
The sinking.
Just grounding your awareness in this movement in your belly.
It's very simple,
Your awareness is riding on the breath,
Anchored on the breath.
This doesn't mean you exclude anything or suppress anything.
You simply don't involve yourself with anything else.
Allowing thoughts,
Memories,
Feelings,
Sights and sounds to just arise and pass.
Arise and pass.
And you just stay with this feeling,
It's very simple.
At any time you feel yourself getting involved or carried away with thoughts or feelings,
Anything at all.
Just coming back to the breath.
We can use the image of a busy road with a bridge.
We sit underneath the bridge.
All the traffic rumbling by and we just allow it to come and go.
Come and go.
And if at any time you find you've climbed up onto the bridge and started hitchhiking with one of the cars,
Then all you do is just come back to sit under the bridge.
Coming back to the breath.
Maintaining your awareness,
Your presence.
Making sure your body stays as upright as you can.
Trying not to droop as this helps your mind to stay clear and bright.
And at the same time you're relaxing as deeply as you possibly can.
As you relax,
As you maintain your awareness,
You may feel your breath becoming slower.
You may feel your breath becoming lighter.
Whatever light,
However slow it becomes,
Stay with the rising and sinking in your belly.
Breathing,
Being aware.
Very simple.
And any time you get distracted,
Just coming back.
Ten times,
A hundred times.
Just coming back.
Coming back and staying with the breath.
Being mindful,
Present and aware of the breath.
And in this very simple,
Yet very profound meditation practice,
There may be times when all sorts of insights about reality,
About your life,
All sorts of things can arise.
Just allow them to,
To arise and pass.
Don't focus on them.
Don't try to hold onto them.
Anything you really need to know will stay with you after your meditation practice.
And sometimes it can happen that as you relax,
As you maintain your awareness,
Sometimes deep levels of perhaps suffering,
Things from the past,
Grief,
Anger,
All sorts of things can arise.
Just allowing these things to arise and pass.
Without any particular focus.
Without any particular worry or investment in them in any way.
Your job is very simple.
Staying with the breath,
Rising and sinking in your belly.
Just breathing,
Allowing,
Aware.
Very simple.
And doing your best to keep your body relaxed and yet upright.
If you feel any discomfort in any place,
Doing your best to release it or to relax around it.
And if you feel any pain,
Any sense that you need to move,
Then just moving as steadily,
As slowly,
As mindfully as you can.
Getting as comfortable as you can.
Returning your awareness to your breath.
Breathing and being aware of your breathing.
That's all.
It's very simple.
And when you can feel like it's time for your meditation to come to its end and becoming aware of your fingers,
Your toes.
Very gently,
Moving into your fingers,
Moving into your toes.
Gently beginning to sway your body a little bit from side to side.
Just like we did at the beginning of our practice.
That's right.
Very good.
When you feel ready,
You can begin to stretch the body.
Stretch the arms,
Stretching the legs,
The whole body.
Give yourself a really good stretch.
That's right.
When you feel completely ready,
Coming up into standing,
Ready for your next thing.
