Coming Home To An Inner Refuge

This meditation offers an opportunity to find our 'Inner Refuge', a steady place within, that is always available to us. It is about finding a safe place to land, in amongst a messy life. This may simply be the breath, or perhaps is an image or a feeling, or even a person. Questions to ponder before beginning this meditation may be "Where do you feel most like yourself?" and "What does 'home' feel like in the body?"

Transcript

Thanks for watching! You coming home to an inner refuge meditation. Begin by finding a comfortable position. Allowing the body to settle in a way that feels supported. But also awake. If it feels okay, Letting the eyes close. Or simply softening the gaze. And take a moment to simply notice that you've arrived. Nothing to do. Nowhere else to go. Bringing attention to the body. Feeling the contact points. Feet touching the ground perhaps. Or the weight of the body and the chair. Or the cushion. Hands resting wherever they naturally fall. Let the body be held. No effort needed here. Now gently noticing the breath. Not changing it. Not improving it. Just feeling the natural rhythm. Breathing in. And breathing out. You might silently say to yourself. Breathing in. And now I'm breathing in. Breathing out. I know I'm breathing out. Letting the breath be an anchor. A doorway into the present moment. And from here. Begin to sense that there is a place within you. That can be a kind of refuge. Not something you have to create. Something you can begin to notice. Or remember. This refuge might be felt in different ways. For some, It's the simple steadiness of the breath. For others, It might be the groundedness of the body. Or perhaps an image arises. A place in nature. A quiet room. Somewhere you feel at ease. There's no right way for this to appear. Just allowing whatever sense of support or safety is available to you. If it feels helpful. You might gently introduce a phrase. I can come back here. Or there is a place in me that can hold this. Let that phrase land softly. No need to force it. And now as you rest here. Life may still be moving through you. Thoughts may come. Sensations in the body. Emotions. Subtle or strong. And rather than pushing any of that away. Seeing if it's possible to let it be there. While also staying connected to your refuge. As if you were sitting on the shore. Watching waves come and go. Without needing to step into everyone. If something pulls your attention away. A thought, A feeling, A distraction. Gently noticing that. And then kindly guiding yourself back. Back to the breath. Back to the body. Back to that sense of being supported. Each return is part of the practice. Nothing is gone wrong. You might notice that the refuge isn't about making everything calm. It's about having somewhere steady to stand. Even when things are moving. Letting the body soften where it can. Jaw and clenching. Shoulders dropping. Belly softening. Breathing. Resting. Being held. Just for this moment. And knowing this is something you can return to. Again and again. Even for a few seconds in the middle of a busy day. Your refuge is always closer than you think. It's not somewhere you go. But somewhere you remember. Breathing. Resting. Being held. Now beginning to deepen the breath slightly. Gently bringing some movement back into the body. Wiggling fingers or toes if that feels right. When you're ready. Allowing the eyes to open. Or lifting the gaze. Taking a moment to notice how you feel. Without needing it to be any particular way.