If we have no peace,
It is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
Beautifully said by Mother Teresa.
Today I'd like to remind you that inside of you there is a stillness.
A sacred sanctuary to which you can come back to at any time.
A place to rest,
A place to recover,
A place to be yourself.
A place of inner peace.
And it belongs to you and to you alone.
No one can take your peace away.
The outer world may try really hard to at times,
But they can't.
Because the only one who can let them is you.
When we are at peace,
We remember that we belong to one another.
We each have our own lives,
Our own experiences.
That our energy and our humanity joins us in a deeper bond that is easily seen when we are at peace.
Resting in a comfortable seated position.
Beginning to roll your neck out to the left and then to the right.
Maybe all the way around.
Keeping your eyes open as you observe your space.
Finding yourself that you are safe.
Making circles with your wrists.
Moving your toes.
Together we land here in this practice on this Sunday.
Let go of the movement.
Slowly close your eyes.
On your first inhale,
You straighten the spine.
And on the exhale,
Your chin is slightly tilted towards the heart.
Your hands are placed on your abdomen and your chest.
Taking a pause here.
Tuning into your hands and your body.
Your breath coming and going.
Now let us exhale all of the air out of the body.
Before we start a few breathing cycles together.
Inhale for a count of one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold your breath for four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Purse your lips and blow out for one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Pause as you empty yourself for four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Again,
Inhale through both nostrils for one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Settle in the stillness for four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Blowing out of the mouth for one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Pausing at the end of the exhale for four,
Three,
Two,
One.
One more time.
Inhale for one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Notice the stillness as we hold for four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Let it all go for one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
And we release control of our breathing.
We let it settle.
We let our energy settle.
We let ourselves completely settle into the moment.
Relaxing the forehead and the hairline,
Behind the ears,
Around the ears,
The jaw,
The shoulders,
The blades of the shoulders.
Relax the arms and the hands as they fall on your lap or beside you.
Relax the belly,
The hips,
The thighs.
Relax your knees,
Your calves,
Your shins,
The front of your ankles,
The back of your ankles,
The top of your feet and your toes.
Observing yourself,
Slowing down.
Bring your mind to the natural cadence of your breath,
Making note of how this element nourishes and sustains you through both waking and sleeping life.
So we can consciously guide our breath into any direction in the body.
It does not require any effort to perform.
It's simply a well of wisdom.
Taking another moment here to pay closer attention to this life force,
How it surrounds you,
It's within you,
It's a part of you.
And see if we can begin to slow the breath down even more.
As we inhale for a count of 1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
Holding for 5,
4,
3,
2,
1 and lengthen the exhale for a count of 1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Again,
Inhale 1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
Pausing for 5,
4,
3,
2,
1.
Stretch out the exhale for 1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
The breath settles again back into its own effortless rhythm.
Allow yourself to melt away any residue from your past as you gradually connect deeper into a peaceful state.
Feel any worry of the future melt away as you bring your attention back here,
Landing here again and again.
Your loving awareness is resting on the movement of your breath.
Continuing to breathe slowly and gently as you awaken your mind's eye by imagining a vast ocean.
You may see colors,
You may not.
You may simply just sense what an ocean looks like.
And with this vision and mind,
We also try to focus on the rhythmic rise and fall of the breath.
Exhaling fully and exhaling fully,
Emanating the waves of the ocean.
How does it feel as these waves infuse into your being?
As we breathe in,
The waves arise over our body and as we breathe out,
The waves fall.
Staying here.
Allow your being to be filled with peace and calm.
Breathing in peace.
And on the out breath,
We share our calmness.
Breathing in peace.
And on the out breath,
We share our calmness.
One more time,
Breathing in peace.
And on the out breath,
We share our calmness.
The image of the ocean begins to dissolve from our vision,
If it hasn't done so already,
As we feel ourselves centered.
Bring your hands to heart center,
Palm to palm,
Fingers to fingers with our thumbs touching our chest.
We bow our head towards the heart as we humble ourselves here together.
Remembering our inner peace,
Remembering that we belong to one another.
Carry on with your day from this space of peace and belonging.
