Mindfulness of body practice,
Otherwise known as the four access points meditation.
So please take a moment to adjust your posture.
So if you're sitting,
You're sitting open and upright.
If you're lying down on your back,
You're lying balanced and symmetrical.
Your legs are out long with your feet relaxing outwards.
Or perhaps you might like to slightly bend and support your knees to take pressure off your lower back.
Relax your shoulders.
Bring your shoulder blades down and away from your ears.
Your palms are open and gently resting over your belly,
Resting in your lap or resting by your side.
Your mouth is closed,
Your jaw soft and gently rest your tongue on the roof of your mouth behind your two front teeth.
Please close your eyes,
Relax and settle into your body.
Perhaps taking three slow deep belly breaths helps.
And as you breathe out,
Feel your muscles softening and relaxing.
Just letting go.
Relaxing,
Awake and alert.
And remember there's nothing you need to be doing right now.
There's nothing you need to experience or achieve during this meditation.
This is your time.
This is your time.
And allow your breathing to find its own depth and rhythm now.
Just let your breath breathe you.
You don't have to do anything.
And now become aware of the space in front of your closed eyes.
It's like a field of darkness.
Perhaps there are some muted shapes or colours there.
You're not looking for anything.
Just simply rest your attention there with relaxed eyes and a soft gaze.
And now bring your awareness to any sounds coming to you from outside the room.
Just listening with a gentle curiosity.
Let the sounds come and go.
There's no need to judge them.
Now bring your awareness to the sounds inside the room.
Again just listening with a gentle curiosity.
Allow the sounds to call you into the present moment.
Just listening.
Now bring your awareness to your breath.
Notice what sensations there are as you breathe in and as you breathe out.
Feel the air moving over your nostrils.
Cool on the in-breath and warm on the out-breath.
Feel the slight movement of your chest and your belly rising with the in-breath and falling with the out-breath.
Perhaps there's even a gentle sound with your breathing.
Just your natural breathing.
Follow each breath.
Now bring your awareness to your feet.
You might like to give them a little wiggle to help you reconnect to them.
Notice any sensations in your feet with a gentle curiosity.
Feeling into your toes,
Your heels,
The soles of your feet,
The tops of your feet,
All through your feet.
Just noticing.
Perhaps you notice feelings of pressure,
Numbness,
Tingling,
Warmth or coolness.
Whatever sensations are there,
Comfortable or uncomfortable,
Just notice these sensations all through your feet.
And as you feel into your feet,
Feel the flow of your breath.
Just simply coming and going.
Now bring your awareness to your hands.
Notice that subtle sense of aliveness through your hands.
Explore all the small sensations around and through your hands and feel the flow of your breath.
Now bring your awareness to your shoulders.
Notice any sensations in the muscles across your shoulders and around the base of your neck.
Feel the flow of your breath.
Perhaps a softness or a hardness here or there,
A pressure or a tingling.
Just notice the sensations there,
Even if the feeling is not there.
A pressure or a tingling.
Just notice the sensations there,
Even if the feeling is very slight.
Stay with it,
Just simply noticing.
And as you feel into the muscles of your shoulders and around the base of your neck,
Feel the flow of your breath.
And now bring your awareness to the space in front of your eyes.
Become aware of any sensations in and around your eyes.
Move your attention through your eyebrows and across your forehead.
Just notice where your eyes are.
Feel the flow of your breath.
Just notice whatever sensations are there.
And as you feel around your eyes and across your forehead,
Feel the flow of your breath.
Now open your awareness to your whole body now.
Feet,
Hands,
Shoulders,
A little of each of these areas.
Notice whatever sensations are coming into your awareness right now.
Perhaps the awareness of the space in front of your eyes.
Perhaps the feeling of your breath with the movement of your body as you breathe in.
And as you breathe out.
Can you notice the slight pause between the in-breath and the out-breath?
The aware mind just noticing.
The aware mind just noticing.
Now open your awareness to your whole body.
Feel the flow of your breath.
Feel the flow of your breath.
Feel the flow of your breath.
Feel the flow of your breath.
If you notice your attention wandering or becoming caught up in a stream of thought,
Just open your awareness.
No thought is a problem.
No thought is important.
Worrying about your thoughts makes them heavy and important.
Just gently and kindly bring your attention back to the next breath.
Notice sounds.
Feel your feet on the floor.
Feel into your hands,
Your shoulders,
The space in front of your closed eyes.
And feel the flow of your breath.
The aware mind just noticing.
Feel the flow of your breath.
Feel the flow of your breath.
Feel the flow of your breath.
Now as we come towards the end of this meditation,
You might like to consciously dedicate its value and its virtue.
So as you breathe in,
Saying silently to yourself,
May I be peaceful and at ease.
And as you breathe out,
May others be peaceful and at ease.
Filling your mind and your heart with that intention and visualising friends,
Family or any other group or individual as you breathe out.
Visualising yourself as you breathe in.
So breathing in,
May I be peaceful and at ease.
Breathing out,
May others be peaceful and at ease.
Allow your breathing to become a little stronger now.
Perhaps a deeper breath or two to help start reactivate and re-energise your body.
You might like to wiggle your fingers,
Wiggle your toes,
Have a little stretch.
Bringing your hands to your heart.
Please take a moment to thank yourself for giving yourself this time today to reconnect and recharge.
And just take a final few moments to think of something that you'll do for yourself tomorrow.
Something that will help fill your cup and replenish you,
Whatever that may be.
It may be something as simple as going to sleep earlier or journaling down your three grateful things or sharing them with your family.
Or setting aside some time to meditate.
Whatever it might be,
Just taking the moment to visualise it in your mind.
Hold it in your heart and set that intention for yourself tomorrow.
Thank you for joining me in this mindfulness of body practice or the four access points meditation.
When you're ready,
You can open your eyes.
Thank you.
