So hello and welcome to this practice.
My name is Jillian and this is a meditation that will help you to sink or settle into your inner forest.
Without saying too much about what this entails,
I'd like to simply guide you there.
So go ahead and prepare for this practice by finding a comfortable seated or lying down posture.
Whatever feels most supportive for your practice today.
You might take a few moments to stretch or wriggle your body in any way you might need to to free up tension or tightness.
And then settle back down into relative stillness.
Letting your eyes close when you're ready.
And take a few moments here to feel the support of the surface beneath you.
Rooting down into the chair or floor or bed.
And then imagining yourself rooting deeper beneath that.
Rooting down into the earth below.
Find a bit of length in your spine and let the rest of your body soften around it.
And sense into your breath for a few slow and steady cycles.
Feel or sense the nourishment of each in-breath.
And the invitation to soften or surrender with each out-breath.
And then draw your awareness to the crown of your head.
And slowly and gently scan your body downwards.
Inviting any tension or tightness to soften or begin to melt.
So softening through your forehead.
In the small muscles around your eyes.
Softening your jaw.
Inviting your shoulders to let go.
Relaxing down through your arms to your fingertips.
Softening in your chest,
Your breath.
Your back,
Your belly.
Softening all the way down your legs slowly and gently until you reach the soles of your feet.
And as you reach your feet,
Allowing yourself to root back down into the earth.
And to also root down into qualities of curiosity and compassion and patience.
For the inner journey you're about to go on.
Allowing your whole body to soften a little bit more into the space that is holding you.
And then allowing yourself to enter your mind's eye or your inner eye.
As you find yourself stepping foot onto a forested pathway.
Notice what the forest floor of this pathway is made of.
Its color,
Its texture.
And notice what surrounds the pathway.
Noticing the season of the trees.
The type of forest that surrounds you.
Letting this be a forested pathway where you feel safe and supported and at ease.
Notice the quality of light or absence of light that filters down through the canopy above.
And notice what this place smells like.
And if you haven't already,
Begin to imagine yourself moving along this pathway.
With relaxed shoulders,
A soft belly.
And an open heart and an open mind.
Notice what the wind or the air feels like against your body as you move.
And knowing that this pathway is guiding you towards a sacred and ancient space within a forest that feels like home.
Allow yourself to move along the pathway until that place reveals itself to you.
Until you find yourself stepping into a space within the forest that feels sacred and safe and deeply personal to you.
And allow yourself to settle in there as you arrive in this place.
Maybe it's a clearing in the woods.
Part of the forest next to a body of water.
Anywhere you feel yourself naturally drawn to.
Sense into this place through all of your senses.
Noticing what it smells like again.
What it sounds like.
Noticing all of the colors and the textures and the life forms that live here.
Noticing the elements of this place.
And noticing what it feels like in your body to be here.
To arrive in this sacred and ancient place.
And wise inner forest.
You might see yourself standing or seated in this place.
And begin to feel the wildness and the wisdom of this forest.
The harmony.
The complexity.
The balance between what reaches upwards and what roots downwards.
Roots and branches acting as a mirror of one another.
Opposite forces held in balance.
This forest is a place of innate wisdom,
Beauty,
And potential.
Of growth and rest.
Of contraction and expansiveness.
And it embodies the same diversity of your own being.
Of your own heart,
Soul,
Psyche,
And body.
So take a moment to honor the richness and wholeness of this forest.
How all of its parts belong.
How all of its parts contribute to the whole.
And recognize deeply how you too are as wise and ancient as this forest.
As complex,
As diverse.
Balancing opposites with many moving parts.
And with natural seasons and cycles that move through you.
Now take a moment to notice what in this forest.
Is drawing your attention the most.
Maybe it's a tree.
Light.
Maybe it's the earth itself,
A plant,
An animal.
Just allowing your awareness to settle on one thing.
That seems to be drawing your attention more than the rest.
And taking a moment to just check in with your heart and your gut to ensure that whatever is drawing your attention feel safe and supportive to be in the presence of.
In other words,
If anything draws you in that feels unsettling or unsafe,
Allow the imagery to dissipate as your mind and heart widen to something within this forest that is truly here to support you.
And as this being or this element.
This natural part of the forest draws your attention towards it.
Get curious about the qualities,
The properties it innately holds.
How might you describe its true essence?
And then get curious about what message this part of nature,
This part of the forest might have for you today.
You might directly ask it.
What would you like me to know or consider in this moment?
What would you like me to know or consider in this moment?
And just notice what arises.
Recognize that whatever arises is a message from your own wise inner nature.
From your own wise inner forest.
And allow any messages or reminders of care,
Of support,
Of wisdom.
To take root in every fiber of your being.
Let your awareness zoom out from this one part of the forest to the forest as a whole.
And sense into the energy of the whole forest.
Sense into any whispers or.
.
.
Reminders or messages that the whole forest as a whole might have for you in this moment.
And know that you can come back to this place,
To this inner forest at any time.
To connect with its wisdom.
To connect with your own wisdom.
But for now taking a moment to thank the forest and.
.
.
The particular forest teacher.
That presented itself to you.
For any insight or wisdom that was revealed.
And then slowly start to find your way down the path that brought you here.
Absorbing one last time for this practice,
All of the smells and the sounds.
The colors,
The textures.
And the feeling of being within this wise inner forest.
Carrying with you any wisdom that was offered to you.
Knowing that this place is always accessible within.
And slowly and gently allowing the imagery to dissipate.
As you feel back into the surface beneath you.
The chair,
The bed,
The floor,
Whatever is holding you.
As you feel back into your breath.
Back into your body.
And you can begin to bring a bit of gentle,
Mindful movement back into your body.
And slowly opening your eyes when you're ready.
You can take the time you need to transition out of this practice.
And I certainly encourage you to spend a bit of time journaling about what came through for you.
Any strong symbols or images.
Any bits of wisdom or wise reminders.
And any questions you have.
To hold close in the hours and days to come.
Thank you for taking the time to explore your inner force with me in this practice.
May you remember that the wisdom of the forest.
Lives always within you.
