Beginning by acknowledging that for the next few minutes,
There's nowhere to go,
Nothing to do,
No one to be.
We're going to practice being instead of doing.
So starting off noticing where the mind is at as you begin your meditation.
Is it agitated,
Frustrated,
Centered,
Calm,
Excited,
Distracted,
Cluttered?
Just notice where your mind is at.
Then I'd like you to notice the effects of gravity.
Noticing your weight on the cushion or chair that's supporting you.
Noticing the various contact points,
Maybe even noticing the touch of your clothing on your skin.
So noticing gravity doing what gravity does.
Then doing a brief body scan from the tip of the head down to the toes.
Seeing if you can notice anywhere where there's some tension or tightness.
Seeing if it's possible to soften or release some of that.
If you can't soften,
Just noticing and being aware of it is enough.
There you go.
Next,
Practicing attending to the breath.
So,
Experiencing the breath,
Observing the breath,
Being with the breath.
The simple instruction is,
When you're breathing in,
Know that you're breathing in.
Breathing out,
Know that you're breathing out.
So finding the area of the body where the breath feels most prominent,
Most noticeable,
And directing your attention to that area,
And connecting with it,
And sustaining that connection.
So,
Breathing in,
Know that you're breathing in.
Breathing out,
Know that you're breathing in.
Breathing out,
Know that you're breathing in.
You might soon notice that the connection has been lost because of the mind's tendency to wander,
Which is totally normal.
When you notice that the mind is wandering,
You can just label that as thinking,
And come back to your anchor,
The breath.
An attitude of kindness towards yourself goes a long way here.
So,
Breathing in,
Know that you're breathing in.
Breathing out,
Know that you're breathing in.
Breathing out,
Know that you're breathing in.
You might ask yourself,
Where is my mind now?
Jack Kornfield likens meditation to training a puppy.
When you train a puppy and the puppy doesn't do what you want it to do,
You don't get angry,
You don't get frustrated.
Just kindly and gently,
You bring the puppy back.
This is what we're doing with our mind,
Training the mind to notice thinking and come back to now.
So,
Breathing in,
Know that you're breathing in.
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Where is the mind now?
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It's totally normal over the course of a meditation to lose our connection with our anchor dozens of times.
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And each time we come back,
Each time we notice,
And we come back to presence,
It's a moment of awakening and a moment of mindfulness.
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And cause for celebration.
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Breathing in.
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Breathing out.
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This is your home base.
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This meditation will begin to wind down.
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Giving yourself a congratulatory hug.
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Acknowledging the time that you've taken to take care of yourself.
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And keeping a good part of your awareness in your body and breath.
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And noticing the mind as well.
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Setting an intention on how you want to go about the rest of your day in a way that will be of benefit to you and others.
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