As we begin this practice of yog-midrā today for the new moon,
Allow yourself to get as comfortable as possible.
You can be lying on the earth or on your bed or in a chair that's comfy,
Your back supported.
And if you're lying down and your head is supported,
Your hands could be resting gently by your sides or your palms at your belly,
Whichever way makes you feel most at ease.
As you allow your eyes to close if you like,
Allow them to remain open with a soft gaze.
Taking a few breaths here.
And for today's yog-midrā practice,
Taking inspiration of the abundance of energy on today's new moon,
We can use it to cultivate what we want in our lives.
And together,
We will plant a seed for what your soul truly needs today.
Taking a moment to become aware of the sounds around you,
Noticing the sounds in the furthest distance.
Gently taking your awareness from sound to sound,
Trying not to get too attached and caught up in the source of the sound.
Bringing your awareness to sounds closer,
Perhaps immediately outside the building.
And closer still to the sounds inside the room.
As you do,
Taking several long,
Slow,
Deep breaths,
Breathing in fully and breathing out slowly.
Breathing in through your nose and out through your nose or mouth as you feel your belly expanding.
Come on in,
Inhale and relaxing as you let go on the exhale.
During the entire yog-midrā practice,
You find your mind wanders at any point,
Gently guiding it back to your breath in this way,
Noticing inhale and exhale,
Or slowly guiding it back to the sound of my voice.
As you slowly use your breath,
Coming all the way down to the belly,
Chest,
The throat,
And back out.
Take this time to set an intention for yourself,
Telling yourself,
I am awake.
I am aware throughout this practice.
Now slowly bring your attention down to your feet.
So you begin observing sensations in your feet.
You may want to wiggle your toes a little as you feel your toes against perhaps your socks or anything that's touching,
Anything that's in contact with your toes,
Noticing without judgment.
Perhaps there is no sensation.
It's completely okay.
Noticing each toes from both feet.
Then when you're ready,
Allowing your feet to dissolve in your mind's eye,
As you move your awareness up to your ankles,
Your right ankle,
Your left ankle,
Your right calf,
Your left calf,
Your right knee.
Your left knee,
Your right thigh,
Your left thigh.
Observing the sensations you feel and experience throughout your legs.
Your mind begins to wander.
Gently notice this as you bring your mind back to noticing sensations in your legs.
Now on your next out breath,
Allowing your legs to dissolve in your mind as you move to the sensations in your hips,
Your right hip,
Your left hip,
The bowl of your pelvis,
And your lower back softening and releasing as you breathe in and out.
As you slowly move your awareness up to your mid back and upper back,
As you stay curious with the sensations here.
Maybe you're aware of sensations in your muscles,
Temperature,
The point of contact you have with the furniture or the bed or the earth supporting you.
With each out breath,
Releasing any stress and tension that you may be carrying physically.
Gently shifting your focus to your belly,
Your stomach and all the internal organs here.
Perhaps you notice the feeling of clothing,
Perhaps the process of digestion,
But the movement of the belly rising and falling with each breath.
Time your mind wanders,
Gently letting it come back to noticing sensations.
As you continue to breathe,
Bring your awareness to your chest and heart region.
Notice your heartbeat.
Observe how the chest rises during the inhale and how the chest falls during the exhale.
Slowly bring your awareness into your collar bones.
From your collar bone going down to the right arm,
Right elbow,
Right forearm,
Right wrist,
Palm of your right hand,
Back of your right hand,
All the fingers down to the fingertips.
Then back up noticing sensations,
Bringing your awareness from the fingertips all the way back up.
Palm of the wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Into your right shoulder.
Slowly shifting and bringing your awareness to the left shoulder,
Left upper arm,
Left elbow,
Left forearm,
Left wrist,
Palm of your left hand,
Back of your left hand,
All five fingers down to the fingertips.
And back from the fingertips,
The palm,
The wrist,
The left forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
The left shoulder.
As you continue to breathe and bring your focus to your neck,
Both shoulders and your throat,
Noticing sensations here,
Noticing physical movement,
Breathing in and out,
Allowing your body to find ease in this area,
Your shoulders,
Your neck,
Your throat.
And on your next out breath,
Shifting your focus to your chin,
Your mouth,
Your tongue,
Your cheeks,
Your right cheek,
Left cheek,
Nose,
Right nostril,
Left nostril,
To eyes,
Eye sockets,
Eyeballs behind your closed eyes,
Your right eye,
Left eye,
Right eyebrow,
Left eyebrow,
Temples,
Your forehead,
Your whole face,
And bringing your awareness to the top of your head,
Your scalp,
Back of your head,
Back of your neck,
Shoulders,
Back of your arms,
Upper back,
Lower back,
Your butt,
Thighs,
Back of your thighs,
Back of your knees,
Back of your calves,
Your ankles,
Back of your feet,
The entire back body,
The entire back body.
And coming to the front,
From the top of your head,
Your scalp,
Coming down your face,
Your throat,
Your neck,
Collarbones,
Front of your arms,
The chest,
Belly,
Hips,
Pelvis,
Front of your thighs,
Knees,
Shins,
Top of your feet,
Your whole front body,
Your whole front body,
Allowing your awareness to now expand to include the entire body as a whole,
From the top of your head down to the bottom of your toes,
As you feel the gentle rhythm of your breath as it moves through your body.
Slowly bring your awareness back to your chest,
The space around your heart.
Notice your breath,
Just the rhythm of your breathing as your chest moves in the rhythm with it.
As you begin to notice the inhales and exhales,
Noticing how each exhale arises from the inhale before it and each inhale arises from the previous exhale.
And in between,
There is a moment of stillness,
A hover.
It's not a conscious breath hold,
But a hover space of transition between the inhales and exhales,
As you trust the space of this transition,
Staying with the breath.
Take your awareness and remain in the spatial stillness in which the breath emerges,
Develops and fades.
9 Now,
As you connect with your heart space and your breath,
Welcome any feeling,
Any emotion and memory,
Images,
Thoughts,
Or beliefs that arise.
Kicking them this space,
Anything that comes to mind,
Allowing them to be felt,
Seen and heard,
And held in this space.
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As we stay here with our breaths,
Allowing ourselves to begin to look inward.
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As you visualize yourself seated beneath an open velvety night sky.
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Sending beacons of starlight across the sky towards you.
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The same comes out of your heart center.
Same as this shining star in the sky.
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