Discovering open-hearted awareness.
In this meditation,
We peel away the layers of thoughts and feelings that can often hide our own open-hearted awareness,
Which is fundamentally loving and peaceful and interconnected with all life.
We find harmony of being by becoming aware of the changing nature of reality,
But rooted in our own stability,
In our own heart of awareness.
Now it's important to prepare your body,
Environment,
And set your intention for your practice.
Ensure that you are in a quiet,
Comfortable place for meditation,
And that you are in a comfortable seat at a good height or on a proper meditation cushion.
Think carefully about your why for this meditation.
Why is meditation important to you,
And what is your intention for your meditation practice?
Begin to connect to source consciousness or the universal infinite field of love and light.
Consider dedicating your practice to awakened awareness for all beings.
So now let's begin.
Sit comfortably,
Eyes open or closed,
And come into your body.
Focus down into your feet and feel the weight of your feet on the floor and your seat in the chair.
Soften and relax your hands and fingers down into your lap.
Relax your shoulders,
Releasing any tension in your arms,
Shoulders,
And neck.
Imagine a string attached to the top of your head,
Drawing your spine gently upright,
Giving you a feeling of vertical spaciousness.
Smile a subtle smile of calm happiness.
Allow the feeling of smiling to release any tension in your jaw,
Eyes,
Eyebrows,
And forehead.
Notice how the ground is supporting you,
And send a note of gratitude for the stability of this ground supporting your body.
Imagine that you are sitting in a pool of warm golden light that illuminates and recharges all your cells because you are an electric body made of light.
You are the universe in ecstatic motion.
Now take a few long,
Slow breaths.
With each inhale,
Open to the earth,
Nourishing you.
With each exhale,
Allow yourself to fully discharge any resistance through the tailbone or feet,
And allow yourself to relax more fully.
Feel deeply connected to the here and now.
Just let go and relax.
Breath is happening.
The breath simply is.
Breathing is happening.
Don't get involved.
There is no knowing what the breath is even.
Just let it happen.
Celebrate all your senses and simply be aware of what is present in the boundaries of the body.
Allow whatever happens within you to be here just as it is.
Notice feeling sensations on your skin,
Tightness in the body,
And the activity of thinking in your head.
The mental activity of thought and emotions and sensations in the body,
It is all movement or activity in the field of change.
See it not as separate and distinct activity,
But just movement,
The field of change that you are knowing directly prior to the filtering activity of the mind.
Observe reality as it is.
Penetrate deeper.
Surrender deeper.
Just keep surrendering.
Now,
Become interested in what is noticing this field of change rather than the content of your experience such as thoughts,
Feelings,
And perceptions.
Awareness is the knowing presence that is aware of this energy or movement.
Awareness already aware by itself.
You do not need to do anything to make this happen.
Notice the qualities of awareness,
Calm,
Peaceful,
And awake.
Another name for this awareness is I or I am or divine presence or some may call it God.
Feel into the primacy of awareness without needing to create a separate small self.
Feel the awareness and aliveness together.
Just movement and awareness.
Just without going to sleep and stay aware without going to thought to know.
This is your nature and your natural state.
So simple.
So natural.
Feel that awareness can know both the awareness and aliveness from within the body.
Notice this aliveness is very subtle.
This subtle aliveness is a tender,
Soft feeling like bliss.
Feel into the softness,
A soft joy of just being alive.
Now open into the space at the back of your chest behind your heart.
Notice the natural open hearted awareness from within this space.
Become aware from the space of your heart mind.
Notice that you can invite and welcome any thoughts and emotions into your heart space.
So you can remain at home in your heart mind.
Thoughts and feelings may come and go like clouds but they arise and dissolve within the sky.
Just like clouds can't hurt the sky,
Thoughts and feelings can't hurt or change the sky of your mind.
Sense and feel your heart mind reach out and connect to your family,
Friends and everyone on the planet.
Avoid consciousness,
Connecting to itself and viewing itself from the perspective of a separate subject of experience that is each of us.
The great poet Rumi said,
The universe is not outside of you.
Look inside yourself,
Everything that you want you already are.
Allow yourself to marinate in this sky of your mind as open awareness,
Open mind and open heart at one with the flow of universal consciousness and at the same time discovering your own embodied peace and unchanging happiness.
Just rest in the natural sweet and tender joy of being you.
Just now and listen deeply in the silence that follows.
Now,
Gently open your eyes as if you are a child viewing a temple for the first time from open hearted awareness.
Notice that you can invite and welcome vision into your heart space so that you remain at home in your heart and objects arise within your field of vision while your gaze remains inward looking.
A new softer way of seeing,
Looking out from the eyes of open hearted awareness.
Now take a moment to reflect on your meditation and write down anything that is important for you to remember from this experience.
Allow the peace,
Love and well-being from this meditation to infuse every interaction you have as you go about your day so that others too may benefit from your practice.
Wishing you much love and many blessings for your day.
