Mindfulness of the Body

A systematic inquiry into the nature of this fathom long body.

Transcript

So to prepare for this body scan meditation,

Take a posture where you can bring the attention with some amount of comfort,

But yet remaining alert.

Whether it's lying down,

Sitting in a chair,

On the floor,

In a cushion.

Just taking a moment to feel the breath in the body.

Connect with the breath.

The tip of the nose,

Rise and fall of the belly.

Wherever you can most easily come into contact with the breath.

For the purpose of this meditation,

I'll be guiding us through the different parts of the body as a way to both bring awareness,

Maybe ease some pain,

Discomfort.

The goal here is not to get rid of pain or discomfort,

But actually to be aware of it and see if we can either let it go or just let it be.

If your attention wanders off,

Just come back to the breath.

Breath in the belly.

Then listen to the next guided portion and reconnect there.

Starting with the feet.

Bring the awareness to the left foot and the right foot.

The bones,

Muscles,

Skin of the left foot and the right foot.

Meaning if you can soften or relax the left foot,

The right foot.

When you're ready,

Begin to scan up the legs,

Ankles,

Calves,

Shins,

Elbows,

And knees.

Again,

The bones,

Muscles,

Skin.

What can you be aware of?

Where can you soften?

Breathe in the belly.

Breathe out the belly.

Moving the awareness like a scan or an x-ray with the mind,

With the awareness.

Up to the knees.

The connection of the lower leg to the upper leg.

Then moving from the knees,

Up through the thighs,

To the hips.

Slowly scanning with your mind,

Through your awareness.

Is there any tension present?

Can we soften?

Moving up from the thighs to the hips,

The systems of filtration and reproduction,

Connection,

The torso and the lower body.

What can we be aware of here?

When you're ready,

Allowing the awareness to move up to the belly,

The torso.

Connecting with the low back,

The spine,

The vertebra.

Seeing if you can move the awareness up to the mid-back,

One vertebra at a time.

Sensing the space in between each vertebra.

Relaxing,

Softening.

Expanding the awareness now out towards the guts,

The organs,

The belly.

Seeing if we can be aware of the contents of this container,

The space in between the organs.

Is the belly tight?

Can we soften?

We hold much stress in our bellies.

Can we soften the belly?

With the next exhale.

Moving up now to the mid-back,

The diaphragm,

Feeling the breath.

As the diaphragm expands and contracts,

Connecting back with the spine again.

Seeing where the spine and the ribs are expanding and contracting with each breath.

The support of the ribs,

The protection of the ribs around the lungs and the chest.

The expansion of each breath.

The accommodation the ribs make to both be flexible.

What can we notice here?

Dormancy.

Awareness of the heart pumping oxygenated blood throughout the whole body expanding the awareness now to the whole upper chest you you you connecting with the shoulders the back the left shoulder the right shoulder moving out towards the arms left arm right arm maintaining awareness as we move down the left arm and the right arm towards the elbow again connecting with the bones the muscles the tendons the skin can we feel the contact of atmosphere on our skin or clothing as we move down from the elbow to the forearms left and right you you you you so complex this body fascinating can we just bring awareness to the left pinky see if we can pinpoint all of our attention into the left pinky moving up now incorporating the all fingers and hands up to the wrists arms shoulders moving across the collarbone to the throat neck mindfulness of swallowing circles of awareness now around the neck the vertebra connecting with the spine and the central nervous system base of the skull can we soften can we relax right here can we let go or let be moving around circles of awareness with the jaw the teeth the face the nose the ears softening around the eyes the brow can we relax the face just for this moment circles of awareness toward the top of the head as if we had a blowhole like a dolphin or a whale can we allow the top of the head to open we breathe in transferring awareness now from the contents to the container this body so breathing now from the top of the head all the way down to the bottoms of the feet and then from the feet on the way up to the top of the head scanning through any places we might have missed any holding any tension letting go softening breathing in breathing out relaxed and alert allowing the bell to ring through you you you you

Reviews

Great practice thank you

Very profound experience. I never knew how much tension I was holding in my body.

Used this in Chicago Refuge Recovery tonight. The group enjoyed it. Thank you Jason

Thank you-- makes a nice intro into a longer meditation

Good voice and nice pace.

Love the long pauses of silence.

Wonderful meditation. This is likely to be my new go-to. Thank you, Jason.

Very clear and gentle lead through of a body scan short enough to fit into a busy day but deep enough to ground the mind. Lovely voice and accessible language- thank you

Jason does excellent mediations. This version of the body scan is peaceful.

Quite good. I highly recommend it

Pleasant voice. Nice pauses. Thank you.

Outstanding! Genuinely helpful. No insipid platitudes, just wise, practical guidance. Thank you :-)

Laughed. When he called the organs "guts"