My name is Eric and I am about to guide you on a simple meditation focusing on the breath.
The breath is our constant companion with us at all times,
Always an avenue or path to being present.
So wherever you are either seated or lying down making sure you are as comfortable as possible.
And starting the meditation by taking a slow relaxed deep breath in and as you exhale very gently closing the eyes not squeezing them shut just allowing the eyelids to very gently cover the eyes.
And with the eyes closed noticing how your other senses are now a bit more enhanced so feeling the weight of the body pressing down into the floor,
The mat,
The chair,
Wherever you are.
And also with the eyes closed the hearing becomes more enhanced so hearing sounds around you near or far by not resisting the sound but inviting it into your meditation.
And then very gently guiding your awareness and your attention to your natural breath so we're not changing the quality of how we breathe but we're really tuning in to how our physical body responds to each inhale and each exhale.
As you inhale you may feel your belly expanding like a balloon,
You may feel your chest expanding as the air fills your lungs and at the top of each inhale you may even feel your shoulders rising towards the sky ever so slightly.
And with the inhale you may notice that your breath is cool.
And with the exhale now noticing the opposite feeling the shoulders sinking down as you release the breath.
Seeing the chest,
The ribcage closing in towards the heart as the air leaves your lungs and feeling your belly deflating like a balloon and the air with the exhale may be warm.
Start with each breath,
With each rising and falling feeling your physical body becoming more and more relaxed.
If at any time you find yourself distracted by sound or thought simply acknowledge that you were distracted but then very gently,
Very lovingly bringing your awareness back to the breath.
If you find it challenging to focus on the breath you can even say in your head as you breathe in,
Inhale and as you release the breath again in your head saying exhale.
And again if you find yourself distracted by anything at all just acknowledging that you were distracted but then again bringing awareness back to the breath.
And slowly bringing awareness back to your physical body simply by wiggling fingers and toes very slowly.
And bringing your awareness back into your space simply by tuning into any sounds that you hear around you near or far.
And once again feeling the weight of your physical body pressing down into the floor,
The seat or wherever you are.
And taking a slow relaxed deep breath in and exhale.
Slow relaxed deep breath in and exhale.
And one more slow relaxed deep breath in and exhale while very slowly opening eyes and bringing your full awareness and attention back into your space.
And before making any large movements just checking in with how you're feeling with being aware and hopefully finding yourself more at peace,
More relaxed,
More grounded,
More in touch with yourself.
And I invite you to revisit this meditation whenever you find yourself in need of a short break but regardless remembering that the breath is always with us and always that gateway or path to being present and being in the moment.
Namaste.
