And get a sense of the length of breath,
Getting a sense of that vertical connection that prana rides in on,
From the cosmos,
Down through the crown of your head,
Down through your body,
Exiting through your body,
Deep into the core of the earth.
So it's not really how much or how long you breathe,
But how much of a connection do you have to the pathway of breath in this vertical connection,
This connection from the cosmos through you and to the earth.
The horizontal connection to the breath,
The width of the breath,
This more relational aspect connects you to others,
To your community,
To your family,
Noticing how much access of this width or horizontal connection of breath you have,
And just really embracing it.
And a three-dimensional aspect of breath,
Like a womb or a cocoon or a cosmic egg surrounding you,
Enveloping you,
Breathing into this orb,
Filling it with breath and prana,
And sensing that all of your protectors,
Ancestors,
Guides,
Angels are holding vigil as you journey deep within,
Your awareness into the heart,
Into the bindu,
The seat of the soul,
Deep within your own heart,
Breathing in and out as if the heart could breathe,
Setting an intention.
If you have one,
You could also use the intention,
I am infinite,
Loving awareness.
You could repeat that as a whisper or mentally three times,
I am infinite,
Loving awareness.
Become aware of the body breathing naturally,
Inhalation happens and the belly rises,
Exhalation happens and the belly falls over and over,
The body breathes,
Become aware,
Become aware of the inner landscape of the body,
Noticing inner stillness and awareness also of movement,
Sensation,
Thought,
Allow your awareness now to reside at the opening of the nostrils.
As you inhale,
Notice the touch of breath along the nostrils,
The temperature and the touch of breath as you exhale,
As the body exhales and follow the flow of the breath in through the nostrils and the nasal passages,
Then through the body,
Through the inner body and back out,
Allowing the body to breathe naturally,
Just noticing how the breath touches the nostrils,
The nasal passages and the inner landscape as it moves in and out.
Begin to bring awareness to the gaps between the breath,
When the inhale turns into an exhale there might be a gap or a transition,
When the exhale turns into an inhale,
Allow yourself to be with that whole process,
Awareness of the whole process,
This whole natural process that's happening automatically,
Allowing yourself to anchor into the witnessing of the process.
Notice the impulse to exhale and follow the exhale to where it dissolves outside of the body and see if you can receive the inhale from outside of the body,
Feel it moving in all the way into the body,
Dissolving,
Releasing and then the impulse to exhale and following it to where it dissolves.
Continue noticing the flow of the breath for the next minute,
Let go of any efforting and just observing,
There is nothing you need to do to earn,
To receive this breath,
Receive the gift of the breath as it moves in and out and bring your awareness to the top of the head,
The whole scalp and all the follicles of hair,
The forehead,
The eyebrows,
The eyelids,
The eyeballs and the sockets that hold the eyeballs,
Soften the nasal flares and the insides of both nostrils,
Soften the apples of the cheeks,
Awareness of the lips,
The teeth,
The roots of the teeth,
The hinge of the jaw,
The ears,
The inner ear canals,
The root of the tongue,
The voice box,
The collarbones,
Shoulders,
Armpits,
Upper arms,
Elbows,
The lines that cross your hands and the grooves of each fingerprint,
Moving your awareness to the sternum,
The breastbone,
Feeling the ribs as they grow out of the breastbone around the sides all the way to the back to the spine,
The inner lining of the rib cage,
The heart,
Your beating heart,
Feel it move,
The breathing lungs filling and emptying,
Soften awareness to the visceral organs that sit in the depth of the belly and the moves they make with each breath that you take,
The navel,
The sacrum,
The bowl of the pelvis,
The pelvic floor,
And the hip joints,
Both thighs,
The backs of the knees,
The arches of the feet,
The spaces between the toes,
The very tips of the toes,
Gentle awareness of your whole body,
Soft awareness from the crown of the head to the tips of the toes,
The tips of the toes to the crown of the head,
Noticing parts of you that are energized,
Opening up to them,
And the same offering to the parts that are super tight,
That are screaming for something,
Feel yourself opening up to them with your awareness,
Parts that lie so quiet,
And the parts and pieces of you that are radical and reactionary,
Perfect,
Perfect as you are,
And ever-changing,
Resting,
This whole body,
The whole body resting,
Perfect,
Just as you are,
Backwards each exhalation,
Starting from 27 and counting all the way to zero,
Each time you count down a number,
Release a layer of contraction or tension or identity,
And as you get to zero,
The body and the mind feel free,
Each exhalation counting down from 27 all the way to zero,
If you lose count,
Start back at 27,
And if you finish before you hear my voice again,
Start back at 27,
Just letting go,
And let go of your counting,
Resting with awareness in the center of your head,
Imagine yourself in a vast,
Endless forest,
Nothing,
And only the trees,
A living,
Breathing,
Drinking it in,
Feel the landscape moving through you,
Returning you to yourself,
And as you move through it,
You are also a part of it,
You are alive inside your body,
You are alive inside your breath,
You are flesh,
You are right where you belong.
