Allowing yourself to settle into a posture that does not bring about stress in the body,
And also a posture that lends itself to alertness and intention.
And in this relaxed,
Aware posture,
Directing your attention to the feeling of the breath,
Not the idea of the breath,
Some image in the mind,
But the direct felt sense of the in-breath,
The air entering the body through the nostrils,
The rise of the chest,
Expansion of the belly on the in-breath,
And the air exiting the body,
The fall of the chest and compression of the belly on the out-breath,
Allowing the breath to be a point of connection,
And when the mind wanders,
Reconnection with the present moment.
Being conscious of the breath as it occurs prevents the mind from being overtaken by concepts,
Thoughts,
Stories,
And if the mind projects into the future,
Past,
Or forms judgments or ideas about the current experience,
Just notice those impersonal movements of mind,
Those thoughts that arrived without conscious intention,
And notice how it is to return to the immediate felt sense of the breath.
You might also become aware of sensations throughout your body,
Contact with the floor or chair,
Perhaps the feeling of the temperature of the room or the outdoor space that you're in at the surface of the skin,
Coolness or warmth or dryness or humidity.
You might feel the touch of wind as a breeze moves through.
See if it's possible in this moment to just be content with what arises,
That feeling of the breath the breath that continues involuntarily,
Moves on its own,
And also the sensations in the body that arrive without our conscious intention,
A tingling or warmth or internal movement comes to our attention,
Though it was not chosen.
And then allowing in another element of immediate sensory experience,
Sound,
Noticing near sounds,
Distant sounds,
Sounds that persist,
That might be constant,
Or that are not constant,
But are very constant.
Those that come and go,
Fade in,
Fade out,
Appear randomly.
Noticing again how the sounds arrive on their own,
Entering into conscious awareness unannounced,
Despite our ideas,
Judgments,
Preferences,
Preoccupations with the future or past,
Comparisons we might make to other experiences,
The sounds arrive on their own,
And with openness and non-judging awareness,
We can be present to receive them,
Seeing how it is to be open,
Receptive,
Alert,
Yet not managing or directing the experience in any way,
Feeling the natural involuntary rhythms of breath,
Sensation,
Sound,
Arise and pass like wind or waves,
And seeing if it's possible to be content,
And not be afraid of the future,
And not be afraid of the past,
And not be afraid of the future,
And not be afraid of the future,
And not be afraid of the future,
And not be afraid of the future,
And not be afraid of the future,
And not be afraid of the future,
And not be afraid of the future,
And not be afraid of the future,
And not be afraid of the future,
And not be afraid of the future,
What we should or should not be doing with this time,
Whether we're being productive or unproductive,
And our emotional life is as we wish it to be,
Or as we think it should be,
Shifting out of these ideas of now,
Ideas of self,
Into an open,
Receptive,
Unconditional presence.
Sensing how it would be if this immediate experience is all there is.
Sensing the movement,
Change,
Unfolding,
And changing.
As we breathe in,
As we breathe out,
As we breathe in,
As we breathe out,
As we breathe in,
As we breathe out,
As we breathe in,
As we breathe out,
As we breathe in,
As we breathe out,
As we breathe in,
As we breathe out,
As we breathe in,
As we breathe out,
Allowing experience to be as it is,
Allowing yourself to be as you are.
