Sitting on a chair,
Spine upright,
Supported,
Or sitting cross-legged on the floor,
Use a cushion to make yourself comfortable.
Take a few moments now to allow yourself to become settled and calm.
It's important that the body becomes relaxed and that the mind remains alert and calm.
So we begin the practice with a yoga cleansing breath.
It's a double breath in through the nose,
Short,
Long.
Holding the breath for a few moments,
Feeling the fullness of the chest,
And then breathing out through the mouth again short,
Long.
Feeling that on the out-breath you allow yourself to let go of all cares and worries.
So once again,
Breathing in short,
Long through the nose,
Holding it gently,
And releasing through the mouth,
Making sure that you release the entire breath.
And then allow your breathing to resume a natural rhythm.
Feeling the lightness in your body now,
Be aware of your whole body relaxed.
Choose to be present now as we practice meditation.
And if the mind wanders,
As it inevitably does,
Simply bring your mind back to the moment,
To the practice,
And be in and around the feeling of your breathing.
So now allow your eyes to be very lightly closed.
Be aware of your eyebrows widening,
Expanding,
And the space between your eyebrows is relaxed.
Make that there is no indication of intensity or frowning.
And feel your forehead relaxed and smooth.
Allow your jaw to drop a little.
Be aware of your tongue softly spreading in your mouth.
And the lips are soft.
Allow your shoulders to drop.
And as you let go of tension in your shoulders,
Feel that you drop any worry or responsibility or burden.
Relax through your shoulders and down your arms into your hands and fingers.
Allow your hands to rest either comfortably in your lap or on the knees.
Be aware of your whole spine,
Upright and elongated,
As though it is floating in that upright position.
There is no need for rigidity or stiffness.
Feel your spine upright.
Be aware of your abdominal muscles relaxing,
So you're not holding on to any emotional tension that we often feel in the solar plexus just below the rib cage.
So relax the abdominal muscles now,
Allowing your legs to relax and your feet and toes.
So your whole body responds to the ease and to the softness and lightness that you have brought into your body now.
Remember throughout the practice your mind remains alert as your body remains relaxed and calm.
Evenness of breath,
Evenness of mind.
Let us now turn the mind in and around the breath,
The natural breath rhythm.
We can say now,
Follow your breath.
Follow the inhale and follow the exhale.
Be patient and allow the breath to settle into that natural rhythm.
Evenness of breath,
Evenness of mind.
Now allow yourself to apply the count of four.
Four counts as you inhale the breath,
Just slowly,
Unhurriedly,
And four counts as you exhale the breath.
Concentrating on the breath and the count allows us to draw the mind inward,
Releasing any restless thoughts.
Concentrating on the breath and the count.
As you breathe now you may be aware that you may be feeling it very naturally there is a pause at the end of the inhalation and at the end of the exhalation.
This occurs quite naturally as you're breathing slows down.
The pause,
Feel that you rest in that sacred space of stillness,
Albeit for just a few moments.
Let go of grasping,
Let go of anticipation or expectation.
Allow yourself to be truly present,
Fully focused on the in and out breath and the natural pause.
Now leave your breathing,
Allow it to continue in its natural rhythm.
Take a moment to bring your mind to the heart space.
It is now in this stillness that we enter the temple of quietness that is present within your heart space.
The temple of quietness and peace.
Feel the feeling,
Really be there.
And as you pause in that space,
Be aware of the warmth that is emanating now from that heart space.
A warmth that radiates through your whole body,
Taking that quality of peace into every cell and atom of your body.
Feel that peace.
As you breathe,
Sense that you're breathing into that temple of quietness and peace and taking that quality through your whole being.
Be aware that your mind settles also in that temple of quietness and even if the thoughts still persist,
You're able to feel quite removed from those thoughts.
There's no need to engage in dialogue or any analysis of your thoughts,
But rather witness your thoughts as they come in and as they leave.
And you remain with your intention to come back to your breathing,
Back to that inner temple of peace.
Realizing now that that fullness,
That radiance in your heart is truly present at all times.
Revisiting that inner place of stillness allows that feeling of peace to gather throughout your whole body into your life,
Into all your actions and thoughts.
So rest for a few moments now feeling that inner presence of peace.
And as we remain in that presence of peace with the fullness and radiance of the heart space,
We can open the heart and share that peace with not only our loved ones,
Friends,
Work colleagues,
But with the world at large.
So now listening to a passage from a text entitled Meditation by Eknath Iswaran.
He quotes the Buddha here.
May all beings be filled with joy and peace.
May all beings everywhere,
The strong and the weak,
The great and the small,
The mean and the powerful,
The short and the long,
The subtle and the gross.
May all beings everywhere,
Seen and unseen,
Dwelling far off or nearby,
Being or waiting to become.
May all be filled with lasting joy.
Let no one deceive another.
Let no one anywhere despise another.
Let no one,
Out of anger or resentment,
Wish suffering on anyone at all.
Just as a mother with her own life protects her child,
Her only child from harm,
So within yourself let grow a boundless love for all creatures.
Let your love flow outward through the universe,
To its height,
Its depth,
Its broad extent.
A limitless love without hatred or enmity.
Then as you stand or walk,
Sit or lie down,
As long as you are awake,
Strive for this with a one-pointed mind.
Your life will bring heaven to earth.
Feeling the vibration of those words radiating outward into the world.
Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with us.
Opening your eyes now and breathing in deeply as you stretch your arms up over the head.
Stretch and breathe deeply in and then join your palms and come down through the center line of the body.
Hari Om Tat Sat.
Peace,
Peace,
Peace.
