We can do the body scan lying down or we could do it sitting or even standing up.
It's important that we're in a position that we're comfortable as we'll be staying in that position for 20 minutes.
So settling into position,
We can have the eyes open or closed and starting by bringing our attention to the breath,
Bringing our attention to the tip of the nose.
Perhaps if the temperature is cool,
There may be a different sensation of the inhale than the exhale on the tip of the nose.
And I'm moving the attention now to encompass the whole breath,
The body breathing,
Sensation on the chest and perhaps even the belly and recognizing in fact that every cell of the body is breathing,
The oxygen being transferred and CO2 going back out.
And during this exercise,
Of course,
Thoughts will arise,
The mind is going to be distracted,
Which of course is natural.
And in the same way,
We find ourselves caught up in thought,
Lost.
At some point we notice and when we notice that we've been caught up,
That's the point that we are present again and gently and deliberately bringing the attention back to the point of focus,
Which at this point in time is the sensation of breathing.
And now drawing the attention down to the left foot,
To the left foot.
There may be some pressure,
The point of contact,
Maybe a sense of texture,
Maybe a sense of temperature or humidity.
And we're welcome to move gently,
Subtly,
The foot to make its sensations more alive.
And now letting go of the left foot and moving up to the lower left leg,
The lower left leg.
And now the lower left knee,
The left knee.
There's no need to be looking for sensations,
Whether they're prominent or not,
It doesn't matter.
The purpose of this exercise is to draw the attention to different parts of the body,
Allowing whatever experience is there to be.
And in fact,
If something feels uncomfortable in the spirit of this exercise,
We can just simply move on,
Ignore it,
Even make any adjustment,
That's appropriate,
Is welcome.
So use your discretion.
Drawing attention to the body and at the same time experiencing the mind wandering,
Thoughts occurring,
Judgments occurring,
Perhaps even other sensations occurring.
So welcoming all that and simply drawing the attention more to certain parts of the body as we're moving along.
So moving on to the upper left leg,
To the thigh.
And letting go of the thigh and moving to the right foot.
Moving to the right foot.
What's the point of contact like between the toes?
And moving to the right ankle.
And to the lower right leg.
Remembering and noticing the wandering mind is part of the curriculum.
Noticing any judgment is part of the curriculum.
Experiencing pleasantness or unpleasantness,
Loud,
Active mind,
Gentle mind is all part of the curriculum of this present moment.
Observing the landscape while anchoring our attention to the body,
To the upper right leg.
And now letting go of the upper right leg and moving to the pelvic area,
To the pelvis.
Welcome to a light squeeze or a light movement to make any sensations more alive if it feels appropriate.
And if it feels appropriate,
Approaching this exercise and these sensations with a flavor of curiosity and kindness.
Maybe even appreciation for the body.
Now moving to the lower belly and the lower back.
And to the upper belly.
Maybe the sense of breathing.
Maybe evident here,
Or maybe not.
And drawing the attention now to the chest,
The lungs,
And the heart.
The lungs and the heart.
Bringing awareness to parts of the body that cannot be felt,
But they are there.
And drawing the attention to the upper back and the shoulders.
Observing the landscape.
And if there's any desire to change it,
Wishes that it would be different,
Observing that thought as well,
Bringing it.
Now drawing attention to the left upper arm,
The left elbow,
The lower arm,
And the left hand.
Now moving to the right hand,
The right fingers,
The right lower arm,
And the right upper arm.
And now moving to the neck,
And the jaw,
And to the mouth.
Noticing the contact with the body,
And to the mouth.
Noticing the contact between the tongue and teeth,
Or other parts of the mouth,
Textures,
Tastes.
What is this taste of mouth?
And drawing the attention now to the cheeks,
And the eyes,
The muscles,
All around the eyes that form our expression,
That communicate how we feel.
Now moving to the forehead,
And to the scalp,
To the whole head.
What's it like to bring attention to something that is not easily felt?
And to the nose,
To the experience of smell,
And to the ears,
Experience of sound.
Receiving sound.
And now widening the attention to the whole body,
Letting go of any intention to focus on any particular part,
Embracing the whole body,
Expanding the awareness to incorporate the whole body.
Sensations of contact,
Of sounds,
Taste and smell,
Thoughts,
Emotions,
Everything.
And as the meditation is gradually coming to an end,
Gently open the eyes,
If you have them closed,
And hearing the gong as the end of the meditation.
As the end of the meditation.
