Hi,
This is Jonathan.
Thank you for joining me.
In this meditation,
We will be working with our thoughts to experience states of inner silence and peace and calm.
Let's get started.
I invite you to find a comfortable posture.
You can do this meditation sitting in a chair or on a mat or lying down.
And we'll start by taking a deep breath in through the nose and exhaling through the nose.
And let's do that one more time.
Take a deep breath in through the nose and out through the nose.
And as you exhale,
Gently close your eyes.
Now allow your breath to return to normal.
Let it be relaxed and natural.
And let's plant a seed of dedication.
By internally repeating this phrase,
I am prepared for inner silence.
And I will remain still and dedicated to the goal of experiencing inner silence throughout the entire practice.
And for a moment,
Just feel yourself inhabiting your body.
Feel your breath cycling naturally.
Feel the weight of the body.
The pressure below you.
And the sense of gravity grounding you toward the earth.
And let's move our awareness to our feet.
And beginning at the feet,
Slowly move our focus upward,
Searching for tense or tight muscles and relaxing those areas.
Let's begin with the feet,
And the calves,
And the thighs,
The hips,
The stomach,
The back,
The chest,
The shoulders,
The arms,
And the hands.
Relax the neck,
The muscles of the face,
The jaw,
And the tongue,
And the cheeks,
And the eyebrows,
And the forehead.
And now become aware that the body is breathing,
And direct your focus to the sensations of the rising and the falling of your belly,
Or your chest,
Or your torso,
Wherever you feel the breath.
And stay here for a few moments,
Just experiencing the sensations of breathing.
Now become aware of external stimulation through your five senses.
Observe the different sounds,
Smells,
Tastes,
Sights,
And physical sensations of the body.
Observe these experiences without attachment and without judgment.
Do not try to change them,
Push them away,
Or sustain them.
Simply observe and accept your experience as it changes,
As things arise and pass through your awareness,
And sit in quiet,
Non-judgmental observation.
Now move your awareness to your thoughts,
And any activity in the mind.
Become aware of thoughts as you allow them to come and go.
Do not stop them or sustain them.
Do not identify with them.
Become aware when a thought has arisen into your awareness,
And without judgment,
Allow it to go.
And simply remain a silent,
Impartial witness to your thoughts.
And for one minute of silence,
Simply sit in non-judgmental awareness of your thoughts.
Now,
We will create and dispose of our thoughts.
Bring your mind to anything that you want to think.
Create any thought,
Good or bad,
Comfortable or uncomfortable,
Serious or funny,
And stay with this thought for a few moments,
And then remove the thought by visualizing the action of pushing it up and out through the top of your head.
Now,
Create another thought,
And stay with this thought for a few moments.
And again,
Push it up and out of the top of your head.
If spontaneous thoughts arise,
Become aware of their existence,
And push these up and out through the top of your head,
And create a new thought in the space that's left behind.
And continue this process for one minute of creating and removing thoughts,
Going at a pace that is comfortable for you.
Now,
Stop the process of creating thoughts,
And allow your thoughts to appear spontaneously and at random.
When you see that a thought has risen into your awareness,
Simply push it up and out through the top of your head,
And allow the next thought to appear at random.
And when you see a thought has risen,
Push this,
Too,
Up and out through the top of your head.
And continue this process for one minute,
Becoming aware of the arising thoughts before pushing them up and out.
Now,
Become aware of the silence between the thoughts,
Between the removal of the last thought and the arrival of the next.
Observe and experience this inner silence.
When a thought has arisen into your awareness,
Recognize its existence,
And simply push the thought up and out,
Becoming aware once again of the silence between the thoughts.
Observe and experience this silence,
The peace and silence of the quiet and thoughtless mind.
And continue in this manner for one minute.
Now,
Bring your focus and awareness back to the body.
Feel the weight of the body.
Feel the pressure below you and the sensations of gravity.
And bring a little movement to the body by slowly moving your feet and hands and shoulders and neck and the muscles of the face.
And take two deep breaths through the nose.
And when you are ready,
Exhale and gently open your eyes.
Thank you.
