This will be an awareness of breath practice.
Finding a comfortable seat,
And closing your eyes or lowering your gaze.
And taking a deeper than normal in-breath,
And an audible exhale.
So we mark the transition into formal practice.
And allowing the breath to return to its natural rhythm.
Committing to bringing a curious,
Good-natured awareness to the present moment.
Using your breath as an anchor.
As you settle into stillness,
Noticing the experience you're having.
What is it like to be you right now?
Perhaps scanning the body,
Allowing it to be how it is.
No need to fix anything.
Now gathering up your attention and placing it on the direct experience of the body breathing.
Feeling each breath as it enters and leaves.
Simply being aware of the raw sensations of breathing.
Beginning to experiment with the practice of counting breaths.
Softly,
Mentally labeling 1 after the next inhale.
And 2 on the exhale,
All the way to 10.
If you reach 10,
Beginning again at 1.
When you find your mind has wandered,
Noticing this opportunity to practice returning your attention to the present moment.
And beginning again at 1 with the next breath.
Feeling and counting each inhale and exhale.
Taking a moment to acknowledge yourself for having spent this time cultivating greater ease,
Focus,
And concentration.
And taking one deeper than normal in-breath with an audible exhale.
Opening your eyes,
Raising your gaze,
And orienting to the room around you.
Nice work.
See you back here tomorrow.
