Welcome to today's meditation.
Please take a comfortable seat.
First,
Making sure that you won't be disturbed for the entirety of this session,
Approximately 15 minutes.
Making sure that you are sitting nice and comfortably.
You can sit either on a chair or directly on the floor,
Whatever feels comfortable for you wherever you're available for the meditation.
Sitting proud,
Sitting with dignity,
Sitting with a good posture,
Nice and tall,
Nice and straight.
We'll start this meditation by dedicating it to someone.
It can be to anyone that you choose,
Including yourself.
The way we do this is very simple.
We close our eyes.
We put our hands to our heart.
Take a nice deep breath in through the nose.
And on the exhalation,
We project our love,
Gratitude,
And appreciation towards that person.
Take a few deep breaths and relax into the space you are in.
Clear your mind from your thoughts and relax.
If you wish,
You may anchor your breath with a simple phrase of freedom or peace.
So every time you get distracted and want to come back to your breath,
Just silently say either freedom or peace to yourself on your exhalation.
We will now ground ourselves at six different points.
Our seat,
Our legs,
Torso,
Hands,
Eyes,
Mouth.
Your seat.
Whether sitting on a cushion on the floor or in a chair lying down,
Relax at your seat and feel the parts that are in contact with the ground.
Allow yourself to relax more fully and be present with yourself.
Notice any parts of your body that may be uncomfortable and focus your attention to relaxing at these points.
Your legs.
If you are sitting on a cushion,
The legs should be crossed comfortably in front of you.
Or if you're in a chair,
The feet are flat on the floor and the knees a few inches apart.
If you are lying down,
Feel the point of your feet and legs that are in contact with the ground.
Relax in this space.
Your legs work hard all day trying to support the body on top of them.
Breathe some kindness to them.
Keep your attention to relaxing your body and just notice your torso.
Ensure that your torso,
And we're talking from your head to your seat,
Is elongated and aligned.
If you start to slouch during this meditation,
Simply sit upright again.
Correct alignment in this area promotes energy flow through your body.
Now start at your seat and feel each vertebrae one by one all the way up to your head.
Relax.
Notice.
Be present.
Your hands.
Keep your hands open with palms up for receiving or palms down for grounding,
Either resting on your thighs or on the floor.
Your hand positions can be used to invite and draw mindfulness inside your body and reconnect with your heart's language of compassion,
Kindness,
Goodness,
Creativity,
And joy.
Use your hands to bring a sense of peace into your body.
Feel the energy coming in and out of your hands with each breath.
Your eyes.
The eyes can remain open,
Indicating the attitude of remaining awake and relaxed with all that occurs.
Your eye gaze is slightly downward and directed about four to six feet in front of you.
This will help you connect to the present moment through a sensory awareness of your surroundings.
While your mind may start to drift off,
You will still be present with where you are.
If you choose to close your eyes,
Just become aware of what is happening in your third eye space.
You may see colors,
Shapes,
Or feel sensations,
Or you may feel or see nothing at all.
Do not judge yourself.
This is a safe space.
Your only job is to be present with yourself and observe.
Your mouth.
The mouth is very slightly open so that the jaw is relaxed and air can move easily through the mouth and nose.
The tip of the tongue can be placed on the roof of the mouth.
We so often clench our jaw or have tension in our mouth area without ever realizing it.
Take a moment to make sure that you are completely relaxing in the jaw,
Mouth,
And tongue.
Observe.
Notice.
At this time,
Please put a very light attention on your out-breath.
This space is as close as you can come to resting the mind in its natural open state and still have an object to which to return.
Your breath has been with you from your birth and will remain a constant for your whole life.
Give it the space and acknowledgement that it deserves.
Don't try to manipulate your breath in any way.
Your attention should be soft and gentle.
Relax completely with your environment and appreciate the world around you.
If you feel distracted at any point,
Come back to these six points and then to your breath,
Your seat,
Your feet,
Your torso,
Your hands,
Your mouth,
Your eyes,
And your breath.
Please return to that gentle focus on your out-breath.
Meditation is one of the only activities that allows for the possibility of connecting with unconditional openness,
And this is the basis for real change.
A few months ago,
I saw a deer attempting to cross a roaring river near my house.
It was a gloomy day with mist across the water,
And it was more turbulent than I would want to go kayaking in.
As I drove by,
I stopped,
Struck by the determination of this deer off in the distance.
Like,
Why was it trying to cross the water?
What could have been so bad that it felt the need to cross?
Or was it something good?
Did it know how turbulent the journey would be?
What was it looking for?
Will it ever find it?
As you contemplate this,
Think of the ways that you might be trying to move on from something or just get to the other side of where you might be.
How much turbulence are you willing to endure to get there?
The beauty of this practice is that you can observe your feelings without it having an actual effect on reality.
Just be with your thoughts and allow them to be just that,
Thoughts.
There is no judgment here.
Your feelings and emotion are yours,
And there is an immense beauty in that.
Be kind to yourself.
Now,
Take a moment to just be with your thoughts or no thoughts at all.
If you find yourself distracted,
Come back to your breath and focus on the out breath for a few moments as you create awareness of your own consciousness.
Feel your awareness begin to come back to your body and where you are.
You can move all your fingers and your toes.
Gently stretch your back.
Maybe turn your neck from side to side.
Move your tongue and your eyes.
Just recombobulate to being in your body.
When you are ready,
You may open your eyes.
The Dalai Lama said,
He said,
There are only two days in the year that nothing can be done.
One is called yesterday,
And the other is called tomorrow.
So today is the right day to love,
Believe,
Do,
And mostly live.
I encourage you to take some time to journal about this meditation.
You could write about the turbulence in your life,
Or you could write about how you would like to use today to love,
Believe,
Do,
And live more.
However you choose to journal is up to you,
But just the act of doing it can be very helpful.
So please raise your hands to your heart center.
I ask that you go forward with love and light in your heart.
Send that love and light out to those around you and breathe in life at every moment.
Raise your hands to your third eye,
And together as one in the same,
We say,
Namaste.
