Let us begin by taking a deep breath,
Inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth.
And as you let the air enter your nose,
I ask that you relax your body,
Allow the energy to flow in and the thoughts to leave your mind with the exhalation,
Settling into being here now.
As you take a few deep breaths,
You can shift your posture and adjust your arms and your shoulders and your knees so that you are comfortable in the posture that you're seated in.
And now,
As your breath continues,
Turn your attention to the area in your body that you feel the breath the strongest.
This may be in your nostrils as the air enters your nose,
Or you may be feeling its presence in the rise and fall of your chest.
Become open and curious to the sensation of your body being breathed.
Notice the quality of the breath.
Is it warm or cool?
Perhaps it is moist or dry,
Shallow or deep.
Notice the breath without judgment.
In Samatha practice,
As thoughts arise,
We return to an anchor.
In today's practice,
The anchor is the breath.
So as thoughts arise,
Gently return to the sensation of the breath.
We will now spend a few minutes in silence,
Becoming attuned to the breath.
If you find yourself struggling to find a strong center,
You can consider counting your exhalations from 1 to 10,
And then returning back to 1,
And as thoughts arise,
Starting again with the count.
As your mind settles,
Turn your focus to the breath entering your nostrils,
And as you breathe in,
Relax the muscles of your face and your eyes.
Relax your eyebrows and your forehead,
And breathe into these areas of your cheeks and your jaw,
Allowing your eyes to lighten,
Perhaps the light will enter through your eyelids.
Now draw your breath down into your neck and your shoulders,
Noticing any tightness that you might be holding there from night,
Inviting in the breath to relax these areas,
To bring a healing energy down your neck,
Your shoulders,
And now into your chest.
Take a moment to breathe into your heart space,
Becoming present to its warmth,
To the rise and fall of your shoulders as your breath enters your chest.
Now draw that energy even deeper down into your belly,
Inhaling through the nose and drawing the breath down,
Feeling the sensations in your abdomen,
The feel of your pelvis,
Your hips,
And your sit bones on your seat.
With every breath,
Relaxing the muscles,
And also drawing the energy,
Recognizing that this is the start of a day.
Now turn your focus to your legs,
Your thighs,
And your knees,
Feeling them from the inside,
Becoming present to your calves,
Your feet,
And your toes,
Choosing to draw your awareness to one area of your foot,
To your ankles,
To any parts of your legs that might be feeling tight or sore,
Or perhaps that need a little extra attention.
With each breath,
Drawing the breath through your nostrils all the way down to the base of your feet.
And let us rest for a few moments in this whole body awareness,
Your entire body being breathed on each inhalation and exhalation.
As thoughts arise,
Return to the sensation of the breath,
Your body drawing in the energy.
We become present to the sensations of the body,
So that at any moment during the day,
As our thoughts wander,
We can return to these sensations.
We can return to the anchor of the breath,
Because it is always with us.
Now I would like us to set an intention for our day,
An intention for how we want to show up for the world,
For ourselves,
A way of being.
It can be to be present,
Or to be open and curious,
Or however you feel you would like to show up.
Now offer yourself some gratitude,
Taking this time for yourself,
For starting your day in awareness and grounding,
For having the commitment and intention to place your awareness as a priority.
Now we'll sit for another three minutes in silence,
And then when you hear the bell,
Take your time to return to our space together.
Again,
Use this time to offer yourself some grace and set your intention.
