Take a moment to arrive at the seat of your meditation practice to the inner and the outer posture that supports you to become present in this moment.
There might be silence around you or the chaos that sometimes comes with life.
Wherever you are,
Close your eyes and go inside.
In yoga philosophy,
There are five layers of the self known as the maya koshas.
These are the physical,
Energetic,
Emotional,
Mental,
And spiritual sheaths of who you are as a whole human being.
Each layer of self interconnected and interwoven through you like a fine fabric.
In this meditation,
I'll guide you through the maya koshas and into an awareness of your authentic center of self.
Begin to sense into the outermost layer of your physical form.
Feeling the density of your tissues,
Muscles,
And bones.
Your body that's so intimately connected to the elements of the natural world.
The biorhythms of the earth,
The cycle of the seasons,
And the movement of the tides.
Notice the language of your tissues,
Spaces of restriction and tension,
Spaces of lightness and ease.
Can you become present with your physical body in this moment?
Notice what you're holding in the tissues.
This is your anamaya kosha,
Your physical sheath.
And from your physical body,
The sheaths become more subtle.
Bringing awareness into your breath.
Into the subtle flow of breath through both nostrils.
Sensing into the deeper pulse of the breath.
The energetic pulse of the breath.
Into the pulsation of your nervous system.
Brain waves,
Heartbeat.
Your breath circulating prana through your body and mind.
Regulating your energy levels.
Notice the flow of your life force energy.
In this moment,
Do you feel vital?
Depleted.
Scattered.
Stuck.
This is your pranamaya kosha,
The energy sheath.
And from your breath,
Become aware of emotions and thoughts that are present within you.
The emotions and thoughts that are like filters through which you perceive the world around you.
Thoughts like seeds in your mind.
Seeds that blossom into emotions.
Emotions that tether you to the narratives of the past.
Emotions that take on life force energy and form momentum within you.
Notice where emotions are living in your body.
How they vibrate through you in this moment.
Notice the space and energy that they occupy.
This is your manamaya kosha,
The emotional sheath.
Now let's go beyond body,
Emotions and thoughts and gather your awareness at your eyebrow center in one point of attention.
Soften the skin of your forehead,
Relaxing the muscles around your eyes.
Feel space expand between each thought.
Your mind like a clear blue sky.
Your inner perception opens like an eagle who sees the full expanse of the earth below.
The mountains,
Rivers and trees of the internal landscape.
Can you become a compassionate witness to yourself?
See yourself in meditation.
Become the one who watches thoughts,
Emotions,
Energies,
Words and actions unfolding from within.
What new perspective is revealed to you?
What is it that you need to see?
This is your vignanamaya kosha,
The wisdom sheath.
Now move your awareness from your mind into your heart,
Into the part of yourself that's interconnected to all of life.
To the soul and beauty of nature.
To the deep space that houses the stars.
Feel the warmth and radiance of your heart.
Allow it to envelop you.
Sense into the moments of love that's carried you forward in your life.
From one moment to the next,
Like a thread of light.
Become present to the inner knowing of your heart.
This is your anandamaya kosha,
The sheath of bliss.
Imagine these five sheaths of the maya kosha's.
Opening,
Unfolding from the outermost layer of your body to the innermost layer of your spirit.
Just like the petals of a rose.
And shining at the innermost center of the rose is a pearl of light.
The light of your consciousness shining through the sheaths.
And bringing you the clarity and peace that is the present moment.
Whenever you feel lost,
Follow this ancient map back to yourself time and time again.
Namaste.
