Let's begin by keeping the eyes open,
Lower your gaze and soften into the periphery of your vision,
The sides,
Acknowledging your surroundings.
Soften the corners of your eyes and the muscles behind your eyes.
Invite your eyes to rest back into the head.
They can close whenever you wish.
Then relax the back corners of your jaw,
Softening around the teeth.
Begin to notice your tongue.
Allow the tongue to go wide and soft.
If it's comfortable invite the whole tongue to rest up into the roof of the mouth.
As if it's a pillow for the brain to rest on.
The upper palate may also be ready to soften and widen.
Well done.
I'm Kerry Mackay and I'm glad you're here practicing with me.
This is a simple tool to relax the mind and the thoughts.
I'm calling it brain centering.
Let's welcome in however your brain is today.
Just let it be however it is.
Come to your breathing now and welcoming your breath however it is.
If you like take a breath slowly in through the nose and then breathe out gently through the mouth.
Sighing is really helpful and again breathing in through the nose,
Let the belly balloon slightly inviting the breath low down the body and then sighing out slowly through the mouth.
One more.
Making space for the breath.
Now bring your awareness to the center of the forehead.
Just above where the eyebrows meet.
From here gently draw your awareness back and back arriving in the center of the head.
Keep a soft focus in the center of the brain around the level of the tops of your ears.
Lovely,
Imagine there's a space here in the center,
Somewhere to rest and explore.
A place to get curious about.
It's not where thinking happens.
This place is separate from thinking.
The space in the center of the brain is a refuge.
If you notice thoughts you could try drawing your attention away from them really gently and imagine that this space is somewhere else.
Perhaps it's behind your thoughts or underneath them.
Being kind with however this is for you to do and noticing your breath whenever you need an anchor.
We're going to get to know this place in the center of the brain.
You might like to imagine it as a room or a cave.
Maybe even a harbor.
Does it have sides?
Maybe a ceiling and a floor?
Perhaps you'd like to invite the sides to move out to make more space.
Or maybe invite them closer.
Just notice what's needed.
Is it light here in the space in the center or is it dark?
Maybe there are colors.
Just noticing how it is to be here in the centered mind.
Perhaps something else is needed for it to feel like a sanctuary.
Is there anything that needs to be tidied up in this space?
Do the walls need to be polished or cleaned?
Just follow your intuition.
Whenever your thoughts draw you away just notice with a smile and gently come back to your center.
Resting in the center of the head,
Away from your thoughts.
Resting with the breath.
You can let the thoughts know that they are free to carry on thinking without you and you'll come back to them later.
Staying softly with the space in the center of the brain.
It's a sanctuary and this place is just for you.
Lessen your effort now and start to imagine free flow.
Notice what's happening now as you relax your focus.
Maybe the space is changing,
Maybe it's staying the same.
You can follow whatever is there.
Well done.
As we move towards the end of the meditation let's ground the brain now.
If you like you could imagine the brain is resting on the palate in the upper mouth and receiving the support from the tongue.
If you're sitting up maybe flow your awareness down the body into the ground now.
If you're lying you could flow your awareness from the head straight into the ground.
Just follow your intuition inviting grounding and being with the natural rhythm of the breath.
Notice how you are now.
How does it feel in the head?
How does it feel behind the eyes?
And then let it all go.
Thank you for joining me.
I hope that was helpful.
I'm Kerri Mackay and I'll see you in the next meditation.
