Hi friends,
Thank you for joining me today for this meditation centred on satya,
Truthfulness,
One of the yamas in yoga philosophy.
My name is Kiara and I am a white settler sharing this with you from the treaty lands and traditional territory of the Anishinaabe peoples.
It's an honour to be here guiding you today.
This meditation was inspired by one of my yoga teachers,
Susanna Barkatake,
And her incredible yoga class curator course.
Thank you,
Thank you,
Thank you.
Now let's dive in.
Take a moment to find a comfortable seat,
Whatever that looks like for you today,
Whether it's sitting in a chair or on the floor,
Lying down with your knees bent,
Or maybe it's even in shavasana on your bed.
Listen to your body and hear its truth.
What does your body need in this moment?
Close your eyes and take your attention to your breath,
Starting to notice your inhales and your exhales.
There's no need to change anything about it.
Simply become aware of your breath as it moves through your body.
Scan your body from head to toe,
Asking yourself,
How am I doing today?
What am I feeling?
Listen to the answer without judgment,
With compassion for all that you are.
If you wish,
I also invite you to take Gyan Mudra.
Resting your hands on your knees,
Bring your thumb and index finger to touch,
Leaving your other three fingers relaxed and open.
Gyan Mudra is known as the mudra of knowledge,
Whereby the thumb represents universal consciousness and the index finger represents individual consciousness.
Over the next few breaths,
As you inhale,
Repeat the word truth in your mind.
As you exhale,
Repeat the word love.
Inhale,
Truth.
Exhale love.
Truth can be frightening.
It can be anxiety-provoking.
It can be heartbreaking.
Truth is also the path towards freedom,
Towards purpose,
And towards a deeper connection with all that we are,
Individually and collectively.
With every inhale of truth,
We exhale love to remind ourselves to withhold judgment,
To have compassion and empathy for all that arises.
Inhale truth.
Exhale love.
No matter what truth arises for you today,
Remember that you are loved,
You are worthy,
And you are whole simply by being.
Inhale truth.
Exhale love.
Using the truth with kind eyes allows us to let go what we must let go of thoughts,
Beliefs that no longer serve us,
And to take action where action is needed,
To redress harms,
To build deeper connections,
To align with the truth of who we are.
Inhale truth.
Exhale love.
We'll stay with this mantra in silence for a few moments.
Inhale truth.
Exhale love.
Now,
I'm going to pose a series of questions.
As you hear the questions,
You can continue with the mantra.
Inhale truth.
Exhale love.
And listen closely for any response.
You may also feel like grabbing a pen and paper and journaling these thoughts down.
That choice is up to you.
Inhale truth.
Exhale love.
What lies have you been telling yourself?
Or what lies is society telling you?
Inhale truth.
Exhale love.
What is the truth you've been afraid to hear?
Inhale truth.
Exhale love.
What action can you take today to live in closer alignment with your truth?
Inhale truth.
Exhale love.
Bring your hands to heart center and together we'll chant AUM three times,
Evoking and connecting to the sacred sound of the universe,
Our ultimate truth.
AUM.
AUM.
AUM.
AUM.
Shanti,
Shanti,
Shanti.
Peace,
Peace,
Peace.
Thank you for joining me today.
Thank you for opening yourself up to the truth.
You are loved.
You are worthy.
You are whole.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
