Welcome to this practice.
Go ahead and allow yourself to settle into a position where your body can feel completely supported.
Allowing the body to arrange itself rather than asking it to conform.
And once you've found your place,
Allow your eyes to settle and close.
Feeling the surface beneath you.
And feeling the weight of your bones being received by the earth.
Knowing there is nowhere else you need to be.
There's nothing to solve.
Nothing to change.
For now,
You're simply arriving to this moment.
Begin noticing your natural breath,
The air entering the nose.
And the air leaving.
Without any effort.
No particular rhythm.
Simply the quiet evidence that life is moving right through you feeling the rise and the fall of the abdomen.
And with every exhale allowing the body to become a little heavier.
The jaw begins to soften.
And the tongue releases.
Shoulders begin to melt.
And the belly loosens.
The hands become still legs become heavy.
The whole body begins to receive the possibility of deep rest.
The body is breathing.
As the body begins to breathe,
There is a softness.
And awareness settles.
Into the body.
And the intention begins to form.
And bringing forward your sankalpa.
A simple statement of intention.
Not something you are trying to become someday.
Something that's already planted within you.
Something your deepest self recognizes as true.
And perhaps it's something like.
.
.
I am safe enough to soften.
I am loved.
My body remembers a way towards ease.
Or simply I trust the wisdom within me.
Allowing the words to settle in and arriving.
And repeating your sankalpa three times silently to yourself.
I am.
I am.
I am.
Slowly,
Clearly,
Feeling.
Resting with the words of your intention.
And allowing that awareness to settle through the body.
Moving through rotation of consciousness.
Allowing the breath to move through the points of the body.
The awareness moves to the right thumb.
The right second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Little finger the right palm.
Back the hand.
Wrist.
Forearms.
Elbow.
The right upper arm.
Shoulder.
The right underarm.
The right side of the waist.
The right hip.
Thigh.
Breathe.
The right calf.
Ankle.
Heal soul of the right foot.
The right big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Little toe.
The whole right side of the body.
All points.
Of awareness light up.
The right side of the body.
The right side of the body.
Lighting up with awareness.
And that awareness moves to the left thumb.
A left finger.
Left middle finger.
Ring finger.
Left small finger.
Left palm.
Back of the hand.
Left wrist.
Left forearm.
Elbow.
Left upper arm.
Shoulder.
Left underarm.
Waste.
Left hip sigh.
Knee.
Left calf ankle.
Heal.
Left soul.
Left foot.
Left big toe second toe.
Third toe.
4th toe.
Small toe on the left foot the left side of the body.
The whole left side of the body lights up with awareness the left side of the body.
Both sides of the body.
The back side of the body.
From the back of the head.
And the right shoulder blade the left shoulder blade.
The spinal column.
Each vertebra.
Into the sacrum the right buttocks.
The left buttocks.
The right hamstring.
Left hamstring.
Bend the knees.
Both heels the soles of the feet the whole back body.
Filled with awareness.
The whole back body.
The whole back body.
The front.
The front.
Up at the crown of the head.
The forehead.
The right eyebrow.
The left eyebrow.
The space between the eyebrows.
The right eye.
The left eye.
Right cheek.
Left cheek.
The tip of the nose.
The upper lip.
The lower lip.
The root of the tongue.
On the chin.
Throat.
Right collarbone.
Left collarbone.
Center of the chest.
Full rib cage.
The upper abdomen.
Center navel.
The lower abdomen.
Pelvis.
The whole right leg.
The whole left leg.
Both legs together.
Both arms together.
The whole back.
The whole front.
The entire head.
The entire body the entire body resting in awareness.
The entire body breathing in with awareness.
The body being held with deep awareness and light.
Breathing into awareness.
And beginning to experience the pairs of opposites.
Allowing the words to create sensation.
Feeling lightness through the body.
Almost weightless.
As though gravity has loosened its hold.
The bones are light.
The muscles light.
The entire body floating.
As a feather.
Light into darkness,
Deep darkness,
Velvety,
Quiet.
The darkness behind closed eyes.
Darkness surrounding the body.
Nothing is required here of you.
Deep,
Dark space.
Both experiences held within the same awareness.
Darkness and light.
Weightless and weighted.
Moving into.
Fast.
Movement.
Quickness.
The sense of things passing rapidly.
The wind moving through your body.
Thoughts moving.
Life moving.
And now slow.
Everything slowing down.
Down.
The breath slowing.
The space between thoughts widening.
Movement becoming almost imperceptible.
Slow motion.
Fast.
Slow.
Balanced.
Dissolving.
Nothingness.
Awareness holding all of it.
Breathing.
.
.
Into the body.
Into awareness.
Awareness holding all of you.
Moving to the Chittagash,
The inner sky.
And bringing awareness to the space behind the closed eyes.
The inner screen of light.
Watching.
Simply noticing the darkness.
Colors may appear.
Shapes.
Movement.
Or perhaps nothing at all.
Allowing whatever it is to be there.
And watching the movie screen of life.
Watching each clearly and then releasing.
A sunrise breaking across the dark horizon.
The beams of light.
A pile of old books unevenly stacked.
A book falling open to a page you've never read.
A black ink bottle.
An old quill resting beside.
One drop of ink spreading slowly across white paper.
A field of lavender moving in the wind.
The smell wafting through your nose,
Fresh lavender.
Lavender between your fingertips.
Clean architecture of bones.
A rib cage.
A spine.
The delicate bones of a hand.
Strong.
Ancient.
Alive.
A single white feather.
A crow standing on a weathered fence post.
Watching.
A small silver key lying in the grass an empty bird's nest.
Bare feet touching the warm earth.
.
.
A horse's eye.
Steady.
.
.
Returning to darkness.
And open space.
Nothing to see.
Nothing to search for.
Wide open space.
A prairie.
Slowly within that open space.
A landscape begins to form.
You find yourself standing at the edge of an enormous prairie.
The land stretches farther than you can see.
Tall grasses move in long waves beneath the wind.
The sky is enormous.
There are no walls.
No ceiling No narrow places,
Only space.
Breathe here effortlessly.
Noting what happens inside the body when there is this much space.
Nothing closing around you.
Nothing pushing you forward.
Space in front of you behind you.
Space on either side of you.
The sky above.
Earth beneath.
And somewhere in the distance you hear movement.
Hooves against the earth.
A herd of wild horses appears.
Along the horizon,
They appear.
The small shapes.
They begin to get closer,
Running together.
Muscle.
Breath.
Instinct,
Freedom.
Their bodies know how to move without being instructed.
They know when to run.
They know when to stop.
They know when to stay with the herd.
They know when to move away.
They do not apologize for needing rest.
They do not question the intelligence of their bodies.
They listen.
Listen.
The horse carries the medicine of an instinct.
Movement.
Freedom.
Strength without constant force.
Sensitivity without weakness.
The ability to sense what is happening and respond.
Stillness.
And the horses slow as they approach you.
And one comes closer.
And there's no need to touch it.
You do not need to write it.
Simply stand beside this animal.
Feeling its presence the warmth of its body.
The sound of its breathing.
Knowing the weight of its hooves against the earth recognizing the extraordinary combination.
Power.
And sensitivity.
Strength.
And awareness.
Stillness.
With the capacity to move.
Perhaps your body recognizes something here.
And memory beneath language.
Your body,
Too,
Has instinct.
Your body.
Too has spent a lifetime responding.
Protecting.
Adjusting.
Signaling.
Keeping you alive.
Yet for this moment there is nothing to find.
You are standing in open country.
In wide open space.
And you are safe enough to listen.
Listening.
Begin walking across the prairie.
And the horses move beside you.
Not leading you,
Not following you.
Simply accompanying you.
And as you walk,
Notice the objects that scatter through the grass.
Crow's feather.
And iridescent.
And you pick it up.
Reminder to see from another perspective.
Farther ahead of crows it's on a bleached branch quietly observing watching.
And you continue walking.
Breathing.
You notice something beyond within the grasses.
The silver key you saw before.
You recognize it.
Pick it up.
That you don't know when it opens and you don't need to know.
You continue to walk.
And the horses continue to be beside you.
The prairie begins to slope.
Gently downward.
And in the distance you can hear water.
Water moving against a shore.
And the horses hear it too.
And their pace begins to change.
And you begin to change.
They know this place.
You reach the edge of a wide body of water.
Perhaps it's a lake.
A river.
An ocean.
Allowing the mind to decide.
And the water is clear.
The horizon is wide and you stand at the edge.
Feeling the air against your skin and the earth beneath your feet.
Feel the water moving.
Recognizing that nature.
Is never still.
And yet nothing is rushing.
There is an ease about all of it.
There's a sense of ease within.
Looking at the horses they've brought you here.
It's time to release them.
No ropes,
No gates,
No ownership.
No need to hold on to.
Anything.
You watch as the first horse turns towards the prairie.
And then another.
And another.
Until the herd begins to move slowly at first.
Then faster.
Homes against the earth.
Manes lifted by the wind,
Bodies moving exactly as they were made to move.
Watching them disappear.
Into the enormous landscape.
Free.
And you notice that you have not lost them.
You let them go.
Turning back towards the water.
Touching the water.
It's cool and clean and alive.
Listening.
There's nothing to chase,
Nothing to outrun.
Nothing to hold on to.
Simply being here now.
Breathing.
Breathing into the body.
Feeling into the body.
You begin to hear that intention calling you back.
Your sun kelpa.
You feel the bones being held by gravity.
And the muscles are allowed to soften.
Nervous system is receiving information from this moment,
Not yesterday or tomorrow,
But now.
And that sankalpa begins to settle through you.
The same words you planted at the beginning.
Repeating them silently three times slowly with certainty as though the body is listening.
As though every cell can hear you.
I am.
Releasing the words feeling the body,
The whole body.
From the crown of the head to the soles of the feet,
Breathing and resting.
And you begin noticing sounds around you.
Coming back into the room where you first placed yourself.
Sounds that are far from you.
The sounds that are close to you.
Feeling the air against your skin.
The surface beneath you.
Allowing a slightly fuller inhale here.
A long exhale out.
And again,
Breathing in.
Knowing you've traveled far and beyond You can feel.
Fingers of your right hand begin to move.
The toes and your left foot.
Perhaps there is this great desire to stretch the body.
There's no rushing here.
Just allowing.
Before you open your eyes remembering the prairie and the wide open sky.
The water.
And the horses disappearing into the distance.
Listening to your body.
Caring for it,
Give it space,
Give it room.
Trust.
Remembering the instinct and the medicine of the horses.
There is an ancient intelligence at work here.
Breathe in.
And when you're ready.
Allowing your eyes to open.
And coming back into your space.
Welcome back.
Thank you for practicing.
Of being committed in.
To your practice.
Into your body.
I'll catch up with you again.
Until next time,
Take good care.
