Welcome to your Live Mindfully meditation,
Mindfulness Mindsets.
This practice will explore some of the mindsets or the attitudes we cultivate and access within us as part of our mindfulness journey.
These mindsets can be very useful guideposts to support us in our mindfulness exploration.
I'll invite you now to get into a comfortable position,
Either sitting in a chair or on a cushion on the floor.
We can allow the back to become straight but not rigid and perhaps moving slightly away from any back support you may have.
You might like to tuck the chin slightly to lengthen the back of the neck and you could allow the shoulders to soften down.
Place your hands wherever they feel most comfortable,
Either on your lap or on your knees.
If you feel comfortable with it,
You might like to now softly close down the eyes or simply allow your gaze to rest unfocused on a spot in front of you.
To begin this practice,
Let's take a moment to sense into this body,
Perhaps starting with the feet.
You might like to do your own mini body scan,
Feeling the body sitting here.
Remembering that we're not thinking about the body,
We're feeling it,
Accessing the felt sense in this body.
If you notice any tension in the body,
Feel free to allow it to soften.
If however it can't soften,
Just allow it to ripple and resonate in the body.
And notice whether this awareness can inform you of what's going on for you in the body and in the mind in this moment.
Let's allow the attention to settle now on the effortless ebb and flow of the breath.
You might like to choose one part of the body where the breath feels most vivid.
This may be in the gentle rise and fall of the belly or the chest.
The point where the air brushes the back of the throat.
Or perhaps where the air kisses the nostrils as it enters or exits the body.
Choose one spot and rest the attention there.
By this time you may have noticed the activity of the mind.
And perhaps any tendency we may have to judge whether this is a pleasant or unpleasant experience.
Whether you can or can't practice in this way.
So now we practice unhooking from this sticky,
Sticky thinking.
And we kindly and patiently guide the attention back to the breath.
Again,
Noticing any judgement-based thinking that may arise.
Like,
Don't like,
Good,
Bad,
Right,
Wrong.
Knowing that this is very normal.
That the job of the mind is to discern.
And in meditation we're not wanting to stop our thoughts.
We're simply changing the way we relate to them.
So we can learn through curiosity and through kindness that we are not our thoughts.
This way we can live consciously rather than automatically.
By fostering the attitudes of non-judgement,
Of patience,
Of compassion and trust.
We can support ourselves on this mindfulness journey.
So we come back now to the effortless flow of the breath.
Each time our mind becomes distracted we compassionately notice this process.
We can even be grateful for it.
Because mindfulness meditation is not about tuning out.
It's about tuning in.
It's about noticing our automatic thinking and choosing how to engage with it.
Each moment we notice our mind wander.
That is an opportunity to celebrate our waking up.
And in our noticing that we have slipped away from the breath.
That we've slipped out of the present moment and into planning or worrying,
Ruminating or daydreaming.
By bringing awareness to our tendency to judge and by cultivating the mindsets of compassion and gratitude in our meditation practice.
We can allow these skills to permeate into our everyday life.
And we can live all of our moments with more warmth and effectiveness.
So as this formal practice comes to an end.
I'll invite you to sense once again back into the body.
Allowing the attention to rest at the top of the head and then trickle down over the whole body like warm water.
Until your attention is resting once again with the feet on the floor.
In a moment you'll hear the sound of the bell to complete the practice.
I'll invite you to keep your eyes closed until you can no longer hear the ringing.
And then you can slowly open your eyes and transition consciously back into your day where you can choose to live mindfully.
The bell rings.
