Welcome to the 11th in the series of the arts of being present from Meditation Rocks.
So it might be that there's a bit of a difficult situation or you might be feeling sad or even having a little bit of pain or something that you're processing that you'd like your meditation to help you with.
And whenever I've used meditation for this purpose,
It's about first of all acknowledging that you're feeling that way,
Observing,
Not trying to bury,
And then an element of distraction and refocusing the mind on something else.
So it goes without saying that if this meditation brings up any feelings of sadness or anything like that,
Then you really must talk to somebody and not just be alone.
But go and get yourself somewhere comfortable and we'll get started.
So in our lives we always have those difficult moments and I've been there myself and I've used meditation when the time was right to help me to process and to move through those very,
Very natural feelings.
So this meditation is if you're feeling sad or if you're particularly feeling there's a difficult thing to deal with or maybe if you're feeling any pain or discomfort,
This is something that you can use for that purpose.
So if you're comfortable,
Let's get started.
And obviously if you're feeling an element of pain that might be almost overtaking your mind at that particular point,
Whether that's a physical or a mental pain.
And the same process applies as we would deal with a thought or any distraction that comes up during meditation.
For me it's about looking that thing,
Whatever it is,
Blankly in the eyes,
Staring at it,
Acknowledging it,
Observing it,
And then letting it pass and trying to refocus the mind onto something else.
And I know it can be difficult and don't worry if it doesn't work for you at first.
It does take some practice and it may not even be the right day to try it.
But just see how you get on.
So because we're wanting to refocus the mind onto something,
I do always for this one use a mudra.
So it might be bringing a thumb and finger together that you can really push and pressure and focus the mind on.
It can be our holding hand mudra,
Which is a really nice one.
You can really squeeze if you want to on those moments when you're thinking.
I've even used this little point between the thumb and the finger which you can squeeze into,
Which is a different sensation.
Not everybody likes it,
But it can certainly help to focus the mind.
Or you might think of an alternative.
Some people like to fiddle with like marla beads or anything like that.
So you want a point of distraction.
So if putting your hands on your lap is fine for you,
Then go for that.
But for me,
I need an extra added thing when I'm in this situation.
So I'm going to go for a traditional mudra,
But you pick your own one and you bring your hands down to a comfortable position.
Of course,
You might not want to close your eyes for this either.
So by all means,
Keep them open or just look at a view or soften your gaze on a fixed point.
And similarly,
It might be difficult for you to focus on your breath.
So by all means,
Just listen to my voice instead.
But if you can begin to feel the rise and the fall of the breath,
Then that can help too.
So just try your best to take some really long,
Deep breaths.
And we'll breathe at first in through the nose and out through your mouth.
Really sigh it away.
Breathing in.
Deep,
Deep breath.
Breathing out through the mouth.
Let's do one more huge breath in through the nose.
Out through the mouth.
So what we're going to do is as we think of whatever it is,
It's on our mind,
Whether it's a sadness,
A thought or an area of pain or discomfort.
As we allow that feeling to rise,
We squeeze into the mudra or the point that you're focusing on.
And as you breathe out,
You really try and soften the body and you can say this will pass.
So you breathe in,
You focus on that point,
You breathe out,
You try to relax and you say this will pass.
So just take a few moments now to use your mudra,
Your breath or both as you inhale,
Feel,
Observe.
And as you exhale,
Imagine you're allowing whatever it is that's not helping you today to go out as you breathe out,
Saying this will pass.
And it's as repetitive and as simple as this.
So I'm going to leave you for a minute or two now to practice.
I am here if you open your eyes.
So just practice,
Inhale,
Attention,
Exhale,
Release,
This will pass.
Just take two minutes and see how you get on.
If your mind begins to wander,
You know you bring your attention back to the contact points,
The mudra,
The breath.
Releasing as you exhale,
Finding softness,
This will pass.
This will pass.
And just for these next few minutes,
Really try to lengthen the breath as much as you can and try to make your exhale longer than your inhale.
So if you need to count for a few moments to make sure that you're finding a good rhythm for you,
This will also help to distract by counting,
Then try this.
So just find a really long,
Nourishing breath which finds softness as you exhale.
As you exhale,
Saying this will pass.
And for these final few moments,
Just working from your toes to your head as you can with every breath,
Releasing any resistance to this meditation.
If you can,
Relaxing the body as you go from the toes to the legs,
To the tummy and chest and back,
Shoulders,
Arms,
Hands,
Neck,
Head and face.
If you find that you're feeling better,
You may release the mudra if that's comfortable and just release your palms.
And just take these last few moments to remind yourself that this will pass.
Let's have three sighs to finish.
So breathe in through your nose as deeply as you can.
Exhale fully through the mouth.
And again.
Last one,
The biggest one.
This will pass.
Just take a moment to let your meditation soak in and be absorbed by your body and mind.
Repeating this will pass for as many more times as you like,
Even into your day.
And just let your breath now return to a comfortable rhythm and flow for you.
And if you'd like to bring your hands up and give the hands a little bit of a rub,
Creating some warmth and some heat.
And then hovering the hands over the eyes,
Blinking the eyes open,
Removing the hands when you're ready.
And I'm here.
And I hope that was useful for you for whatever you're using it for today.
And don't forget what I said at the start,
If it has brought up emotional feeling that you'd like to talk to somebody out,
Please do seek out somebody to chat it over with.
And don't worry about pausing it.
If you weren't feeling it was the right day,
You can always return to it on another day.
And remember,
Everything does pass.
Okay,
I hope you have a lovely rest of your day.
Have a great day and I will speak to you very soon.
