In Shavasana,
Let yourself get comfortable.
Let your shoulders relax.
Arms and legs a little bit apart from your body.
Close your eyes and take a few breaths.
And in this first minute or two,
We're really just getting oriented.
We're letting our body settle.
You might notice the sounds that are in the room.
And then withdraw your attention,
Your awareness,
From the outside world and bring it inward.
Start with your sankalpa,
Your intention for the practice.
Bring your awareness into your heart center.
And whatever your intention is,
If it's in a positive language,
It might be something like,
My mind is clear and awake,
Or whatever that is for you.
Let that come into your heart and then repeat it three times.
And then let that go.
And now we move into the rotation of consciousness.
So we don't really settle with a lot of attention in each one.
We just drop into it and then we move to the next one and the next point and the next point.
Let your mind follow my voice.
Right hand,
Thumb.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Little finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Right wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
Armpit.
Right side of the waist.
Hip.
Right thigh.
Knee.
Calf.
Ankle.
Heel.
Sole of the foot.
Top of the foot.
Big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Little toe.
Left hand,
Thumb.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Little finger.
Palm.
Back of your hand.
Left wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Shoulder.
Armpit.
Left waist.
Left hip.
Thigh.
Knee.
Calf.
Ankle.
Heel.
Sole of foot.
Top of foot.
Big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Little toe.
Back of head.
Right shoulder blade.
Left shoulder blade.
Spine.
Right buttock.
Left buttock.
Back of right leg.
Back of left leg.
Top of head.
Forehead.
Right temple.
Left temple.
Right ear.
Left ear.
Right eye.
Left eye.
Right cheek.
Left cheek.
Nose.
Lips.
Chin.
Throat.
Right chest.
Left chest.
Center of chest.
Navel.
Lower abdomen.
The whole right leg.
The whole left leg.
Both legs together.
The whole right arm.
The whole left arm.
Both arms together.
The whole back body.
The whole front body.
And the whole body together.
The whole body.
Bring awareness to your breath and notice your breath flowing in and out of your nostrils.
Feel the coolness as it enters and the warmth as it leaves.
In your mind,
Begin counting your breath backward from 27 to 1.
An exhale and an inhale is 27.
Your next exhale and inhale 26.
Count backwards from 27 to 1.
And if you lose count,
Just start again at 27.
Take your time with your breath,
Counting down.
And whatever number you've reached,
Let your breath go.
And we're moving into the experience of opposites.
Experience the sensation of heaviness,
Like your body is sinking into the ground.
It's dense,
Solid,
And heavy.
Now experience lightness as if the body could float.
Light,
Spacious,
Effortless.
Go back to heaviness.
And back to lightness.
Bring your attention to warmth like a gentle heat is spreading through your body.
And now a sense of coolness in your body.
Refreshing and calm.
Bring back a feeling of warmth.
And then coolness.
And bring forward a sense of peace,
A deep sense of ease,
Sense of peace.
Then a sense of restlessness,
Of a subtle inner movement,
Restlessness.
Bring back peace and restlessness.
And then let both dissolve.
We're moving now into imagery.
Let the images come and go.
A full moon in a dark sky.
A flickering candle flame.
Ocean waves at night.
A mountain cave.
Lightning across the horizon.
A temple bell ringing.
A river flowing steadily.
A rising sun.
An empty sky.
Old growth forest.
Sun sparkling on the water.
A beautiful rose.
Gentle ocean waves on the beach.
Bright stars in the sky.
Let the images go.
And now imagine your own body lying peacefully,
Completely still and deeply relaxed.
Let your awareness come into your heart chakra,
The anahata chakra.
Let your mind be still,
Awake,
Alert and aware.
One level of the mind is awake,
Alert and aware.
Let your mind rest.
If thoughts come into your mind,
Let them be in the background.
Let them come to stillness.
Bring your awareness of consciousness to the foreground.
The space of awareness.
I am the awareness in which these thoughts are being observed.
This experience is happening in awareness.
And then over the next minute or two,
We're going to complete the practice.
Bringing yourself out of sleep if you fell asleep.
Bringing your awareness to we're nearing the end of the practice.
And bring your attention to your sankalpa,
Your resolve for the practice.
Repeat that to yourself three times in your heart center.
And then gradually become aware of the breath,
Of your body relaxed and soft.
If you've fallen into sleep,
Let your mind wake up.
Before we move or come out of the practice completely,
Bring your awareness back into I am the awareness in which this experience is happening.
And when you're ready,
Start to move your fingers,
Your toes.
Take a few deeper breaths,
Move your body a little,
Open your eyes and look around.
Gently come out of the practice and also review the practice.
We went through the body,
All those points.
We went into the breath,
The counting down,
Into the opposites,
Imagery,
And then into the stillness.
Take a few minutes to remember and to notice what your experience was.
If you're in shavasana,
You could roll over onto your left side and take your time coming up.
Support your head,
Bend your knees.
What was that particular experience like for you?
