Welcome everyone.
I'm April.
This is a short illuminating meditative flow that encourages an opening to our own inner awareness,
The light of our own inner awareness,
And thus the light of self.
Let's practice together.
Please find a comfortable seated position of choice.
You might choose to utilize a prop here,
Maybe sit on a folded blanket perhaps.
And of course I'm cross-legged,
But you're welcome to be in an alternate position that is more serving and suitable for you.
As you find that seat,
Rest the backs of your hands down,
Either onto your knees or your thighs.
Rotate the palms open and feel free here to unite the index and thumb into the mudra of wisdom if you feel called to do so.
Gently close down your eyes.
Begin to release the hold on the outer world.
And as though your awareness is a light,
Light up your inner body.
Begin with the base.
Light up the base of your body.
Balance your seat.
Relax your hips.
Ground evenly through the sit bones.
Then light up your spine.
And in response,
The spine grows long.
Brighten the inner landscape of your shoulders.
So to find more spaciousness,
More openness through the shoulders,
A deeper release.
Light up your facial expression with ease.
Relax your jaw,
The eyebrows,
Third eye,
Forehead.
And lift through the crown of your head.
Collected and gathered in this center integrity.
And then illuminate your breath with your awareness,
The inhalation,
The exhalation.
Awareness follows your breath.
Be immersed in your breath.
As every breath polishes the mind clean and clear.
Continue to rest your awareness in your breath.
In our practice,
Every posture,
Every breath,
Every mindful excursion brightens our inner landscape.
And just like a sunset,
A sunrise rather,
Raises our awareness.
Raises our awareness and bathes us in the intuitive clarity within.
Bathes us in the intuitive clarity that exists within the universe.
Find one more sweet breath here.
Softly unite your hands into prayer mudra in front of the heart space.
Allow the thumbs to rest right on the center of your chest.
And we'll open together with a single om.
Feel free to join in at home if you would like.
Gather your inhale.
Inhale prayer to third eye,
Space between eyebrows.
Exhale prayer to heart.
Return back to your breath and offer your breath a little more length and a little more depth as you shift into ujjayi breathing,
Oceanic breathing.
Long deep inhales through the nose with an audible er sound as you gently narrow the center of your throat.
Long deep exhales through the nose with an audible ha sound.
As you find your next inhale,
Drop both arms overhead to the sky.
You might choose to keep the eyes closed or open them here.
Exhale,
Lower the arms down beside your body.
Fingertips will connect to the earth.
With an inhale,
Sweep your hands forward.
Interlace the fingers and sweep the arms overhead.
We rise.
Exhale,
Release the hand mudra.
Lower the hands all the way back down to the earth.
Repeat that motion.
Inhale,
Interlace the fingers.
Draw the arms overhead.
Palms to the sky.
Arms rise.
Awareness rises.
Exhale,
Release arms all the way back down.
Remain grounded.
Last one.
Inhale,
Arms rise.
Fill your body with pranic breath.
Shoulders remain soft.
Exhale,
Sweep arms all the way down.
This time,
Inhale,
Drop both arms overhead to the sky.
Fill your body.
Expand.
Exhale,
Interlace the fingers.
Once again,
Rotate the palms towards the sky.
Soften the shoulders down.
Gather a long inhale here.
Side bend to the right side.
Exhale.
Gently roll the heart open.
One breath.
Inhale,
Back through center.
Left side.
Exhale.
Find a breath here.
Relax the jaw.
Inhale,
Draw back through center.
Pramudra.
Exhale,
Palms unite.
Lower your hands all the way down.
Heart center.
Inhale,
Sweep arms back overhead to the sky.
Spread through the fingers.
Palms are awake.
Tabletop.
Exhale.
Either guide yourself forward or you might choose to unravel your legs and make your way forward into tabletop.
From here,
Face the front of your mat.
Stack the wrists under shoulders,
The knees underneath the hips.
Spread those fingers wide.
Root the inner triad of the palms down into the earth.
Now,
If you need any extra padding for the knees or the wrists,
You can always double up your mat.
Table torso rotations.
I'll be your mirror image.
Inhale,
Guide your torso towards the right side and invite the belly to lower down towards the earth.
As you sweep through sphincter and arch the spine,
Option to gaze up.
Exhale,
Towards the left side of your mat.
Round the spine towards the sky and sweep through center.
Tuck chin to chest.
Same direction.
Inhale to the right.
Belly lowers to the earth.
Open through the chest.
Exhale to the left.
Round spine towards the sky.
Tuck chin to chest.
Same motion.
Continue just like that.
Weaving through.
Begin to warm up the body.
Fuel into your breath and feel as though the breath and the posture opens the body from the inside out.
One more round in this direction.
Once complete,
Return to neutral spine.
Gather a breath here.
Readjust your alignment if anything has shifted at all.
Broad through the shoulder blades,
Broad through the chest.
This time,
Inhale,
Guide your torso towards the left side of your mat and allow the belly to lower down towards the earth.
As you sweep through center,
The elbows might bend.
Exhale to the right side and round the spine to the sky.
Continue same direction.
Inhale to the left.
Belly lowers towards the earth.
Arch the spine.
Option to gaze up.
Exhale to the right.
Round the spine.
Tuck the chin to the chest.
Continue once again just like that on your own.
Perhaps close down the eyes and enhance the light of awareness within.
One more round.
Table torso rotations.
Once complete,
No rush though,
Make your way back to neutral spine in tabletop.
Exhale completely here in table.
Inhale,
Gather your knees to center and sit back on the heels into Vajrasana.
Though know that you can adjust your seated position to an alternate variation if this isn't comfortable or working well for your body in this moment.
Once again,
Unite the hands into Pramudhara.
Relax the shoulders down.
We're going to dip into a sound vibration that will support this awakening,
This opening,
And this realization of the light within us all.
I'll demonstrate one round first.
Feel free to join in for seven rounds or feel free to listen at home.
As though you take a seat in the integration of that sound vibration through the body,
Through the field of the mind,
Even through the energetic body as the sound vibration travels through the nadis to purify,
To clear,
And to open us to our own inner illumination,
Our own inner dawning and sunrise.
Soft releasing breath.
Inhale through the nose and out the mouth.
Feel free to open the eyes.
Inhale,
Sweep the arms overhead.
Lift up onto your knees.
Seat draws away from the heels.
Arms overhead.
Option to gaze up at the peak.
On exhale,
Either interlace the fingers behind you or catch hold of opposite elbows and bow down into a child's pose.
We'll move with breath.
Inhale.
Weave yourself back up.
Seat lifts away from the heels.
Arms overhead.
Option to gaze up.
Prayer at the peak.
Exhale.
Either catch hold of elbows or clasp the hands and bow yourself back down.
One more time.
Inhale to rise like the Sun birthed in the morning.
Exhale.
Bow yourself back down.
Beautiful.
Inhale.
Once again,
Rise.
Fill yourself with breath.
Expand and open the rays of dawn within you.
Tabletop.
Exhale.
Lower the arms down.
Plant the palms to the earth.
Wrists under shoulders.
Knees underneath the hips.
Long through the neck.
Gaze towards the earth.
Spine is long.
Inhale.
Draw your right leg straight back.
Three like a dog.
One cat crunch.
Exhale.
Round the spine.
Knee towards the forehead.
Gently draw the belly back.
Inhale.
Lengthen right leg straight back.
Exhale.
Step the right foot through between your hands.
Low lunge.
Tuck your back toes as you inhale and shimmy your left knee back a little more to find your own ideal depth here within low lunge.
Place your left palm or fist to earth or even to a prop if you have one close by.
Inhale.
Right arm floats to the sky.
Little twisted lunge.
Expand.
Open heart and shoulders.
Exhale.
Draw the right fingertips back down to the earth.
Inhale.
Once again,
Rise.
Fill the body with breath.
Remain in your inner experience.
Exhale.
Draw the hand back down.
Last one.
Inhale.
Open up.
Exhale to lower.
Inhale.
Draw right arm back up into twisted lunge.
Parivrtta Anjaneyasana.
Hold here.
Exhale.
Soften shoulders away from the ears.
Breathe into your body.
Quiet the mind.
Soften your facial expression.
One more.
Inhale.
Top hand down to earth.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Tabletop.
Guide your right knee back.
Adjust the left knee.
Realign here in tabletop.
Good.
One breath in table.
Neck is long.
An extension of the spine.
Crown of the head draws forward.
Mindful movement.
Inhale.
Lengthen left leg back.
This time three-legged tabletop.
Exhale.
Bend the knee.
Round the spine.
Draw knee towards the forehead.
Little crunch.
Inhale.
Lengthen left leg straight back.
Low lunge.
Exhale.
Place left foot through between your hands.
Inhale.
Tuck your back toes,
The right toes,
And shimmy your right knee back to a point that is ideal for you in this moment.
Place your right palm or fist to earth or prop.
Inhale.
Left arm draws up to the sky.
Gentle twist.
Exhale.
Lower that top hand down.
Feed yourself with breath.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Lower the top hand down.
Inhale.
One more.
Inhale.
Inhale.
Draw all the way up.
Maintain your position.
Find your breath.
One more.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Guide top hand down to the earth.
Tabletop.
Inhale.
Left knee back.
Realign into your tabletop position.
Adjust the placement of the knees and the hands as needed.
One breath in table.
Inhale.
Walk the palms forward and ensure to create a little more space.
And downward dog.
Exhale.
Tuck toes.
Begin to lift the knees.
The low belly gently scoops back as the knees rise completely and we draw a seat to the sky.
Adho Mukha Svanasam.
Feel free to walk the dog here.
Bend one knee and then the other knee.
Or you might prefer to access stillness within your downward dog.
As always,
You can modify with a tabletop or a child's pose.
So please do honor the limits of your body and listen to the voice of your body.
It might be very different than the voice of the mind and that's okay.
That's likely.
Continue to relax the facial expression.
Relax the jaw.
Broaden through the shoulder blades.
Broaden through the chest.
Soften your inner gaze and soften your awareness behind the thoughts of the mind.
Find two more breaths here.
And a release of the breath.
Please sing breath.
Inhale,
Nose.
And out the mouth.
Beautiful.
Inhale.
Place knees to the earth.
Tabletop.
Exhale.
Untuck the toes.
Inhale.
Guide the torso all the way up.
We rise onto our knees.
Camel pose.
Ustrasen.
Either place the heels of the hands to the top edge of the pelvis or the fingers can draw back or the thumbs can draw back and the fingers draw forward.
Whatever suits you best.
Long spine.
Long neck.
Inhale here.
Lengthen the crown towards the sky.
Encourage the elbows to draw towards one another.
And exhale.
Gently lean back.
Hips and knees remain aligned.
Roll the heart open towards the sky.
Option to open through the throat.
And you might stay here as I am in a quarter camel.
Or some of us might choose to draw ourselves a little deeper.
Perhaps even tuck the toes and place one hand or both hands on the heels.
Continue to listen to the body and continue to align with your breath.
Illuminate your breath with your awareness.
One more breath.
Ustrasen.
Very gently inhale to neutral spine.
Take your time.
Exhale.
Tabletop.
Lower down.
Inhale here.
Place the knees a little wider than hip distance.
And child's pose.
Exhale.
Fold yourself back.
Bow down.
Arms might grow long in front of you or you might prefer to sweep them back alongside the body or even create a pillow with the palms.
Bow down.
Fold into yourself.
Feel the mind ground.
Stabilize and thoughts relax as the forehead meets the earth.
Spacious through the sacrum.
Spacious through the spine.
A beautiful Brahmari breath here.
Hum through the nose on your exhale.
Inhale.
If your arms were drawn back or the palms were creating a pillow for the forehead,
Lengthen the arms out in front.
Gather and inhale here.
Exhale.
Walk the arms and the torso to the right side.
Pardesva Arya Yoga Mudra.
Side bend in our child's pose.
One more breath.
Inhale back through center.
Exhale left side.
Bow down.
One more breath.
Inhale through center.
Exhale here to fold.
Inhale.
Ripple yourself forward to table and seated on the sit bones.
Exhale.
Either cross the ankles to sit back or draw yourself to the side and find your sit bones from there.
Lengthen both legs out in front.
Staff pose.
Seated staff pose.
Awaken your feet.
Spread through the toes.
Toes point up towards the sky.
Knees are aligned.
They're pointing up towards the sky.
Sit bones root down.
Grow longer through the spine.
Relax the shoulders back.
You're always welcome to sit on the edge of a blanket if that offers more support today.
Inhale.
Draw both arms overhead.
Fill your body with breath.
Lead with heart.
Exhale.
Bow down.
Place the hands wherever it's appropriate for you.
So it might be the floor.
It might be the legs.
It might be the feet.
But more important than the placement of the hands is that we can still relax the shoulders back.
So please feel free to adjust the placement of the hands to soften into your forward bend.
Take in a quality of ease rather than strenuous effort and allow yourself instead to naturally fold into the experience of yourself.
Fold into the light of yourself as this posture encourages the nervous system to calm.
In response,
The mind calms.
In response,
Feminine energy rises,
Which means that we tune into a more receptive quality within,
A lunar quality that cools and calms the mind and allows us to witness the intimate dawning of the light of self.
Light as a representation,
Jyoti,
Light as a representation of our elevated peer awareness and consciousness.
You might choose to relax the shoulders back.
You might relax the ujjayi breath if you're still there.
Two more breaths.
With helping hands,
Inhale.
Walk the torso all the way back up.
Exhale.
Roll the shoulders back and down.
Guide yourself into a comfortable seated position of choice.
So for you,
That might be cross-legged.
You might choose to utilize a prop here,
Something that allows you to settle.
Place the backs of the hands onto the knees.
Close the eyes.
Turn yourself in.
Take a deep breath in and out.
Find three breaths here where the seat is grounded and the spine rises.
Allow the edges of the body to soften.
Just do your best to access the stillness that exists in this moment.
We're going to seal this practice with a short meditation using the support of a mudra,
A special mudra that promotes the birth of light,
The dawn of light.
This mudra interlaces the fingers to weave the fingers alongside one another.
The tips of the fingers will land on the opposite knuckles.
The thumbs will stack.
And if your gender is female,
Left thumb is closest to the body.
If your gender is male,
Right thumb closest to the body.
Once you have this position and this placement,
Relax the hands down.
Once again,
Close the eyes if they were open.
The mudra is soft.
Soften down your facial expression another layer and invite awareness to rest both in the mudra and in the gentleness of your breath.
The mudra and the gentleness of your breath quiet down the inner landscape even more.
Each posture in our practice created space for this inner clarity to rise,
For to fill the experience of self,
That we can approach the way we live in the world with new eyes as the veils of illusion dissolve away with the rise of inner light.
Every day a sunrise.
Every day a new dawning as you step into the truth of yourself.
Continue to do your best to remain very,
Very steady within.
There's nowhere else you need to be.
This is the gift of presence you offer yourself.
And as you remain very,
Very steady within,
Release the mudra completely.
Rest the backs of the hands on the knees or your lap,
Depending on your seated position.
Eyes remain closed.
Relax the inner gaze back.
Feel as though you lean into the back of your body and are held,
Suspended here in presence.
Feel the brightness of your inner world extends beyond the edges of your body.
Do your best to stay quiet.
Just one minute.
The hands float up into premudra.
Softly the thumbs connect to the center of the chest.
We'll seal the potency of our practice with a final om.
Inhale.
Light in me bows to the light and honors the light within you,
The jyoti.
Thank you all so much for joining in as always and sharing your practice and the quality of your mindfulness.
If you have any questions or requests,
Of course,
Or comments,
Something that you connected to well within the practice,
Please feel free to let me know.
I wish you all well and I'll see you again next time.
