Welcome.
I'm Maura from Grow Yoga Chicago.
This meditation is called Listening Within.
It's an invitation to soften into stillness,
To listen for the quiet rhythm that lives beneath the noise.
Find a comfortable seat or lie down.
Allow your body to settle into the surface beneath you.
Let your hands rest softly on your knees,
Your belly,
Or beside you.
Take a deep breath in through your nose and exhale gently through your mouth.
Again,
Inhale slow and steady and exhale releasing whatever you brought with you into this moment.
With each breath,
Arrive a little more fully here.
Let the mind begin to quiet.
Let the body begin to soften.
Let the breath begin to lead.
Now,
Bring your awareness to the ground beneath you.
Feel its steadiness,
The quiet support holding you up.
Notice the weight of your body.
Notice the points of contact,
Your feet,
Your seat,
Your back.
Let yourself be held.
There's nothing to do,
Nowhere to go.
Breathe into the stillness that's already here.
It's not something you have to find.
It's something you allow.
Now,
Begin to observe the breath,
Noticing the gentle wave of each inhale and the slow release of each exhale.
No need to change anything,
Just notice.
Between each inhale and exhale,
There's a subtle pause,
A still point.
Linger there for a moment.
That space between breath in and breath out is stillness itself.
It's the pause between sound and silence,
Between effort and ease.
It's always there,
Waiting for your attention.
Let yourself rest in that space for a few breaths.
Inhale.
Pause.
Exhale.
Pause.
Pause.
Listen to what's inside the quiet.
Maybe it's the steady rhythm of your heart.
Maybe it's the gentle hum of your breath.
Maybe it's simply the feeling of being here,
In your body,
Alive.
Now,
Imagine that with each inhale,
You're drawing calm into your body.
And with each exhale,
You're releasing tension.
Inhale.
Calm.
Exhale.
Release.
Let the quiet expand around you,
Like soft light spreading through your chest,
Down your arms,
And out through your fingertips.
Let it move into your hips,
Your legs,
Your feet.
Your whole body becomes a vessel for stillness.
Stillness.
Not frozen,
But alive.
Open.
Aware.
Stillness doesn't mean nothing is happening.
It means everything is happening quietly.
Begin to deepen your next inhale.
Feel the air moving in.
Feel your body gently waking up with awareness.
Notice what's shifted.
Notice the softness that stillness leaves behind.
When you're ready,
Bring one hand to your heart,
And one to your belly.
Feel the rise and fall beneath your palms.
The rhythm that's always been there,
Waiting for your attention.
Whisper softly to yourself,
I am listening.
I am here.
I am home.
Take one final breath in through the nose,
And exhale fully through the mouth.
The stillness speaks when we slow down enough to listen.
Thank you for practicing with me.
May you carry this quiet with you into whatever comes next.
