So this is a mindfulness of body practice.
It's designed to help calm the mind and the body and It can be done either seated or lying down so just getting yourself into a comfortable position that works for you and Ensuring that the spine is straight It might be helpful to take a deep breath in and as you exhale allow the body to just surrender a little tension almost as though bodily tension just drops away from you downward toward the floor and As we allow the body to become still just bringing our attention to the fact that we're breathing Becoming aware of the movement of the breath as it comes into your body and as it leaves your body Allow the natural rhythm of breathing not forcing Or shaping the breath in any way Breathing in through the nose and out through the nose if this feels comfortable for you Just noticing how your body feels How you feel in this moment?
Is there anything that you need for yourself right now?
Maybe it's some time for quiet or rest and just giving yourself this short amount of time To Relax And just be So we'll start by Bringing our attention to the crown of the head and just noticing any sensation there Maybe there's warmth or tingling Maybe there's no sensation at all Just being aware sensing the scalp Sensing the whole face Can we persuade the facial muscles to relax to not have to work so hard?
Can we invite a feeling of softness to the face?
Feeling of ease sometimes bringing a very slight smile a Mona Lisa style smile or a half Buddha smile to the face Can in fact bring this?
Sense of softness and ease to the face.
So you might want to give that let it go and just experiment I'm bringing your attention down to the shoulders And just noticing what you find here in the shoulders we carry a lot of tension here and sometimes it doesn't easily dissipate,
So I'm not trying to make it go away,
But just kind of softening into it noticing it breathing Sensing the weight beneath the shoulders if you're lying down Sensing a heaviness in the shoulders and then sending your attention down both arms the same time just noticing subtle sensations in the upper arms Maybe at the level of the skin a touch of our clothing against the skin Or maybe deeper inward sensations in the muscles and then just moving at your own pace moving down to both elbows on the forearms the wrists and Then how about the sensations in both hands?
What do you sense here?
Palms of the hands the backs of the hands sensation in the fingers Now that we've awakened all these different sensations in the arms and the hands Can we give permission for them to just relax?
To soften and feel heavy both arms resting Coming back to the chest And we tune in to the subtle sensations at the chest Maybe we notice movement from our breathing or the heart beating Just noticing the front of the chest And at the back the upper back And if you find your mind wanders off just gently bringing your attention back to the body Reconnecting with sensation in the body Maintaining awareness at the chest and then moving downward into the abdomen Sensing the lower back back muscles Continuing down into the pelvis feeling the weight of the pelvis resting on the ground or the seat Sensing the hips the upper legs Noticing the sensations there thighs both knees and Eventually we end up at both feet Notice the sensations in the ankles Seeing if you can notice any sensation coming from the soles of the feet tops of the feet toes space between the toes Now that we've awakened Sensation In the legs and feet just giving permission for the legs and the feet to just rest Allow them to feel heavy and let go Into the floor legs and feet resting Be mindful of the whole field of the body the whole body at once Do you feel any pleasant sensation in the body?
Just noticing that if you do resting into that Really allowing your body to feel that pleasant sensation And if there's nothing there,
That's fine,
Too It's noticing the sensation of the breath in the body the whole body Expanding and contracting with the breath a Rhythmic flow of the breath throughout the whole body Putting aside any unnecessary thinking and coming back to the breath Reconnecting with the body if you find yourself drifting off and you want to reinvigorate the body You can bring some energy to the breath and deepen the breath a little Reconnect with the sensations arising in the body Bringing your attention back to the face imagining a lightness across the face lightness in the chest openness expansion Across the whole front line of the body I'm just allowing yourself to rest in this spaciousness your whole body taking rest at ease Gently bringing your attention back to the breath and as the practice comes to a close Just seeing if you can deepen the breath a little to help awaken the body Sensing the ground beneath you bringing your awareness into the space surrounding you noticing noises in the distance Sounds closer to you and then when you're ready Bringing your practice to a close Bringing some gentle movement into the body And I thank you for practicing with me.
I Hope you found some moments of rest within this practice
