30 Minute Mindfulness Meditation

This is a 30 minute guided mindfulness meditation given at a talk in NYC. Take this time for yourself to release tension. Please note this was recorded live with some background noise.

Transcript

Start by generously arranging your posture.

Really pick a posture for you and give yourself the support props that you need so that your mind and your heart can really,

Really,

Really relax in your body.

You can really feel some feelings of inner ease and peace,

Softness.

When you're ready,

You'll close your eyes.

When you do close your eyes,

Then just start to release tension from all of those habitual places where tension wells in the body for us humans.

You can let your shoulders relax,

Release any gripping in your head,

In your chest,

In your belly.

You can let your seat really relax into the cushion.

You want to err on the side of being relaxed,

Relaxing the mind and relaxing the body.

Take the first few moments of your practice just to come to a very inner,

Relaxed place,

Not reaching for anything,

Not expecting anything,

And most definitely not being hard on yourself in any way.

You can let go right at the start of practice any self-condemnation.

Let your practice come from a place of kindness and love.

This is a mindfulness practice that we'll be doing,

And mindfulness is a training of the mind,

A habituating of the mind.

Bring the mind to most essentially the present moment,

The experience,

Our direct experience in the present moment.

Rather than the place where we're habitually living in concept and ideas and stories,

Ideas of future,

Ideas of the past.

Let yourself take a nice deep breath slowly in through the nose.

Then when you exhale,

Do so out of pursed lips like you're blowing out a candle,

Just to feel the softness of the breath in your lips and that touch.

Do that two more times.

Each time letting your body settle a little bit more and more into this moment.

Then let your breath be natural.

Start to feel the movement of the breath.

When you're breathing in,

Very simply know you're breathing in.

When you're breathing out,

Know you're breathing out.

The breath as the primary object of meditation is not an easy one.

We don't want to force the mind.

You might need a concept for a little while.

One way to do that,

Let's say for about the first 10 minutes of practice.

There's several ways of doing that,

But one way is to count the breath.

You breathe in and count one,

Breathe out and count two,

In three,

Out four,

All the way up to 10.

If your mind wanders,

Before you get to 10,

Start over.

If you make it to 10,

Start over again.

A light awareness and a light counting.

Don't make consciously sounds with the breath.

Just let it be natural.

Don't purposefully make any sounds.

Let the bold or hard feelings tell,

Our reactions.

Now not leaning forward into the future but continue to settle back.

The most important thing is to be able to focus on the present.

The most important thing is to be able to focus on the present.

The most important thing is to be able to focus on the present.

The most important thing is to be able to focus on the present.

The most important thing is to be able to focus on the present.

The most important thing is to be able to focus on the present.

Now your nervous system begins to settle into this nice simplicity,

Nothing to do,

No one to be.

The simplicity of knowing,

Am I breathing in or am I breathing out?

So really withdraw the mind away from your worries,

The preoccupations,

The stories of people in your life.

The simplicity of knowing,

Am I breathing in or am I breathing out?

So really withdraw the mind away from your worries,

The preoccupations,

The stories of people in your life.

So really withdraw the mind away from your worries,

The stories of people in your life.

When you take the attention back to the breath,

Do so with respect for yourself,

With respect for the thinking mind,

Gently.

So really withdraw the mind away from your worries,

The preoccupations,

The stories of people in your life.

So really withdraw the mind away from your worries,

The thinking mind,

Gently.

So really withdraw the mind away from your worries,

The preoccupations,

The stories of people in your life.

So really withdraw the mind away from your worries,

The preoccupations,

The thinking mind,

Gently.

So really withdraw the mind away from your worries,

The preoccupations,

The thinking mind,

Gently.

So really withdraw the mind away from your worries,

The preoccupations,

The thinking mind,

Gently.

So really withdraw the mind away from your worries,

The preoccupations,

The thinking mind,

Gently.

And then you can keep the counting if you really feel like it's helping you to stay focused,

Or you can drop it and observe the breath on its own.

So really relax the body,

Relax the mind.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Now when the mind wanders away,

Become aware of the mind wandering.

So never are we trying to stop the mind from thinking,

But we really want to just see where does the mind go.

We're learning about the mind,

Sitting still,

Watching it.

When the mind takes you on a story,

You can make a note thinking,

Sort of disengage from the story and then come back to the breath.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

When different feelings,

Bodily experiences arise in your practice,

Tension or heat or pulling or tingling in the body,

Anytime you can really feel your body,

Let the mind observe that direct experience.

Watching it,

Allowing it.

Being aware of sensation in the body or being aware of the breath.

Same thing,

So it's awareness that matters and what we're aware of doesn't matter.

Whatever is actually happening internally and externally in the present moment.

Maybe it's sounds.

You're hearing and you know you're hearing and there's a moment of meditation.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Release any tightness or gripping in your head around your face.

Be more aware of the experience from the heart.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

So it manifests in many different ways as we meditate.

We're meant to feel boredom when it arises.

We're meant to feel annoyance when it arises.

We're meant to feel longing.

What does it feel like?

Sleepiness.

What are you feeling of not being quite eased?

Look to the mind.

Notice what's there.

Name what you're feeling.

Accept.

Notice the experience in the body.

What does it feel like in your body?

Give it space.

Every human being feels this way at some point.

Stay with it as long as it's an experience for you and then when it changes come back to the breath.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

When things that are uncomfortable arise they're trying to push us out of being in this moment.

The mind tricking us out of not just being where we are.

Saying that some future moment is going to be better.

It's always a trick.

So this practice is one of turning the awareness back on that that's saying that in the mind.

Letting ourselves fully be with this one unique moment of our life.

One moment at a time.

Let yourself wholeheartedly be here.

The aliveness of your body in the breath.

Any pleasant or unpleasant feelings that are here all are welcome.

Pleasant or unpleasant thoughts that are arising.

Moods and bodily sensations.

Sounds and visual imagery in the mind.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

Relax the body.

And for the last two minutes drop the directing of the mind to the breath.

And let yourself observe just awareness itself.

What is the mind aware of?

The awareness of the breath or the awareness of the thought.

The awareness of achy feelings in your body.

The awareness of worry.

Whatever is there just notice the mind that knows the experience.

The knowing mind.

What is this mind that knows?

What is this mind?

What is this mind?

What is this mind?

What is this mind?

What is this mind?

What is this mind?

What is this mind?

Reviews

I loved your guidance! The instructions felt thorough. I was given enough support to continue practicing, even as the mind wandered and body sensations came and went.

As ever, Melissa’s guided meditations are deeply grounding and approachable. Thank you.

This was awesome too anchor my breath with your guidance. Thank you. Namaste.

Very helpful i really enjoyed this meditation

When I’m feeling abandoned this brings me to a universal connection that feeds love and peace to everything and everyone. Thank you Melissa!

thanks for this wonderful 🧘‍♂️ that helps steady the pelvic floor and straight spine that calms the mind in turn to be soaked in happiness . namaste. 🌹

Very good session with just the right amount of guidance for mindfulness meditators with some experience.

Perfectly wonderful introduction to mindful breathing. Thank you!

Very nice session..we'll paced..thank you