Rest & Restore

This guided meditation is an exploration of mind and body through the observation of breath and sensation. This practice of presence, steadiness, and stillness brings rest to the body, heart, and mind. The intention is to offer gentle support through self-holding techniques (Reiki) and breath awareness to restore our inner resilience in these darker days of winter as we wait for spring to arrive.

Transcript

Welcome to this guided meditation.

We will explore this journey of mind and body through the observation of the breath.

Awareness of the inhale and exhale is a steadying practice to bring rest to the body,

Heart and mind.

In this guided meditation,

I will offer you gentle support through self-holding techniques and opportunities to connect to breath.

Placing hands on the body is an extension of your heart.

It is an act of love towards the self.

This practice of self-care supports the body and mind to rest.

Rest breathing is a way to recharge and restore our inner resilience in these darker days of winter as we wait for spring to arrive.

Find a position of comfort lying down with spine supported or sitting with your lower body rooting into the floor.

Slowly shift and move your body making any adjustments,

Adding in supportive props such as a rolled blanket or bolster for knee or foot support and layers of clothing to bring in warmth.

Once you feel settled,

Welcome yourself to this space.

Take a deep breath in and as you breathe out,

Relax your whole body.

In this moment,

You have no responsibilities,

Nowhere to go,

Nothing to do but to find comfort,

To breathe and to be.

You have given yourself the gift of time and space.

Be here now.

Sense your body feeling,

Breathing and listening.

Your mind will wander.

It is okay if you do not hear everything I say.

It is natural to flow in and out of conscious hearing.

There is no way to do this wrong.

Simply listen without trying too hard.

The deepest part of you,

Your core self is always listening.

Find stillness and remain still for deep rest and restoration.

As you inhale,

Scan your body from the crown of your head to the soles of your feet.

As you exhale,

Feel into the back of your body and notice what is supporting you,

Grounding you and holding you.

Become aware of your relaxed body in the space that surrounds you.

This is your external world.

Notice the temperature of the air you breathe in and out.

Notice the air on your skin.

Is it cool?

Is it warm?

Are there any scents or tastes that bring familiarity and ease into your environment?

Are the scents attached to anything you can see in your immediate surroundings?

Remember that scent and taste are interconnected and our memories are sometimes linked to those senses.

Take a moment to scan the area you are in.

Notice the placement of a light,

A chair or a picture.

Are there any sounds in your environment?

Are the sounds coming from inside the room or outside the room?

Are they distant sounds or are they closed sounds?

As we initiate this practice,

Feel into the constants that are true and that surround your body,

Your breath and this moment we are in.

If it feels safe and comfortable,

Close your eyes and turn your attention toward your inner world.

Relax the muscles of your face.

Soften your brow,

Your forehead.

Unclench your jaw.

Unclench your teeth.

Take the time to make adjustments in your physical space as you feel into it.

This is your practice,

Your space,

Your body.

Pull the lower jaw away from the upper jaw,

Shift the tongue in your mouth.

Swallow a few times and then relax your head and neck.

Begin to breathe easefully into your upper chest and upper back.

Inhale to fill up,

Exhale to release.

Feel into the front and back sides of your body.

Become aware of the sides of your body.

Breathing into the supportive ribcage that protects your heart and lungs.

Feel the spaces between your ribcage widen as you inhale and then relax as you exhale.

Breathe into your middle back,

Lower back,

Low abdomen.

As you exhale,

Feel the weight of your pelvis,

Lower legs and feet settle into gravity.

Breathe in wide and full and breathe out long and slow.

With your mind's eye turned toward your inner world,

Continue to breathe easefully.

Listening to the steady sound of your breath that provides a rhythm of breathing that feels natural and right for you.

Inhale to fill up,

Exhale to let go.

With your awake mind,

Create an intention based on your heart's deepest longing.

Think of a positive statement in the present tense.

It can be as simple as,

I am relaxed and calm.

I am important and valued.

Or I am one with the universe.

Think of your intention now,

Your heart's deepest longing.

Know that this is your intention in this moment and it is only shared with your body and mind as you think it and send impulses of that thought to your brain.

Open your mind and receive your intention.

State it three times silently to yourself as though it is already happening.

It is the truth.

Allow yourself to carry the awareness of breath connection through your body on a journey of sensation.

Let that feeling land in the centers of both your palms.

Place both of your palms together and rub your hands to bring warmth and energy into the center of your palms.

Gently place your warm hands over your eyes,

Allowing the curve of your fingers to rest along your forehead.

The thumbs can rest on the soft temporal space above your ears and the base of your palms lie on your cheekbones.

Breathe into your hands and soften your eyes.

Relax the orbital muscles surrounding your eyes by closing the eyelids.

Feel the weight of your hands holding your sense of sight,

Honoring the space that allows you to see the expansiveness of your inner and outer worlds.

Slowly slide your hands toward the sides of your head.

Your right hand holds the right side of your head and your left hand holds the left side of your head.

The fingertips meet at the top of your head.

Breathe in and apply gentle pressure as you press your hands into the sides of your head.

Exhale and release the pressure.

Repeat two more times,

Inhaling,

Applying gentle pressure,

Exhaling to release the pressure.

Hold your head with care as you support the space of thought,

Messages,

Synapses,

And connection.

Your hands gently shift down to cup each of your ears,

Just like you held your hands over your eyes.

Hold your hands over your ears.

The fingertips can press along the sides of your head and the thumbs press the flat surface of the mastoid process as it traces down from the temporal space above your ears.

As you breathe in,

Hold each of your ears.

As you breathe out,

Notice how the sound travels differently.

Your hands create an auditory vibration,

An amplification of how sound is received and released within the body.

Rest your left hand over your heart space and your right hand on your abdomen.

Ensure that both hands bring comfort to the areas they are resting upon.

As you breathe into your hands,

Feel your hands rise with the inhale and lower with the exhale.

As you breathe in and out,

Imagine the breath as you would if you were outside in the cold,

Icy air.

Breathe in the air sharply through both your nostrils,

Then visualize your warm breath releasing into the atmosphere.

Place your breath as you inhale cold air and exhale warm air.

Know that your physical imprint on Earth is felt beyond the body and impacts all of life around us.

Winter is a time of restoration,

Regeneration,

Reflection and withdrawal.

A time to pause and rest.

Regardless of how winter unravels itself in different locations on Earth,

This phase is needed to save and store energy for future use.

With the impact of climate change,

The Earth's natural ecosystems are shifting rapidly.

Human intervention has affected the way the seasons change and will continue to affect the way we experience them based on our respect and vested interest in helping to realign our place within the world.

A typical winter in the middle and upper latitudes of Earth may or may not have snow.

This symbol of winter has been altered by warmer temperatures and the movement of air and ocean currents that moderate the climate.

The magnificence of snow continues to hold magic in the glory of a first frost or the beauty of a snowfall that covers the leaves,

Plants and dwindling gardens.

Like snow,

The breath can rise and fall gently with little to no sound or the deeper,

More active breath can move the air around in different directions,

Depths and durations like a wild snowstorm.

The difference is that weather cannot be controlled,

But the breath can be and is a powerful source of strength and intention.

The focused breath can help ease the unpredictable shifts that life may bring.

As we turn our attention back toward the here and now,

We have a renewed sense of how seasonal transitions can bring shifts in our perception as hopeful action into the world.

This guided meditation practice offers a place to hold,

Care and support ourselves so we can hold,

Care and support those around us and the earth we live upon.

Notice how the easeful pace of your breath establishes a feeling of balance,

Wholeness and connection.

Allow your mind to feel into your senses,

Remembering your outer world and all the constants that are there.

Bring awareness to your heart's deepest longing.

Breathe life back into your positive intention and state it three times silently to yourself.

It is your truth.

As you begin to reawaken your body,

Gently breathe and move into fingers and toes.

Circle out your wrists and ankles.

Bend your knees and elbows.

Stretch through your hips and shoulders.

Extend your arms and legs.

If you are lying down,

Roll onto one side of the body and press yourself up when ready.

We meet ourselves here,

Palm to palm or palm to heart,

To close this guided meditation practice.

Taking time to pause and rest is a practice of holding,

Caring and supporting our hearts through the extension of our hands.

We carry the symbolism of nature's changing seasons with us,

Restoring the connection of mind and body through our breath.

Sjs you you you