So find in a quiet place in nature for this contemplation.
Allow in your body to rest on the earth.
Begin to feel the breath as it moves in your belly,
Rising and falling.
Breathing in,
We connect to the element of earth.
Feel the stability of the earth beneath your feet,
Holding you and supporting you.
Breathing like this,
We can feel grounded and rooted like a tree,
Able to withstand the challenges of life.
Allow the weight of your body to rest on the ground beneath you.
Know that you are made from the same elements that make up the rest of this land.
Energy and minerals come to you through the plants you eat,
And one day they will return to the earth.
Breathing in,
We connect to the element of water.
We know our body is mostly made of water.
Connect into the water in you,
Feel the flexibility and fluidity that allows you to flow around obstacles you may face.
Connect into the stream of water that flows through you and all life on earth.
The water that makes up your body was yesterday a cloud in the sky.
It once flowed deep in the earth and made up many other life forms.
Tomorrow morning,
The water vapour you exhale now may hang as a dewdrop on the grass.
Seen like this,
We will try and protect the water that flows through this land and our veins.
Breathing in,
We connect with the element of fire.
Feel the warmth and life in your body.
Connect into the fire in you,
You feel alive,
Creative and able to find solutions to the difficulties you face.
Connect to the energy of life that flows to the earth from the sun,
Warming and giving rise to countless evolutions.
These are the complex and creative expressions of the energy of life that creates endless change and movement in our world.
We can see this desire to give and create in our own body and mind,
Bringing warmth and joy to our life.
Breathing in,
We connect to the element of air.
Feel the breath moving in and out of your lungs,
Moving your belly and your whole body.
Connect into the air in you and around you,
You are able to touch a sense of spaciousness and freedom under the vastness of this sky.
We know the carbon dioxide we exhale is breathed in by plants and trees who breathe out fresh oxygen that we and other animals need to stay alive.
Seeing yourself as part of this unbroken cycle,
You can see your life is only possible in relation to all other beings.
Breathing in,
We also see the flow of human culture through us.
The ancestors who have passed on their ideas,
Their languages,
Their hopes and their fears.
Remember those in your life whose care and teaching have made you who you are today.
May we practice to transform the unskillful habits we have learnt from our families and our culture and preserve their positive aspects so we may pass on a more peaceful and compassionate way of being to all future generations on this earth.
Take a few moments now to enjoy your breathing and the nature around you.
And when you feel ready,
Continue with your day.
