Welcome to today's practice.
The intention of this meditation is noting without identifying.
So before we begin,
Set the intention to detach from your identification of the sensations in your body,
The emotions that they are attached to,
And any thoughts or stories you may be telling yourself alongside them.
In this practice,
We're going to simply note what is happening.
Note our experience as it unfolds,
Nothing more,
Nothing less.
So let's get started.
To reduce anxiety,
Worry,
Or any stress you may be carrying,
I welcome you to start by taking a moment to relax your body.
Soften any unnecessary tension in your belly,
Your shoulder,
Your jaw,
And find a posture that feels both relaxed and alert.
And now I invite you to close your eyes or soften your gaze and rest your hands in an easy and effortless way.
Just relax.
And let's take a few moments to scan your awareness through the sensations of your body.
Wherever possible,
Soften and release the obvious areas of physical tension.
Notice any clenching,
Any tightness.
And with each exhale,
Give yourself permission to let go.
Scanning down from the head through the neck,
Shoulders,
Arms,
Torso,
Legs,
And feet.
Becoming aware of sensations,
Emotions,
And intentions.
And now bring your attention to the sensations of your breathing.
Stay with that rising and falling sensation in your belly.
Notice the fluctuation of your breath.
And as you continue to follow the breath,
Remember that you're not thinking of the breath.
You're not thinking in terms of my breath or I'm breathing.
You're simply noticing when each breath rises and falls.
You're simply noticing whether each breath is long or short,
Deep or shallow.
And as you follow the sensations of your breathing,
At any time when your mind wanders,
Just noting it as a wandering mind.
Identifying the emotion,
If you can,
And choosing not to spend lots of time thinking about it.
And then gently coming back to breath again.
Now since we've been focused on the breath and the sensations of the body,
I want you to take a moment and now allow your mind to be completely free to wander.
Just for a few moments.
Set no limits.
And allow it to be.
And gently begin to open your eyes and become aware of the space around you.
You can take a moment and appreciate that feeling of having stopped and taken a bit of time out just for yourself.
Try to carry the theme of this exercise into your everyday life and your everyday activities.
Noticing how often this over-identification with thoughts arises and the effect that it has in your mind and your body.
Set the sound of the bell.
This practice will be complete.
But I encourage you to take this energy,
The feelings that you're feeling of calm and peace,
Into the rest of your day.
Okay.
