Welcome to this anchoring meditation.
This is an exploration of a few ways that you could tune into the body and the environment,
Which are supportive of present-centered,
Non-judgmental awareness that we cultivate and develop in mindfulness training.
Knowing how you'd like to position your body for this practice,
Traditionally upright sitting can be propped up in various ways.
It's helpful to have the body positioned so that you're alert,
Upright,
And open.
But it's also important to be relaxed,
Not straining.
Experimenting is good.
Once you choose a position for the body,
It's helpful to commit to it and be fairly still and settled in the body,
Only moving if it's really called for.
Let's begin with the sound of a bell.
The metaphor of an anchor implies a heavy object resting on the seafloor.
Let's explore the resting quality of the body itself.
Tuning in to the feeling of contact between the body and whatever you're sitting or lying on.
In a chair you might especially notice the feelings of the bottoms of the feet planted on the floor,
Like the roots of a tree.
You might feel the feeling of the butt or the legs pressed against the chair,
The cushion.
From the way the cushion,
The floor,
The chair is holding the body.
Settling into and feeling into that contact.
Feeling curiosity and interest as you tune into the sensations themselves.
How does it feel to be essentially held by whatever you're sitting or lying on?
And perhaps there's a quality of being able to allow yourself to settle into that seat.
Releasing some of the tension in the body and trusting the seat and ultimately the earth to support you,
To hold you up.
Appreciating that you aren't falling,
That you're grounded and supported.
In all mindfulness practice,
This gentle monitoring of the mind,
This persistent direction of our attention,
Intentionally tuning into something.
Also tuning in here to this feeling of contact,
This literal experience of groundedness.
If you lose track of that,
The mind is elsewhere,
That's okay.
That's included in this process.
And noticing,
Can you gently bring your attention back to this feeling of groundedness without adding much to the realization,
Not being annoyed with yourself or something,
Just coming back.
How does it feel to tune into this contact,
This groundedness?
And if this feels like a good place to be,
Staying here.
Either pausing the recording or letting my words just drift by you.
Or if you'd like to explore a second anchor,
Let's shift our attention up and out of the earth and out into the environment all around you,
Into the soundscape.
Letting the resting breathing body be still and receptive.
You bring gentle awareness to the ears,
To the sounds around you.
It can be calming and soothing to have a connection to a bigger sense of reality than just this body and mind.
To have a way of being in the environment that's open-ended and open-minded.
And we can do this by listening evenly and openly to the sounds around you.
As you can,
Just letting the sounds come and go and not worrying too much about what they are or whether they're your favorite sounds or challenging,
Distracting sounds or some other judgment or label.
Or rather,
Hearing the sounds for what they are,
Waves of energy gently pressing against your eardrums.
Some louder,
Some quieter,
Some higher pitched,
Some lower,
Some medium.
How they have different qualities to them.
Sometimes they're bunched together,
Sometimes they're quiet or pauses.
Is it possible to just be open to sound,
The sounds all around you?
Inside the room,
Outside the room,
Even sounds coming from inside your own body.
Not so much what they are or where they come from,
But a meeting with the soundscape that's curious,
Interested,
And not full of references or opinion.
Just listening,
Just listening,
Listening.
What can be heard?
Is it clear?
It can be possible to open up more and more,
Noticing more sounds in a bit.
Bigger and bigger circle.
You might notice how if your mind locks on to some thinking,
There are probably some moments there of no listening.
Releasing the thinking.
Opening back up to the sounds.
What can be heard now?
Reallyfoot a train.
Calm and letting sounds go.
Perhaps this feels like a grounding way to gently anchor and you could stay here pausing the recording or letting the next words that I speak truly be just sounds.
An interesting practice to release from making meaning from speech really is just sound.
Or if you'd like to explore a third option for anchoring.
Just gently collect awareness into the center of the body to the torso.
Feel the fact that breathing is happening.
So not doing breathing or controlling the breathing.
Just allowing the breathing to continue of its own accord with more awareness,
With more interest as if your sense of where you are is right in the middle of your lungs and your torso.
You feel the expansion rising and opening with the inhale and the release and relaxation of each exhale.
Everything is curious and present as you can through the whole breath cycle.
How does it actually feel to breathe in and to breathe out?
No particular breath you should be having.
Just noticing the breath that there is.
Whether it's shallow or deep or seems slow or fast or medium.
Meeting the breath and perhaps a spirit of friendliness befriending the breath.
This companion who's with you always.
And how wonderful that the breath doesn't know how to worry or rehash things or make lots of plans.
Each breath is just each breath.
This can be a kind of refuge.
A place of deep rest.
It's all supported by awareness.
Thinking of this moment of breathing,
This moment of being in a body.
Each breath unique and new.
Perhaps with the exhale,
Some little bit of release of tension is possible.
A quiet sigh.
Namaste.
And I invite you to take a moment here after the recording ends to just tune into yourself and consider which of these three ways of anchoring your awareness seemed most helpful this time.
The feeling of contact between the body and the earth.
The practice of open-minded,
Open-ended listening to the sounds all around you.
Or the practice of awareness of breathing.
What's helpful may vary too according to circumstances and over time.
Mindfulness practice is a creative act as well as one requiring discipline,
Patience,
And some degree of willingness to just hang in there.
But hanging in there gently.
This is about care in the end.
Thank you for doing this practice.
