Hi and welcome to this meditation.
My name is Kamila and I will be guiding you through this sitting meditation practice which is a part of the MBSR mindfulness-based stress reduction program.
So start here to take some time and find your position.
A position that feels both stable and comfortable for you right now.
You might be sitting on a chair.
Or on a cushion,
Or on a meditation bench.
If you are sitting on a chair.
Allow both feet to make contact with the floor so that you feel grounded.
If you're sitting on a cushion,
Finding a position where the body feels support.
Where you can both feel upright and rested at the same time.
Allow the spine to rise naturally.
Not rigid.
Not collapsed.
Perhaps sensing a quality of dignity in the posture.
The head is balanced gently over the shoulders.
The shoulders are soft.
And the hands can be resting wherever they feel comfortable.
And if you feel OK with allowing the eyes to close,
Do so now.
You can also keep them open and have them in a soft gaze.
Begin to simply notice that you're here.
You're sitting here.
Breathing.
Feeling the points of contact.
The feet with the floor.
The sitting bones with a chair or the cushion.
The hands resting.
Feel the weight of the whole body.
Nothing special needs to happen.
There is nowhere else that you need to be for these moments.
And now begin to bring your attention to the breath.
You don't need to change it.
You don't need to try to breathe more deep.
Simply discover where the sensation of the breathing are easiest to feel right now.
Perhaps at the nostrils.
The touch of air entering and leaving the nose.
Or perhaps the chest.
The movement,
Expansion,
And release.
Or perhaps in the abdomen,
Rising with inhale.
And falling with exhale.
Now choose one place where the breath feel clear to you.
And allow the attention to rest here.
Feeling one breath at a time.
The direct physical sensation of the breath.
The beginning of the breath.
The pause.
And the ending.
And then another breath.
There is no need to control the rhythm.
The body knows how to breathe.
Your task is simply to notice.
Sooner or later you may discover that your attention has moved away from the breath.
Perhaps into a thought.
A sound.
A sensation.
A plan.
Or a memory.
And this is not a problem.
This is a moment of recognizing that the mind has wandered as itself.
And this is a moment of awareness.
So whenever you notice,
Gently escort the attention back.
To the sensation of breathing.
Without criticism,
In a kind way.
Simply beginning again.
Breathing in.
Knowing that you are breathing in.
Breathing out.
Knowing that you are breathing out.
Now allowing the field of attention to become a little wider.
Still including the breath.
But beginning to include the sensations in the body as well.
Perhaps first noticing that the body is sitting here as a whole.
The contact of the feet.
The legs.
The pelvis.
The back.
The shoulders.
The hands.
The face.
Rather than moving systematically through the body as in a body scan,
Simply notice whatever sensations call attention right now.
Perhaps there is some pressure.
Some warmth coolness.
Tingling.
Tightness.
Ease.
Movement.
Or stillness.
If there is an area of discomfort,
Perhaps noticing what happens when attention meets it.
If it feels workable,
Exploring the sensations themselves.
Where exactly are they?
Do they have a center?
Do they have edges?
Are they constant?
Or are they changing from moment to moment?
There is no need to endure pain.
You can always adjust the posture if you need.
You can always move,
You can always open the eyes or shift the attention elsewhere if you need to.
And perhaps noticing the difference between the raw sensation themselves.
And a thought that may arise about them.
Returning whenever you need to the breath as an anchor.
Breath and body together.
Sitting here.
And now,
If you like,
Allowing attention to open toward hearing.
Rather than searching for sounds,
Simply receive whatever sounds are already present.
Sounds that are close by.
Sounds that are further away.
Perhaps louder sounds.
Or softer sound.
Not needing to identify their source.
Not needing to decide whatever you like them.
Simply hearing.
Perhaps noticing sounds,
Exchanging vibrations.
Appearing.
Remaining for a moment.
Passing away.
And maybe noticing the spaces between the sounds.
If a sound brings a reaction.
Maybe some irritation,
Interest.
Curiosity.
Or perhaps nothing.
Sound and the responses to sound within awareness.
Now allowing sounds to move into the background.
And beginning to notice your thoughts.
Not trying to stop thinking.
Not trying to create particular thoughts.
Simply becoming interested in the fact that thoughts appear.
Perhaps noticing thoughts as events in the mind.
Just as thoughts and sounds appear and disappear.
Thoughts also arise.
Remained for a while.
And pass.
You might notice planning.
Remembering.
Imagining.
Judging.
Rather than entering the story.
If possible,
Seeing if you can recognize.
Thinking.
Is happening.
Perhaps imagining thoughts as clouds moving through a white sky.
You do not need to push them away.
And you do not need to follow them.
Sometimes the thought will carry you away completely.
And suddenly you may realize that you have been thinking for quite some time.
At that moment,
Noticing.
And gently returning to the present.
Perhaps to the bread.
Perhaps to the body.
Beginning again.
And now including emotional experience within awareness.
There may be a clear feeling present.
Perhaps call.
Restlessness.
Sadness.
Irritation.
Contentment.
Anxiety or perhaps nothing particularly clear.
There is no need to create an emotion.
Simply noticing what is already here.
And if a feeling is present,
Perhaps noticing how you know it's here.
Where does it express itself in the body?
Perhaps there is a pressure in the chest.
Or a tightness in the throat.
A warmth in the face.
Or energy in the abdomen.
By perhaps noticing any thoughts that accompany the feeling.
Without needing to solve anything.
Without needing to analyze why it is here.
Simply allowing the experience to be known.
Moment by moment.
And if something feels overwhelming,
Returning to something steady and concrete.
Maybe the feet.
The contact with the share.
Their breath.
Or the sounds in the room.
And now gradually letting go of any particular objects of attention.
No longer needing to focus specially on the breath.
Or the body.
Or the sounds or thoughts.
Instead allowing awareness to be open.
Receptive.
Whatever arises can be noticed.
Breathing.
Sensation.
Sound.
Thought.
Emotion.
And then perhaps something else.
Nothing needs to be held on to.
Nothing needs to be pushed away.
Allowing experience to come and go in its own time.
Perhaps noticing awareness itself as something spacious enough to include all of this.
Sounds arises within awareness.
Sensations arise.
Thoughts arise.
They are changing.
They are passing.
And another experience appearing.
There may be moments of stillness.
And moments when the mind is very busy.
Both can be known.
And there is no special state that you need to reach.
Practicing simply begins present for the experience that are actually here right now.
And when you find yourself caught in a thought or pulled strongly towards one experience.
Perhaps recognizing that.
And opening again.
Nothing to achieve.
Nothing to get right.
Just sitting.
Now gradually bring your attention back to the body sitting here Feeling the posture again,
The points of contact.
The feet.
The seat.
The hands.
Notice the breath.
Perhaps sensing one complete in-breath.
And one complete out breath.
And now just notice how things are right now.
Not asking yourself if the meditation worked.
Not needing to feel calmer.
Just notice,
How is the feeling in the body right now?
Perhaps acknowledging the intention involved in giving yourself this time to practice.
And when you feel ready,
Begin to bring in some small movements now in the hands,
The fingers,
And the feet.
Perhaps allowing the shoulders to move in a few circles,
The head to turn a little bit side to side.
And if the eyes are closed,
Allow them now to open in their own time.
Taking in the light.
The colors.
The room around you.
Allowing this sitting meditation practice to come to an end.
And before that,
Take some time to really thank yourself.
Thank yourself for showing up for yourself.
Maybe put a hand on your heart or just thank yourself in a way that feels suitable for you.
Thank you so much for this practice.
