The Body Scan: The Gift Of Being Here

The body scan is a pivotal practice to train the muscle of mindful attention in all mindfulness programs. More than that, it is for me a reminder to stop, be quiet, and notice the mystery of this ever-changing body, its innate beauty, and complexity, the abundance of life breathing us, supporting us, taking care of us without the slightest of our conscious input. It is an opportunity to appreciate the gift of simply being here.

Transcript

Welcome to the body scan meditation.

Before we begin,

I invite you to find a comfortable position lying down.

The invitation really is to lie down on the floor or on a mat.

And a very good place to begin is Shavasana.

Feet slightly wider than your hips,

Arms slightly out,

Palms facing up.

I would discourage you from lying down on your bed as the purpose of the body scan is not really to fall asleep,

In a way it is to fall awake,

And to train mindful attention.

So being too comfortable might be of disservice here.

If for any reason you are not comfortable lying down,

You are most welcome to receive the body scan seated,

No problem.

And if you struggle with lower back tension,

A very useful support would be to bend your knees and place cushions underneath or bolsters.

Make sure that there is no particular and acute physical discomfort.

Really it's not the aim to be uncomfortable in any way.

Make sure that you are warm and that you can remain undisturbed.

And if you haven't already,

Allow your eyes to close or gently drop the gaze down,

Whatever is comfortable for you.

Allow your body to soften down into the earth or whatever support you are using.

Let your shoulders surrender to gravity.

Allow your awareness to expand and open and become very sensitive to your present experience.

No mental tension is needed here.

You might notice that perception happens very effortlessly,

All by itself.

You can use my voice in a way that supports you.

You can use it as a pillar to guide you through the practice.

Or if you are someone who practices the body scan often,

Feel free to let go of my voice completely and maybe just use it as gentle reminder from time to time.

Let your senses open.

Become aware of your breath.

Notice the first point of contact between the air that you breathe in and the area just underneath the nostril.

You might notice some tingling sensations in this area.

You might become aware of the difference in temperature between the fresh air coming in and your skin.

You might become aware of the difference in temperature between the fresh air coming in and your skin.

Follow the air up your nostrils and down the back of the throat.

Notice the fresh air gently brushing the back of the throat.

Notice if there is any tension in the area around your jaw and your throat.

And if you do notice that,

Gently allow it to relax.

You may be able to consciously relax it.

Or if this is not possible,

Simply paying attention to it is already enough.

Let the hollow part of your throat soften down.

Let your vocal cords be fully nourished by the incoming air.

Let them rest.

No need to say anything for the next 30 minutes or so.

Follow the air down your throat and all the way down into your lungs and your belly.

Notice the gentle ebb and flow of your breath.

Notice the quality of your breath,

The depth,

The length.

You might even become aware of all the little and big muscles that participate in every inhale.

Notice that life breeds you all by itself.

None of your conscious effort is required for that.

With every inhale,

New air is revitalizing every cell of your body.

With every exhale,

New release,

New invitation to sink a little deeper into a comfortable state.

And if you notice your mind wander off,

This is very natural.

It's designed to do so.

As you catch it,

Gently and compassionately bringing back to the sensations in your body.

Now allow your awareness to flow from your breath to your left hip,

Your left thigh,

Your left knee,

Your left ankle.

And all the way down into your left foot to your left big toe.

See if you can feel your left big toe from within.

Become aware of any physical sensations in your left big toe.

And if no sensations are present,

You can also become aware of the absence of sensations.

No need to create,

No need to invent or change anything.

We're simply becoming aware of our body as we experience it.

You might become aware of the contact between your toe and your sock.

Or the contact with the air around it if it's uncovered.

You might be able to notice if it feels cold or warm.

Expand your awareness to your little toe and all the toes in between.

Become aware of any sensations in the toes of your left foot.

Let your awareness flow to the top of the left foot,

The sole of the left foot,

The left heel,

The left ankle,

The sides of the left foot,

The whole of the left foot.

Become aware of the whole of your left foot.

Notice any tingling sensations,

Any comfort,

Discomfort,

Warmth,

Cold,

Whatever it may be.

And if you notice nothing at all,

That is also welcome and included in the noticing.

In the act of simple noticing,

There is no right or wrong,

There is just noticing.

Once more,

Reconnect with your breath and imagine your inhale travel down your body,

Down your left leg and all the way down to your left foot.

And as it reaches the left foot,

It infuses it with new fresh life force.

As you breathe out,

Imagine your breath traveling back up your left leg,

Your chest and up your nose and all the way out of your body.

With every exhale,

It's a new permission to rest a little down,

A little deeper into a comfortable state.

And we're going to do this same breath exploration with every part of our body.

So allow your awareness to flow from your left foot to your left shin and your left calf.

Take a moment to notice any sensations in this area.

Perhaps the contact between the left calf and the floor if you're lying down.

Perhaps the touch of the clothes on your skin.

Allow the awareness to continue traveling up your left knee to the top of the left thigh,

The back of the left thigh.

Gently and patiently continue noticing any physical sensations there.

Become aware of the whole of your left leg.

Extend the gentle curiosity and welcoming acceptance into the whole of your left leg.

With every in-breath,

Imagine your left leg being nourished by fresh air and energy.

With every exhale,

Allow it to release any physical tension.

Allow it to rest down.

You might be able to notice your left leg feeling a little different than your right right now.

And maybe that's true for you.

Maybe not.

Once more,

We're simply observing things as they are,

Sensations as they reveal themselves to us.

Your experience is exactly right,

Just as it is.

Allow your awareness to flow all the way down to your right hip,

Your right thigh,

The right knee,

And all the way down to the right foot and the right big toe.

Once more,

Observe any sensations in your right big toe or the absence of them.

Let your attention include the little toe and all the toes in between.

Allow it to venture into the top of the right foot,

The sole of the right foot,

The right heel,

The sides of the right foot,

The right ankle,

The right foot as a whole.

And again,

Become aware of any physical sensations there.

Sense your right foot from within.

And as you do so,

Become aware of your breathing once more.

And see if you can send your breath consciously all the way down to the right foot.

As you breathe in,

Imagine your right foot being replenished with new energy,

New prana,

New breath.

As you breathe out,

Allow it to release any residual tension.

Follow the out-breath up the right leg,

Up through the lungs,

And all the way out of your nose.

Extend that gentle,

Curious,

And welcoming acceptance into the lower part of your right leg,

Up to your right knee,

And then the upper part of your right leg.

Notice any points of contact,

Comfort,

Heaviness,

Lightness,

Warmth,

Discomfort,

Whatever it might be really.

And with every inhale,

Imagine your right leg being fully nourished.

And with every exhale,

Allow it to relax into the floor a little deeper,

Less tension.

Let your attention slowly and effortlessly flow towards your pelvis,

Your hips,

Your buttocks,

Your groin.

Allow the hips sink down into the floor,

And once more,

Notice any sensations in this area of your body.

This is an area that holds emotional memories and physical tension.

So if you notice any tightness,

Allow it to be nourished with every inhalation.

Let it bathe.

And as you exhale,

Allow it to soften down and release some of its grip.

Let your awareness flow into your belly,

Your lower back.

Notice the belly rising and falling gently with your breath.

Allow it to soften down.

No need to hold it,

No need to feel it in,

Nothing to do really.

Become aware of any physical sensations in this area.

And if you notice any emotions arising as we practice,

Allow them to be.

See if you can gently include them in the range of what you're observing.

Softly welcome them in.

No need to change anything,

No need to push anything away.

We're simply watching,

Listening,

Becoming intimately aware of our bodies.

And this is such a precious gift.

If you notice any sensations of pain anywhere in your body,

Again let the breath travel there and see if you can gently open to the pain just for this particular meditation.

Not trying to get rid of it,

Not even trying to soften it,

It's already here.

See if you can gently approach it with curiosity.

And you might even be able to ask it what it needs.

What do you need pain?

What do you want discomfort?

Let your attention travel to your middle back,

Your upper back.

You might even be able to feel into your spine and the muscles that support it.

Let the spine be nourished by your breath.

Let your attention travel into your chest.

And once more notice the chest expanding and contracting with the ebb and flow of your breath.

You might be able to notice whether your breath has changed since the start of this practice.

See if you can become aware of your heart beating in your chest.

And invite a sense of lightness in your heart,

A sense of openness.

Let your awareness expand sideways into your arms,

Both at the same time.

Notice the shoulders,

The upper arms,

The elbows,

The forearms,

The palms of your hands,

And all the way to the tips of your fingers.

Become aware of any sensations in the palms of your hands.

And invite the air all the way down into the fingertips,

Infusing your arms.

Notice any tendency to grasp with your hands.

And see if you can let it go.

Let your awareness flow into your shoulders,

Your neck,

Your jaw.

Notice any physical tension in this part of your body.

It tends to hold a lot of stress.

So if you notice any tension,

Gently and very lovingly,

Allow it to be breathed and softened down.

Allow your attention to spread into the back of your head,

The sides of your head,

Your face,

Your cheeks,

Your temples,

Your eyebrows and forehead,

The nose,

The mouth and chin.

And as you become aware of your whole face,

Allow it to soften down and the forehead broaden out.

And if you notice any residual tension,

Allow it to express itself and be fully released.

Notice any subtle sensations in your face.

You might be able to notice the air brushing the face.

And as you notice that,

Allow yourself to be fully nourished by this breeze.

Let your attention arrive finally at the crown of your head.

Notice any sensations at the crown of your head.

And as you notice them,

Imagine breathing into the crown of the head and letting your breath flow right down through your face,

Your shoulders,

Your chest,

Your arms,

Your hips,

Your legs and all the way down to your toes.

And then imagine it traveling back up again to the crown of the head.

As if you're nourishing yourself in your own breath,

Allowing your whole body to be fully refreshed and revitalized.

As if your batteries are being recharged with a magical,

Invisible energy.

Become aware of your body as a whole.

Let it bathe into this energizing life force of your own breath.

You might even become aware of the alive presence throughout your body.

Feel into that.

Let yourself be fully nourished by that.

Allow your attention to be infused by that alive presence for a few precious,

Quiet breaths.

Thank you.

And when you're ready,

In your own time,

Take a deeper breath in through the nose.

And a full exhale out through the mouth.

Allow some gentle movement in your fingertips and your toes.

Circle the wrists and the ankles.

Give yourself a nice,

Deep stretch.

Allow some gentle movement in the body.

And when you're ready,

Bring the knees into the chest if you're lying down and curl up to your right in fetal position.

Take a moment to appreciate how you feel.

What's the quality of your experience right now?

And slowly and mindfully support yourself back to seated position.

Reviews

Tremendous! I simply adore your voice, your delicate yet auspicious word choices, and manner of speaking. Many teachers proceed at a pace I find a bit too rapid. Your pacing is sublime, allowing for exquisite tiny pauses between phrases and sentences that truly invites the consciousness on an ever expanding and relaxing journey of mindful presence. Thank you so much!
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