So just allow your body to relax.
Find a comfortable position with your spine straight and strong.
Just allow your hands to relax either beside you if you're lying down or in your lap.
You can allow your eyes to be closed or just softly hooded and gazing softly.
And start to feel yourself connected to the cushions or the chair and down to the earth.
Feel the points of contact with your body and the surfaces that you're sitting or lying on.
And just set your intention for this meditation today to whatever is most useful for you.
So it might be to have a sense of calm and peace or it might be to help with pain in your body.
Whatever is going to be most useful for you just think about what that intention is.
And now we're just going to run through the different parts of our body to do a bit of a scan and notice bring our attention to each part of our body and allow it to softly release and relax.
So starting with the top of your head bring your attention to the crown of your head.
See if you can notice any sensations there.
It might be tingling or warmth or cool.
It might be nothing at all which is fine too.
Just bring your attention to the crown of your head and allow the crown of your head to just relax and release.
Notice your scalp and underneath your skull and underneath your brain.
Allow your scalp and your skull and your brain to slowly soften and relax.
You can use your breath and as you breathe out you can say softly under your breath release or relax.
And now bring your attention to your face.
Notice your forage,
Your temples.
Bring your attention to your eyes,
To all the little muscles around the side of your eyes and your eye socket and allow this part of your body to gently soften and relax.
Now notice your cheeks and your nose.
Bring your attention to your jaw.
Notice the muscles in your jaw where we sometimes carry tension without realizing.
Allow your cheeks and your jaw and your mouth to soften and relax.
Use your breath as a way to focus.
When you breathe in focus on the area around the area and when you breathe out,
Release or relax.
And now bring your attention to your neck.
To the back of your neck where the muscles muscles go up underneath your skull all the way down the back of your neck.
Notice the front of your neck,
The tendons and muscles of your neck and your throat and allow them to slowly soften and relax.
Now relax your shoulders.
Notice your shoulders.
You might notice some tension and tightness there.
Just bring your attention to your shoulders.
To the top of your shoulders,
The muscles and your trapezius,
Your shoulder blades.
And slowly allow your shoulders to soften and release with each breath.
You might notice that there's still some tension there which is fine.
Just notice it.
And now bring your awareness to your chest,
Collarbone and inside your chest,
Your heart and your lungs.
See what sensations you can notice here.
You may even be able to hear your own heart beating.
And allow your chest,
Your heart and your lungs to soften and release.
Now notice your abdomen and all of your internal organs.
Just notice how they feel today.
And allow your abdomen and your internal organs to slowly soften and relax.
Now bring your attention to your back,
To your upper back,
Your middle back and your lower back.
Notice the muscles and the nerves that run alongside your spine.
And notice your spine.
Any sensations that you can feel in your back.
And slowly allow your back to release and relax.
Now notice your right arm.
Bring your attention to the upper part of your right arm.
What sensations can you feel here?
Notice your elbow and your lower arm.
Allow your right arm to soften and relax.
And your right hand,
Your fingers,
Your thumb,
Right to the tip of your fingers.
What sensations can you notice here?
Gently touch and relax.
Now notice your left arm,
Your upper arm,
Your elbow,
Your lower left arm.
Allow your left arm to soften and relax.
Notice your left hand,
The back of the hand,
The front of the hand,
The fingers and thumb,
All the way down to the fingertips.
Allow your hand to soften and release.
And coming down to your groin and your bottom.
Allow your bottom to relax and release.
Now notice your right leg,
Your upper leg and thighs,
The big quadricep muscles.
Allow your upper right leg to relax.
Now notice your right knee and lower leg,
Calf muscles and ankle.
What sensations can you notice here?
Allow your right lower leg to relax.
Down to your foot,
The top of your foot,
Base of your foot,
Your toes,
All the way down to your toe tips.
Slowly release and relax your right foot.
And now relax the whole of your right leg.
Now noticing your left leg,
The top of your leg,
Thighs,
Quadriceps.
Allow the muscles in the top of your leg to relax and release.
Notice your knees,
Your left knee,
Your left lower leg,
Your calf muscles.
Down to your left foot.
Allow your foot to soften and relax.
Just relax the whole of your left leg.
And now bring your attention to your whole body.
Allow your whole body to soften and relax.
At the same time,
Just scan back through your body,
Noticing any sensations,
Any areas of tightness or tension.
Just allow them to soften a little bit more.
Without any judgment,
Without any stress,
Just slowly scan through your body and use your breath to release and relax your body.
And now bring your attention to your breath coming in and out of your body.
Notice the air coming in through your nostrils,
Down into your lungs.
Notice the rise and fall of your chest and your abdomen.
Just notice how your breath is today.
You might notice that the in-breath or the out-breath is a bit longer.
You might notice that your breath is deep or shallow.
There's no need to change your breath.
Just notice it and see how it is today.
And feel how your breath is connected with your body.
Now imagine a light coming in through your body from your fingers and your toes.
Whatever color you notice,
That's the right color for now.
And feel this light slowly filling your body like perfume filling a room.
Allow this light to gently permeate through your whole body.
And now imagine that this light extends out from your body through your skin and out into the air around you.
Feel this light extending out as you relax your mind in its natural state.
And notice that your mind in its natural state is peaceful and expansive and luminous.
And just notice and sit with this sensation for as long as you can.
If thoughts come into your mind,
Just allow them to come and go and dissolve into the luminous light of your mind.
And when you're ready,
We can dedicate this meditation.
You may want to dedicate it to someone that you know that might need some help.
You might dedicate it to yourself and to all sentient beings.
When you're ready,
Gently bring your attention back into your body.
Notice your breath coming in and out.
Notice your body sitting on the chair or cushion or lying down on the ground.
When you're ready,
Just give your fingers and toes a bit of a wriggle and come back to the room.
And have a stretch.
