Welcome to this meditation for rest and sleep.
Allowing our busy minds to pause and our bodies to soften and still is essential.
Yet this relaxed state can be difficult to cultivate within us when worries sit heavy on each shoulder and stress follows our footsteps.
Rather than resist,
Encourage them to rest alongside you.
For this handful of minutes there is nowhere else to be,
Nothing more to do beyond giving yourself the gift of presence,
The gift of rest.
I invite you to find a place to sit or lie down where you feel comfortable and warm.
Allow your bones to settle into place,
Supported by the chair,
Maybe a bed or the floor beneath you and the earth under it supporting us all.
Close your eyes now.
Let your breath flow easily in through the nose and out through the mouth.
Notice for a moment the way it moves,
Unguided,
Unasked by our conscious thoughts.
It simply sweeps gently in like a wave against the shore and recedes softly out,
Smoothing the stones of the sloping beach in its path.
Inhaling more deeply now,
In through the nose,
The sides of your ribcage expanding to accommodate the lungs so full of nourishing breath.
When you next exhale,
Consider drawing out the length of it a little longer than your inhale,
Still allowing the air to release through the mouth for a few more deep breaths.
Inhaling for 4 seconds,
1,
2,
3,
4.
And exhaling for 6,
1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Take another 1 or 2 cycles of breath in your own time.
Now allow your body to breathe you,
Inhaling and exhaling from the nose.
Feel the rise and fall of your chest with each gentle wave,
In and out,
In.
Bringing your awareness to your feet now,
Letting your attention rest lightly on the tips of your big toes,
Your second toes,
The middle toes,
Fourth toes,
And pinky toes.
Allowing the weight of the heels to melt heavy into the earth,
Noticing the soles of the feet,
The instep,
The tops of the feet,
The ankle bones,
The shins,
And the soft tissue of the calf muscles being supported from beneath.
Let the knees be heavy,
Sinking softly.
Notice the space behind the knees,
The kneecaps,
And the space just under the kneecaps.
Feeling the backs of the legs now,
Heavy,
Peaceful,
And held.
Becoming aware of the sides of the upper legs,
The tops of the legs.
As the breath continues to move through you with ease,
Visualize sending calming breath to each place in your body,
With each exhale letting go even more deeply of any tension and aches of muscle and bone,
Of heart and spirit.
Returning to your hips now,
The two hip points on either side of the pelvis.
Becoming aware of the sacrum,
The seat,
The anchor of your spine.
Becoming heavier,
Steady,
Grounded to the earth,
Conscious of the comfort and consistency that gravity brings.
You may notice some sensation here,
A heat,
A coolness,
Perhaps tingling or numbness as the body begins to feel heard once more,
Safe in your gentle awareness.
Noticing the sit bones on either side,
Balancing,
Supporting.
Also heavy,
Grounded.
Let sensation rest now on the soft space beneath the belly button,
The back supported beneath,
The soft edges of your sides,
The abdomen,
Noticing the strength of the rib cage,
The upper back and shoulder blades protecting from behind,
To be soft and strong all at once.
Letting your attention rest here for a moment,
Then I invite you to softly move your right hand to rest on top of your heart.
Breathing into the heart space,
Conscious of the way the chest expands,
Lifts and falls.
Notice any sensation surrounding your heart.
A subtle vibration with each beat,
A slowly building warmth beneath your palm,
With each inhale allowing that warmth to grow,
To take up more space in the chest,
With each breath,
The air feeding a gentle fire within.
Noticing now your fingertips,
Becoming aware of the palms,
Hands and wrist bones,
Soft forearms,
Elbows,
Upper arm muscles,
The soft space between the collarbones,
Soft cheeks,
Softly closed eyelids over your resting eyes,
Where the spine meets the skull,
Heavy and still.
Letting awareness grace the very crown of the head,
Breath flowing easily like waves,
With each breath in,
Warmth from our heart,
Becoming aware of the stillness.
