Hello and welcome.
Find yourself in a comfortable seated position.
Let your body soften and relax.
And when you're ready,
We'll begin.
And then take a big breath in.
Let's fill up and just sigh out.
Let your body sink down.
Notice where your feet are,
What your feet are touching,
And the points of contact that they're making with the surface beneath.
Let your tailbone sink down toward the earth.
Let the back of your head just float up toward the ceiling just a little bit so you feel a little bit of opening in the back of your body.
Your shoulders relax away from your ears and your eyes can still be open or closed here.
Whatever feels good in this moment,
We're just coming into this practice space.
And we'll start with a body scan today.
From the outside in.
So just becoming aware of the contact points between different parts of your body and physical surface.
So that might be where you're sitting,
That might be the texture of the clothes on your skin.
Just noticing.
Maybe even being aware of this stretch sensation of your skin in different parts of your body.
Maybe your palms,
Maybe your feet,
Elsewhere.
Begin to draw that focus of the sensation of touch a little more inward.
So becoming aware of the layers of tissue underneath your skin.
Connective tissues,
Muscle.
Seeing if you can draw that awareness right down to bone and the cells throughout your body.
Knowing that each cell is pulsing with energy and life.
Seeing if you can tune into this sense of pulsation.
Maybe even drawing your thumbs to your fingertips.
And being able to feel some of that pulsation at your fingertips.
Letting your breath out.
Feel some of that pulsation at your fingertips.
Letting your breath be easy and comfortable.
And becoming aware of where you're noticing breathing in your body.
That might be the mechanical sensation of belly or chest moving.
That might be the sensory awareness of the air moving in and out through your nose.
That might be an awareness of cellular breathing.
That pulsating energy of each and every of the trillions and trillions of cells that make up your body.
Imagining the movement of those cells.
Breathing in.
Breathing out.
Breathing you.
And then begin to slow your breath just a little more.
Finding that coherent breath,
That equal inhale and equal exhale.
That's at a comfortable pace for your body right in this moment.
Continuing to notice a sense of pulsating life within your body.
As you slow your breath.
And add a layer here if you want to.
On the exhale,
Moving into ocean breath.
So just slightly constricting the back of your throat.
That might be a little comfortable or uncomfortable depending on where you are today.
So it's not necessary.
It's just an additional layer.
Breathing in through your nose.
Finding ocean breath on the exhale if you want to.
Just feeling that slight narrowing as though you were whispering with your mouth closed.
And if you have moved into ocean breath.
Maybe even hearing the ocean resonating in your head and your chest.
As you breathe out.
And if you're not using ocean breath,
Just imagining your breath as a wave of energy rolling into your body and as a wave of energy rolling back out.
Washing in.
Washing out.
And see if you can visualise the curl of each wave as it crests and dips.
And dips.
Maybe even attaching your breath to the rolling in and pausing just before that wave rolls over and back out again.
Breathing in.
Breathing out.
Washing in.
Washing out.
Adding a layer here.
A meta.
A meta.
May you feel happy and at ease.
May you be safe and well.
May you feel loving.
May you feel loved.
May you be happy and at ease.
May you be safe and well.
May you feel loving.
May you feel loving.
May you feel loved.
May you be happy and at ease.
May you be safe and well.
May you feel loving.
May you feel loved.
May you be happy and at ease.
May you be safe and well.
May you feel loving.
May you feel loved.
May you be happy and at ease.
May you be safe and well.
May you feel loving.
May you feel loved.
May you be happy and at ease.
May you be safe and well.
May you feel loving.
May you feel loved.
Allowing yourself to bathe in the warmth of these words.
To bathe in the warmth and the pulsation of your breath.
For maybe three more rounds of breath.
And then wherever you are in your breath cycle,
Empty your ear.
Take a breath in.
Take a breath out.
Take a breath out.
And then wherever you are in your breath cycle,
Empty your ear.
Take a breath in.
And sigh out,
A long sigh with an open mouth.
Just letting go of any control over your breath and come back to a rhythm that feels natural and unforced.
Once again,
Draw your thumbs to your fingertips.
Just gently draw the thumbs across your fingertips so that you can feel the sensation of touch between skin on skin.
And then pause for a moment,
Thumbs pressed fingertips,
Seeing if you can tune in once more to that sense of pulsation.
Noticing where else you feel that pulsatory energy in your body.
Noticing where else you feel that pulsatory energy in your body.
May you be happy and at ease.
May you be safe and well.
May you feel loving and may you feel loved.
Sit for as long as you can with these words,
With your breath,
And before you have to move into whatever comes next.
Go gently.
