This meditation is an invitation to step out of constant thinking and doing and enter a quieter experience of simply being.
You don't need to make your mind blank or force yourself into silence.
Thoughts may continue to arise.
Each time you notice them just simply allow them to pass and gently return to the present moment.
There's nothing you need to achieve.
Allow yourself to experience whatever arises without judging it or trying to make it different.
Find a comfortable position and allow your body to become still.
Let your hands rest comfortably and allow your eyes to close.
Begin by bringing your awareness to your breathing.
There's no need to change your breath.
Simply notice it.
Allow your thoughts to come and go.
Don't try to control or suppress them,
And don't try to replace them with more pleasant thoughts.
Whenever you notice that your attention has become absorbed in thinking,
Gently return your awareness to your breathing.
Begin by noticing the sensation of air passing through your nostrils.
Feel the touch of the air Notice where you feel the breath as you inhale and where you feel it as you exhale.
Become aware of whether the air feels warm or cool.
Notice any difference between the breath entering and the breath leaving your body.
Now bring your awareness to your forehead.
Notice any sensations there.
You may experience warmth,
Coolness,
Tingling,
Pressure,
Tightness,
Pulsing,
Or perhaps nothing at all.
Simply observe whatever is present.
Move your awareness to the area around your eyes and notice any sensations there.
Then bring your awareness to your cheeks,
Your mouth,
Your jaw,
Your neck,
And your shoulders.
Don't try to change anything,
Simply notice.
Continue moving your awareness slowly through your body.
Bring your attention to your upper arms,
Your elbows,
Your forearms,
Your wrists,
Your hands,
And each of your fingers.
Then become aware of your chest,
Your upper back,
Your abdomen,
Your lower back,
Your hips,
And your buttocks.
Move your awareness down through your thighs,
Your knees,
Your calves,
Your ankles,
Feet,
And toes.
Omit no part of your body.
You may find that certain areas seem completely without sensation.
Remain focused on those areas for a few moments and notice the absence of sensation.
If nothing emerges,
Gently continue.
Now return to the top of your head and slowly move through your body once again.
Continue scanning your body in this way for a few minutes,
Moving slowly from one area to the next.
And whenever you become lost in thought,
Gently return to the sensations within your body.
When you've completed the body scan become aware of your body as a whole.
Experience the entire body as one field of sensation.
Notice that different sensations are arising at the same time.
There may be warmth,
Coolness,
Pressure,
Movement,
Stillness,
And areas that feel neutral.
Feel your whole body at once.
Now return your attention to one individual area,
Perhaps your eyes,
Mouth,
Neck,
Shoulders.
Observe the sensations in that one area.
Then return once again to an awareness of your body as a whole.
Notice the stillness that's begun to settle over you.
Notice the stillness within your body.
Move your awareness to one particular part and then return to the stillness of the whole.
Try to remain physically still.
Whenever you feel an urge to move,
Don't immediately act on it.
Instead,
Notice the urge.
Where do you feel it?
Does it feel like pressure,
Itching,
Tension,
Or restlessness?
Notice its intensity and whether it changes from moment to moment.
You may experience discomfort or tension.
Simply remain aware of it.
Don't struggle against it or demand that it disappear.
Stay present.
With the sensation and allow it to change in its own time.
Now imagine that you're entering a holy place.
This place may be a temple,
Sanctuary,
Or any sacred place that arises naturally in your imagination.
Look around and notice the atmosphere,
The light,
The space,
And the feeling of being there.
You begin walking toward a circular altar with a floor of earth.
You become aware that a book is buried beneath the soil and somehow you know exactly where it is.
Kneel down and begin gently moving the earth aside.
Lift the book from the ground.
Open the book and slowly look through its pages.
Continue until you find a page that draws your attention.
You may see a symbol,
Experience a feeling.
Or notice a color,
Image,
Word,
Or message.
Don't force anything to appear,
Simply receive whatever comes.
Remain with this page for a moment.
When you're ready,
Close the book.
Return it to the place where you found it and gently cover it with the earth.
Rise and begin walking out of the holy place.
As you step outside,
See a version of yourself standing before you.
Now imagine the symbol,
Feeling,
Image,
Word,
Or message from the book appearing on a screen nearby.
If what you received was a feeling,
Allow that feeling to take on a shape,
A color,
Texture,
Movement,
Or any other form.
And now see yourself interacting with what appeared.
Notice what happens.
Allow the experience to unfold without trying to analyze it.
Now allow the entire horizon to become darker and darker until nothing remains but darkness.
Gaze gently into the darkness.
In the center of the darkness begin to see or sense a small candle flame.
Watch the flame grow brighter and brighter.
Allow its light to spread across the darkness until the entire landscape is illuminated.
Now allow the landscape to dissolve into a field of pure white light.
Rest your awareness within the light.
Allow yourself to be absorbed by it.
Feel yourself flowing into the light.
And let the boundaries of your body begin to soften.
Let the boundaries of your identity begin to soften.
Release every image,
Every thought,
Every word,
And every meaning.
There's nothing to accomplish.
Nothing to understand,
Nothing to hold.
Nothing to become,
Only openness,
Stillness,
Emptiness and awareness.
Allow yourself to flow into no thingness.
Now,
Very slowly,
Begin to see,
Imagine,
Or sense the number 1 appearing on the horizon.
Than the number two.
Very slowly the number three.
Four.
Five,
Six.
And you begin to feel your hands and feet and you're becoming aware of your breathing.
Become aware of the surface beneath your body.
And when you see or sense the number seven,
Gently open your eyes.
Remain seated quietly for a few moments.
Don't rush to move or speak.
Notice the silence that remains within you.
Notice how it feels to be present without needing to interpret,
Fix,
Or accomplish anything.
You may find that your mind becomes active again as you continue with your day.
It doesn't mean the silence has disappeared.
It remains beneath the thoughts available whenever you pause and return to awareness.
Take one more slow breath.
Feel yourself fully present in your body and in the space around you.
Carry this sense of spaciousness with you,
Remembering that beneath all the thinking and doing,
There's always a deeper place within you that knows how to simply be.
Thank you for meditating with me today.
Namaste.
