Let your body settle where it is.
Not where you think it should be and not where you wish it were.
Just here.
Let your breath be natural,
No need to change it.
Just let it be exactly as it is.
And with that recognition,
I'd like you to bring your attention to the weight of your body.
Not the weight of the thoughts about your body or the judgments about your body,
Just the simple fact that your body is here,
Supported by the ground or the chair or the bed or whatever.
However you're seated.
And feel the points of contact.
From the soles of your feet to the back of your thighs and the weight of your head if you are lying down.
Just the things that are real right now that you can feel.
And throughout this meditation,
Your mind may wander and it may pull you into memories of the past or worries about the future,
Because that's what minds do.
But just notice this,
That every time you've realized that you've drifted,
You've already returned.
The return is the present moment.
Because you don't have to do anything special to come back,
You just have to notice that you've left and in that noticing you're already here.
Now I'd like you to bring your attention to the sounds around you.
Not the ones that are labelling you as good or bad.
The sounds you try to hold on to or push away,
Just the raw experience of sounds and that might be some of the waves of pressure that are reaching your ears or maybe you can hear a car engine in the distance or some birds outside.
Maybe it's just the sound of your own breath.
And these sounds are not happening to you,
They're happening with you.
They're a part of this moment,
Just as you are.
You may also just want to listen to the background music to this track and that's okay too.
Wherever you are drawn,
That's fine.
And your mind may even try and name these sounds or think about these sounds.
But before the naming,
There was just the sound,
The experience itself.
The presence of the sound.
So see if you can stay with the experience of that just for a moment,
Before the mind steps in with its labels.
Now I'd like you to bring your attention to the sensations in your body.
Once again,
It's not about the stories we tell ourselves about these sensations or the judgements like this hurts or this feels good,
Just the raw experience of the sensation.
So that might be the coolness of the air on your skin or the warmth of the air on your skin.
Maybe a slight pressure from your clothes or a tingling in your fingers.
And notice how these sensations are always changing.
A warmth that was there a moment ago may fade,
And a tingling may shift to numbness.
And this isn't a problem,
This is just the nature of sensation.
It's not static,
It's alive.
And you are alive with it.
Our minds often like to try and resist this aliveness,
Like holding on to a sensation or making it stay or trying to push it away.
But we know deep down that the present moment is just something you can't hold or control.
It's just a place you can only be.
It's the narrative we put on things.
That's the attempt for control from our minds,
But it's the acceptance and the allowance of what is that truly brings us into the present moment.
And now we're going to try and bring our attention away from sensations.
Think about it like it's the space between sensations.
More like the space within your body or the space between your thoughts or between your breaths where there's no sound and no sensation and it's just a quiet hum of being.
Because this is the space that's always here and it's not something that is created in any way.
By any movement or any reaction or anything you think about or respond to,
It's just simply the background against which all experiences arises.
And this is the key.
This is you.
A stillness that we can always return to.
But with our fast-paced lives,
Our minds often try to fill this space with thoughts and plans and worries.
But just know that every time you return to the space between,
You're already home.
And the more you practice returning.
Easier it will be.
And you'll begin to notice more when you've been pulled away.
And with that recognition,
You're already there.
So this is a gentle reminder that the space between is always accessible.
Just try and notice that.
And noticing this space is a great bridge to awareness.
Awareness is always here even when you're not noticing it and even when you're lost in thought or when you're asleep.
It's the light that illuminates all experience.
It's you.
It's the very fabric of being and it's what you are.
The mind likes to try and turn this into a concept and objectify this awareness.
Trying to make it a thing to understand.
And sometimes people can go their entire lives trying to understand it,
But awareness is not a thing.
It's simply space in which things all arise.
It's the silence behind all sound.
It's the stillness behind all movement.
Pursuit of knowledge is a great thing.
But you can think and think and think your way.
Out of a problem.
But you'll never find it.
Until you truly synchronize with the stillness behind all movement.
So let's try and synchronize ourselves with that for a moment.
Before we end this meditation session,
I'd like you to try and bring yourself back to this awareness,
Back to this space,
Moving forward.
Because the more you return to it,
The easier life becomes.
We are the creator of our own problems most of the time.
We can find that space,
We can find that presence,
If we choose to.
Remember,
It's behind the noise.
Behind all movement and all thoughts.
And it's simply there and it's always there for you to find.
And in knowing that you'll find peace.
And realise that you are peace itself.
Thank you for being here.
And enjoy.
The space between.
