Hi everyone,
My name is Niti and I'm a mindfulness teacher in New York City.
Find a comfortable seat.
And before we get into our meditation today,
I want to take a moment to talk a little bit about something that's been on my mind in yoga practice,
In meditation.
I think oftentimes it's easy to view the practice as an outlet or as an escape from our everyday lives.
And by all means,
It should provide solace and refuge.
But the beautiful part of the practice is that it allows us to cultivate a deeper awareness so that instead of escaping the difficulties in our lives and bypassing what we don't want to look at,
We're able to instead look directly at those discomforts and be with them and sit with them and breathe through them.
When we can do that,
This practice becomes much more than just solace or refuge.
It becomes a means of awakening,
Of opening,
And sharing joy.
Sit tall.
Sit well.
Gaze at one point in front of you until your eyelids feel heavy and naturally fall shut.
With the eyes closed,
Feel the breath ease in and out of your nose.
And take a breath in,
Deep into your seat.
Exhale out the chest.
Place the shoulders on the back.
Take another breath in,
Deep into your seat.
Exhale out the chest.
Let the shoulders fall on the back.
Last one.
Breath in,
Deep into your seat.
Exhale out the front of the body.
Shoulders drape on the back.
Practice in stillness where the narrative of the mind goes.
As each thought drifts into the brain,
See it.
Turn towards it to acknowledge it,
And then let it go.
As if each thought drifting in is a new wave of the ocean,
Sliding in over the sand,
Gently crashing over your toes,
Your feet.
Let yourself submerge for just a moment before the tide recedes and whisks away each thought.
Each wave comes in,
Bringing some new little piece of human consciousness,
Each thought.
Instead of forcing or waiting for the thought to leave,
Stand in it with your feet submerged in the wet water.
See it.
See your reflection in it,
And then let it wash away.
Using each cycle of breath and each cycle of waves to acknowledge each bit of the mind,
Every little thought.
So that you fully use this practice to look deeper at what's already there rather than turn away.
Acknowledge that when we do turn away from something,
In reality we're just turning towards something else.
So instead turn towards each thought,
Each action,
With a sense of honor and integrity.
Find your last few breaths here in your seat.
Before opening your eyes,
Prepare.
Prepare your mind by imagining your surroundings.
Gently flicker the eyes open and gaze at one point in front of you with soft eyes.
Guide your hands together at your heart.
Thank you so much for sharing your practice.
I hope to sit again with you soon.
