Hello,
My name is Nicho and this is Bomiso.
I wanted to start off by saying excuse my stuffy voice and red nose.
I've been sick for about a week now and I wanted to bring something to you anyways.
And this is actually something pretty exciting.
So this is just going to be a quick practice,
A break in your day,
About 10 to 15 minutes.
But it is something new.
It is a contemplative body practice that is rooted in the Western tradition.
So this practice is going to be focused on bringing the body,
Bringing the spirit,
Bringing the soul,
And connecting to God in a way that is authentic to the West and to the Christian tradition.
So with that said,
We will be starting in silence in a seat.
So find a seat that's comfortable for you and I will meet you there.
Find a seat,
However that looks for you,
And come to stillness.
Let the breath settle.
The Spirit of God has made me.
The breath of the Almighty gives me life.
Breathe in gently and breathe out fully.
Let this moment be your sanctuary.
Nothing to perform.
Nothing to achieve.
Just a return to presence.
Our Father,
Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses.
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation.
Deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
The power,
And the glory,
Forever and ever.
Amen.
Connect to your breath.
And set an intention for this break in your day.
What could this 15 minutes offer you as you continue forth in your day with God?
Amen.
And on your next exhale,
Drop your chin down to your chest.
Inhale,
Rolling it to the left.
Exhale,
Rolling it to the right.
Inhale,
Rolling to the left.
Exhale rolling to the right.
Continue at your own pace,
Gently circling the neck with your breath.
Noticing where tension hides.
Invite gentleness,
Invite release.
And on your next exhale.
Bring your chin back to your chest.
And then inhale your head up to a neutral position.
Extend your arms out straight to the side.
And slowly start to make circles moving forward,
With each circle getting a little bigger and bigger.
Let the arms move with intention.
Like branches swaying in prayer.
Then changing direction,
Moving forward.
Letting your circles get smaller and smaller.
And as you come back to a cross position,
Bring your hands in front of you.
Into prayer hands.
Clasping the hands together,
Start to slowly rotate the wrists in one direction.
And then.
.
.
In the other direction.
Like stirring still waters,
We are awakening the body.
Unclasping the hands,
Do a few more rotations with the wrists in both directions.
We will be rising to a standing position.
So root your hands and feet onto the ground.
Coming to a forward fold.
Perhaps interlacing your elbows and wrists,
Gently hanging forward and rocking side to side.
You may hem me in,
Behind and before.
And you lay your hand upon me.
With a super rounded back,
Roll all the way up to standing.
Finally,
Bringing your head up to neutral and continuing the roll as you bring your shoulders up to your ears and down behind your back.
Once again,
Shoulders up to your ears and down your back.
And then finding a neutral standing position.
Raise your arms back out to a T and find a way to sway side to side,
Twisting your spine with your breath.
As you rotate through the spine,
You awaken the trunk of your being.
Grounding into sacred earth.
Coming back to center,
Take a little bit of a wider stance than your hips.
Take a deep breath in,
Raising the arms high above your head.
Begin to march in place.
Right hand to left knee,
Left to right.
Crossing the body.
Reminding us we are whole.
Let breath guide you.
Inhale.
Exhale.
This is not exercise.
This is remembering.
Think of all the little ways in which you can sync with your breath here.
As you inhale,
Your arms raise and you're looking up.
As you exhale,
You look towards your knee and you touch it.
Ensure that every movement is associated with each breath.
On your next inhale,
Raise your arms up and we will go right into our next move of bowing squats.
Exhale,
Bringing your arms down into a cactus position as you squat.
Inhale to rise.
Exhale,
Hands to prayer,
Forward fold.
Inhale,
Arms raised above the head.
Exhale,
To a squat.
Inhale,
Rising up.
Exhale,
Bend forward.
Continue this movement not in strain,
But in surrender.
Here you will take ten bows and ten squats,
Each one a-letting go.
Come,
Let us bow down and worship.
Let us kneel before the Lord,
Our Maker.
Come,
Let us bow down and worship.
Let us kneel before the Lord,
Our Maker.
On your final bow,
Come all the way down to your knees into a kneeling bow.
When you're ready,
We will be coming into a plank position.
And oscillating between plank and annealing bow.
So on your next inhale,
Come up into a plank.
Exhale,
Push back into a prostration.
Inhale,
Plank.
Exhale,
Prostration,
Feeling free to drop down to your knees on the plank position.
And continue this movement.
A few more times.
Move like water,
Strong but surrendered.
Plank.
Bow.
Breathe.
And on your final prostration.
Hold this posture.
Come to me,
All you who are weary and burdened,
And I will give you rest.
Come to me,
All you who are weary and burdened,
And I will give you rest.
And when you're ready Take an upward seated position on your knees.
Inhaling your arms up,
Arching your back.
Exhaling.
Rounding through the spine and placing your hands on your chest.
Lift your arms to the heavens and exhale,
Draw your hands down to your heart.
Continue this movement of reaching towards the heavens and bringing the benefactions down and placing them in your heart.
Couple this with the spinal flexion.
For counteracting.
All the time that we spend.
Hunched over our computers and our desks in this day and age.
Create in me a clean heart,
O God,
And renew a right spirit within me.
And as we approach our closing sequence here,
Begin to rub your hands together and feel the warmth that you're cultivating.
Open your palms to the sky,
Towards heaven.
And ask,
Lord our God,
May you bless these healing hands.
As I draw attention to areas of my body.
That could use love attention,
Softness,
And tenderness.
Feeling divine presence in your hands.
Place your hands.
Over an area of the body.
That is calling for attention.
Keeping them there for an inhale.
And an exhale.
Letting your hands move to the next spot on your body that's crying out for attention.
For an inhale.
And an exhale.
And continuing this for six more breaths.
And six more spots of love on your body.
Being open to the presence and action of God in your life.
In your body.
In your hands.
Jesus reached out his hands and touched him.
I am willing.
Be healed.
Healing hands are not to fix or to force,
But to bless.
And before we enter into stillness,
I encourage you to bring your arms back to cactus.
And arch your back.
For a good final backbend before you enter back into your day.
Holding for three breaths.
And on your third breath,
Placing your hands on your knees and using them as leverage for a really good rounded back.
Held for three more breaths.
Now coming back to stillness.
Finding a comfortable seat.
In a position of receptivity.
However that looks to you.
Remaining open.
Giving consent to the Holy Spirit's presence and action in your body and in your life.
Take these couple more moments of deep listening to the prayer of Psalm 46,
Verse 10.
Be still and know that I am God.
Be still and know.
Be still.
May you carry this stillness into your next breath.
And into your day.
Amen.
