Hello and welcome.
Thank you for joining me for this I am meditation,
An exploration of your inner being.
Have you ever wondered if your true essence or self is more than your name or the roles and labels used to describe yourself and more than what we see in the physical world?
Have you ever woken up from a dream or from losing consciousness and momentarily forgotten who you were?
That brief moment of awareness without any labels.
Think for a moment of the labels you use to describe yourself to others as well as yourself.
How about your name?
We usually always define ourselves by our name.
We often change our names as well.
How do you define relationships you are in?
For example,
I might say I am a mother,
A sister,
A spouse,
A daughter,
A friend.
What comes to your mind?
In your work or livelihood,
How do you label yourself and relationships to your job or career?
Perhaps I am a teacher,
A caregiver,
An accountant,
A bus driver,
Doctor,
Etc.
What comes to your mind?
What do you say after I am?
How about your physical body and race?
You might say I am white,
Black,
Hispanic,
Asian,
French,
Native American,
Or whatever other nationality.
How about descriptive?
I am tall,
Short,
Overweight,
Thin,
Athletic,
Average,
Etc.
And how about gender?
This has been a sensitive subject lately.
Here are some labels.
See if you identify or use any of these.
I am female,
Male,
Bi,
Trans,
Gay,
Lesbian,
Queer,
Intersex,
And the list goes on.
Is there somewhere where all these labels cease to exist?
The only way to really know anything is to experience it for ourselves.
So let's begin this meditation with a sense of curiosity and adventure as we explore our internal landscape and consciousness.
Find a place where you won't be disturbed and make yourself comfortable.
Come to a seat either on a chair with feet flat on the ground or perhaps seated on a blanket or cushion,
Having your hips up slightly higher than your knees to encourage a tall and recal spine.
Gently close your eyes and just start to tune in to your internal landscape.
Notice your body.
Are there any sensations or feelings you are aware of?
Is there any tightness or tension anywhere in your body?
Is there any discomfort or other unwanted sensation?
Notice any underlying energy or pulsing through your body.
Notice your legs.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Notice your feet.
Notice your toes.
Relax and allow your legs to soften and relax.
Bring awareness to your hips and let your hips sink into the support beneath you.
Maintain your tall spine as you soften your shoulders away from your ears.
Soften the back of your neck as you maintain space under your chin,
Gently reaching the point at the top back of your head towards the sky.
Take a nice deep inhale and a slow,
Soft exhale.
Gently lengthen your exhale so it is slightly longer than your inhale.
Keep your breath smooth and easy.
Notice your breath for a few moments.
You may notice sounds in the room you are in or even outside the room you are in.
Notice how sounds come and go.
Observe any thoughts as they enter your awareness.
Notice how thoughts come and go.
If you find yourself being pulled away by any thoughts,
Just notice that and bring your gently back to your breath.
Breathing easily in and out through your nose.
You can choose an anchor like your breath or begin to use the I AM mantra.
Internally sound I AM.
As you inhale mentally hear I.
As you exhale mentally hear AM.
I AM.
Repeating mentally with awareness.
If you prefer you can simply be aware of sounds.
Choose whatever is easiest for you at this moment.
As you continue to notice your breathing or any sounds you hear or sensations you might feel,
As well as observing your thoughts,
You are bringing yourself into the present moment with pure awareness.
If it resonates with you continue mentally repeating I AM.
Without anything after the AM.
Simply I AM.
I AM.
Now can you sense the essence of who is observing?
If and when your attention gets pulled to other things such as thoughts,
Just notice that and gently come back to your anchor,
Your breath or your I AM mantra or sounds.
And then when you feel you are more in the present moment once again,
Begin to explore with a sense of curiosity who is this observer of all your experience.
This observer who is always there,
Still,
Quiet,
Nameless.
Explore and notice.
Be present and aware.
Notice.
Observe.
I will give you about 5 minutes to explore on your own what you might notice.
Gently bring your awareness back to this moment.
Notice your body.
Notice your breath.
Observe any sensations.
Take a moment to gently begin to deepen your breath.
Maybe begin to make small movements,
Wiggling your fingers or rotating your wrists.
Slowly stretching in whatever way feels best to you.
When you feel ready,
Gently open your eyes.
How was your experience?
What did you notice?
Feel free to do this practice again each time you may experience something different.
You might even decide to write in a journal anything that stood out for you.
I always enjoy hearing about your experiences.
If you feel so inclined,
Please share something in a comment here on Insight Timer.
Thank you so much for joining me today for this I AM meditation.
Have a beautiful rest of your day.
Namaste.
Www.
InsightTimer.
Com
