Hello,
Friends.
In today's meditation,
We'll be exploring the five remembrances.
But before we get started,
We can take a few moments to settle in and relax.
We might first take two or three nice,
Slow,
Deep belly breaths,
The torso expanding on the inhale,
Our whole body relaxing,
Releasing on the exhale,
Bringing a sense of softening to our muscles,
Letting go of any tension or contraction in places like the forehead,
The eyes,
The jaw,
Likewise softening the shoulders,
The abdomen,
The pelvis,
Our whole body relaxing in space.
And from this foundation of some degree of ease and presence,
This meditation on the remembrances is quite powerful because what we find happens normally in life is that when difficulty strikes,
We're often either overwhelmed by it or turn away from it.
And so this practice is one that helps us to meet life more fully,
To look it in the eyes,
To come into a wiser and more compassionate relationship with challenges.
And through engaging in this process and letting these remembrances rest on the mind,
We find a greater inner stability.
So that being said,
In the meditation,
I'm going to repeat each of the remembrances twice and then leave a period of silence before the next one.
And I invite you to simply feel into the remembrance,
To let it sink in and to greet whatever comes up in you with presence and compassion.
And the first remembrance,
I am of the nature to grow old.
There is no way to escape growing old.
I am of the nature to grow old.
There is no way to escape growing old.
I am of the nature to have ill health.
There is no way to escape ill health.
I am of the nature to have ill health.
There is no way to escape ill health.
I am of the nature to die.
There is no way to escape death.
I am of the nature to die.
There is no way to escape death.
All that is dear to me and everyone I love are of the nature to change.
There is no way to escape being separated from them.
All that is dear to me and everyone I love are of the nature to change.
There is no way to escape being separated from them.
My actions are my only true belongings.
I cannot escape the consequences of my actions.
My actions are the ground upon which I stand.
My actions are my only true belongings.
I cannot escape the consequences of my actions.
My actions are the ground upon which I stand.
And then letting all the words drop away,
I might take one more deep breath,
Releasing any tightness or tension that may have built up.
We come back to just feeling the body being present,
Just noticing the residue of these remembrances.
And as we close this meditation through taking in the spirit of these remembrances,
We might find we're able to greet life's challenges a little more face-to-face with greater presence and compassion without turning away or being overwhelmed.
