So this meditation is a body scan called acceptance and letting go and I'll share before we start an excerpt from listening which is a poem meditation by Wendy Anne Greenhage.
Ask yourself quietly,
Gently,
Patiently,
Am I listening?
Drop these words into the silence,
Wait for the responsive stillness of the body.
Am I listening?
Sit quietly without straining,
Hang there in the space between the words,
Suspend everything but this,
Am I listening?
You may want to start with a few deep breaths,
Allowing the body to swell with the in-breath.
And deflate with the out-breath.
Allowing the breath to settle.
Spending a moment to tune into the breath.
Feeling the rhythm of breathing.
Feeling the body breathing in.
Feeling the body breathing out.
And tuning into the body resting.
Feeling the support and the solidity of the earth beneath you.
Tuning into all those points of contact the body has with its external environment.
Points of contact the body has with its external environment.
The contact with the mat or the floor,
The cushion.
Maybe feeling the air against the skin.
Material of clothing touching the body.
Noticing how the body feels resting here.
If there are any adjustments that need to be made to the posture that you've chosen to allow the body to be as comfortable as it possibly can be.
I'm going to do a short scan of the body,
Simply noticing areas of the body that feel comfortable or uncomfortable.
We're just going to note those and then allow the scan to move on.
So starting down at the feet,
The toes.
Tuning into whatever you feel here.
Noticing if the feet,
The toes,
If they're comfortable or uncomfortable.
Moving up to the ankles and the lower legs.
Simple labels,
Comfort,
Discomfort.
The knees,
The tops of the legs.
The hips and the pelvic region,
The buttocks.
So we're not analyzing the comfort or discomfort,
We're simply noticing it and then allowing the attention to move on.
Up into the torso,
The belly,
The area of the chest and the ribs.
The shoulders,
The arms,
The hands,
Fingers and thumbs.
And then round to the back,
Lower,
Upper.
Into the neck,
The head,
The face.
Allowing the attention to come back to the breath again.
And in that very short body scan,
You've simply been noticing areas of comfort and discomfort.
And as you allow your attention to settle with the breath,
Just seeing if there's a particular part of the body that's calling to your attention.
So this might be a part of the body where there's pain or discomfort.
Or maybe there's just an itch,
Or a tingle,
A pulsating.
Just seeing where in the body is calling to you.
And then allowing your attention to go to that place and settle there.
If the body is completely at ease,
Allowing the focus to rest with the breath.
If your attention has been called,
Exploring the sensation that's called to you.
So noticing if there's a sharpness or a dullness,
An itchiness,
A pulsating,
A tightness or looseness.
Maybe even noticing if the sensation is always present,
Or if it comes and goes.
Allowing the focus to stay there,
Exploring whatever there is to explore.
And as you focus on this particular area,
Noticing if the sensation changes over time,
Or might intensify or slacken.
Just noticing.
And then tuning into how you're responding to keeping your focus there.
Is the mind trying to distract you or tell you stories,
Or talk up the sensation,
Or talk it down?
Maybe there are other sensations that are also present.
Or emotions that might come up as a result of this focus.
So just being open to your experience.
If you're finding that the sensation is difficult to manage,
It's really painful,
You may have an idea of taking the breath down to that area of the body,
And softening and releasing.
Or having a sense of breathing into that place,
Allowing the right breath to soften.
And then with the out breath,
Having a sense of release and letting go.
Just staying with this sensation,
With this image,
For a few moments.
In breath softens,
Out breath releases.
Really just listening to the body in this moment.
If a sensation has gone or it's too difficult to keep the focus there,
Simply bring the attention back to the breath.
And staying with the rhythm of breathing.
And so now for a few moments,
Just allowing the focus to wander.
Not having anything that you're particularly trying to focus on or keep your attention on.
And allowing the mind to do whatever it wants for a moment or two.
Sit quietly,
Without straining.
Hang there in the space between the words.
I can't spend everything but this.
Am I listening?
I can't.
