Hello and welcome to this short meditation exploring the sensuality of scent,
Of smell.
It's an invitation to drop into more relaxation and more pleasure.
My name is Nicola Foster and I'll be guiding you through this meditation,
Which lasts around 10 minutes.
And first of all,
I would invite you to find something that you may like to smell.
So pause the audio and see if you can find something nearby,
Such as an essential oil on some tissue or in the bottle,
Maybe a fragrant moisturizer or shower gel,
Or a freshly cut herb or flower or a scented candle.
And so when you have located this,
Just pop it to one side for now and I'm going to guide you into some relaxation to ground and settle.
So making yourself as comfortable as you can,
Wherever you are,
Either lying or sitting or moving,
It's all welcome.
And tuning into your breath,
Maybe there's pleasure in the inhale,
That vitality of receiving the oxygen all around,
This life giving force.
And on each exhale,
The exquisite relaxation of simply letting go,
That breath dropping away.
And there's no particular pattern of breathing to get right.
You're simply tuning into the sensation of receiving and giving back.
You're part of this flow of life.
Maybe you would like to just move an arm or leg,
Jaw,
Any little wrinkles to get even more comfortable.
Maybe you need an extra pillow or a layer of a blanket that you can reach for.
And as we soften and settle into this relaxed state,
I invite you to bring your attention to your nose and your nostrils,
Where the air comes and goes.
Maybe there's smells around you.
When you're ready,
Bringing up to your nostrils,
Whatever you've chosen to connect with through smell and taking a moment to just appreciate how it awakens the senses.
Maybe it evokes memories,
Welcoming whatever you appreciate or notice about this particular thing you've chosen to connect with and allowing it to permeate into your nostril,
Into your nasal passage,
To your lungs,
Into your heart.
And we're just exploring the different layers of this smell,
Are there top notes or base notes,
Are there subtle layers?
It's like you're falling in to this particular sensory experience,
Bringing all of your awareness to this and just staying here for a few moments with the rise and fall of your breath,
With the experience of being with this scent and welcoming any appreciation or gratitude or discomfort or disconnection or feeling numb.
There's no particular way to be,
There's simply whatever is happening in you right now.
Just being curious and open to your own experience of yourself,
Your body and the way you connect with the world.
If you feel to move in any way that feels good to you,
You may choose to move,
Maybe there's a shift you want to make or simply dropping into deeper stillness and relaxation.
And then very gently and slowly,
Beginning to reconnect to the space around you,
The room you're in,
Peeking maybe with one eye,
Two eyes,
Maybe moving toes or fingers,
A stretch or a yawn,
Bringing gratitude to yourself for taking this moment in time to deepen your connection with one of your senses.
As we come to a close,
Maybe you feel to place a hand somewhere on your body to anchor in that gratitude,
Deepening the breath,
Feeling your way back into whatever comes next in your day.
And thank you from my heart to your heart for joining me in this meditation.
