This is an awareness of breathing meditation of about 12 minutes.
It can be done seated in a chair or on a meditation cushion or bench.
If seated on a chair,
You'll want to be sitting towards the front of the chair so that you can support your own spine rather than to have it be supported by the back of the chair.
The pelvis is slightly tilted forward,
Legs are uncrossed,
Feet flat on the floor,
Knees hip distance apart and feet firmly on the ground.
When doing this meditation on a cushion,
Have a blanket,
Large cushion or large mat under the cushion you are sitting on.
Let the legs be crossed so that the knees are below the hips or resting directly on the floor if you are kneeling.
Make sure the buttocks are being supported by the cushion,
Pelvis slightly tilted forward so that the knees can rest without difficulty on the floor.
If the knees do not easily reach the floor,
Then using additional cushions under the knees to support them.
The head is supported by the neck,
Shoulders relaxed,
Releasing any tension as best you can.
Taking a few moments to get comfortable,
Perhaps bringing the shoulders up to the ears on an in-breath and then releasing them on an exhalation,
Letting the shoulders release.
Relaxing the muscles of the face,
Allowing the hands to be supported on the thighs or in your lap.
Arms resting comfortably.
And adopting a dignified posture,
One that best supports the possibility of being awake and present,
Along with an attitude of gentleness and curiosity.
And allowing the eyes to close or to rest on the ground a few feet in front of you.
Softening the gaze.
And as you sit here in this seated posture,
Bringing attention to the sensations of breathing.
This may take a few moments.
There's no rush.
You may become aware of the breath at the nostrils or noticing that the breath is cool on the in-breath and warm as it leaves the body on the out-breath.
Or perhaps your awareness rests on the sensations of the breath at the back of the throat.
Or of the ribs moving.
The rise and fall of the abdomen.
Taking your time,
Really noticing where in the body you best sense your body breathing.
And choosing one place where you will rest all of your awareness.
Focusing here on this one place where the breath can be felt most.
As best you can.
Being present with the sensations of breathing moment by moment.
Noticing the full length of each in-breath and out-breath.
Seeing if it's possible to follow one breath all the way from the very beginning of the inhale to the very last of the exhale.
There's no need to chase after the breath or to change or alter it.
Bringing the breath to breathe naturally.
And resting your attention on the sensations present in this one place that you've chosen as your anchor.
Feeling an attitude of openness,
Of curiosity.
Perhaps aware of the changing nature of breathing.
When you become aware that your attention has wandered off of this single focus on the breath,
Simply notice this.
Waking up to this movement of thoughts is as much a part of the practice as attending to the breath itself.
This choice to return again and again to noticing the sensations of breathing.
Escorting your attention gently back to the breath.
A fresh opportunity to continue the practice.
Bringing a quality of kindness to your awareness.
To this noticing of the breath.
In this way you are letting the breath be an anchor.
Reconnecting you to each moment as it arises.
And in those moments of attention wandering,
Recognizing it as a moment of waking up.
An opportunity to be present.
Knowing that by bringing our attention back to the breath,
Even if it happens again and again and again,
That this in and of itself is the practice of returning to the present moment.
Awareness of breath is a skill that becomes stronger with practice as we find ourselves in challenging moments in our day if we can create just the amount of space required to take a full deep mindful breath all the way in and all the way out this allows us to bring our attention to all of our available options keeps us from reacting and allows us to respond in becoming aware of our breathing we come fully into this very present moment it is not possible to breathe a past breath or a future breath there is only this breath in a few moments we'll come to the end of this practice of focused awareness on the breath and knowing that you can access this breath at any time no matter what is going on in your environment so allowing the eyes to open if they have been closed and gently bringing your attention back to the room around you bringing this awareness of breathing into the next moments of your day
