Welcome.
Today's meditation is a loving your body exercise.
As your body overhears your internal dialogue,
It responds with changes in your blood pressure,
Hormones,
And even your immune system.
Your body is your best friend and the place you call home.
We do this meditation to increase our awareness of all the gifts our body gives us.
So we begin today by finding a comfortable seat,
Closing your eyes,
And letting your awareness turn inward.
Pay attention to the natural rhythm of your breath without controlling or manipulating it.
And just notice how you're feeling at this very moment.
We'll begin by relaxing our body from head to toe,
Beginning at the scalp and relaxing the forehead,
The cheeks,
The chin,
The sides of the neck and the back of the neck.
Softening and relaxing the shoulders and the chest,
The abdomen and the hips.
Relaxing your legs from the top of the hip joint all the way down to the base of the foot,
Letting go of any tension we find as we move through our bodies.
Our bodies are always supporting us and ask nothing in return.
With loving awareness and attention,
We appreciate our bodies.
We give thanks for our bodies ability to digest food,
Assimilate nourishment and rid itself of toxicity.
We appreciate how we're able to see beauty,
To feel sweet caresses and listen to the sounds of nature.
We appreciate the ability to taste earthly delights and smell enticing aromas.
In this moment,
Appreciate your ever present body and your heart,
Your heart that has been beating 100,
000 times a day for you since you were only a few cells in your mother's womb.
With love and appreciation,
Think of your body as your faithful servant.
Your brain is at its command.
Your lungs have drawn air for you since the day you were born and your bones give you support.
Your feet and legs let you stand up for yourself and your hands let you reach out towards others and take loving care of yourself.
Your immune system is clear about what is on your side.
Your cells replace themselves at the perfect time.
Appreciate your body's intelligence as it aligns with the rhythms of nature,
Monitoring the movement of the moon,
The planets,
The stars and the earth.
Keep inhaling and exhaling gently,
Each breath sweeter than the next.
Now feel your body's subtle sensations from the inside and bring your loving attention to each area of your body.
Feel into it and imagine that you're giving it a warm and loving embrace.
Move from your head to your toes and back toes to head.
Feeling into your limbs,
Your organs,
Your skeleton,
Feel your flesh.
You might even be able to feel your heartbeat.
Allow yourself to experience any emotions or sensations as they arise.
Or you may feel nothing.
Just notice and keep breathing.
You may come across an area of your body that's diseased or has a physical or emotional pain.
Practice accepting your body exactly as it is,
Even if you don't always feel loving about this area of your body.
Do not reject it.
If you start to wish that things were different or get into some story about your body,
Refocus your attention to the sensation at hand and gently return to the attitude of loving appreciation for all your body does for you.
Continue feeling your body,
Every part,
Acknowledging and accepting all that it does for you.
Keep breathing.
Your breath is soft and natural.
Can you notice where your body begins and where it ends?
Maybe the edges are not so well defined.
Feel where the inside and the outside seem to be.
And feel your vitality,
Your life force moving through every part of you,
Every cell in your body.
Feel the energy enliven.
We're not always used to thinking about the energy as it circulates in our body.
But with our awareness inward and our focus on these sensations,
You may be able to feel the movement of energy,
A slight little buzz,
A feeling of energy.
This sensation can be completely blissful if you can experience it.
Continue breathing.
Your breath is soft and natural.
Your body is calm and relaxed.
Begin to give yourself a few deeper breaths and we'll gently come back to this place and this time and this body.
If you like,
You can sit still for a minute or two longer,
Just enjoying the peace and calm you've created by this simple practice.
My mind is calm.
My body is relaxed.
I am at peace.
Namaste.
