Namaste and welcome to today's guided meditation.
We are all going to come at us.
They are all going to present themselves in the way that is intended for us.
We may not be able to change the circumstances or the experiences.
Sometimes we may not be able to change the relationship.
What we can change is our perception.
We can change the way that we bring our energy into those experiences.
And we can change the way that we respond.
The practice of quieting the mind,
Of quieting the thoughts,
Of quieting the external interference and connecting into our breath provides us this beautiful opportunity to respond gracefully,
Compassionately,
Peacefully.
You will allow us to perceive what's going on through a new lens,
Through the lens of love rather than through the lens of fear.
Today I invite you to join me on a peaceful journey as we allow ourselves to rest in the waves of the mind.
To allow ourselves to notice and witness that whatever is going on around us simply is and we are so much more.
How would you like to show up today?
Before we begin,
Maybe take a moment and just recognize areas in your life,
Spaces that take up energy from you,
Energy that feels heavy and dense,
Energy that feels like anger or fear or sadness,
Maybe disbelief.
Notice how we react to those energies,
Those situations,
Those circumstances rather than breathing and peacefully choosing to respond in the energy of love.
And as we begin our time together,
Allow yourself to breathe in forgiveness,
Forgiveness for approaching those circumstances and situations with anything but love because in that moment we were doing the best that we could and here we are ready to breathe and ready to notice a new path,
A new way.
I invite you now to get comfortable,
Maybe lying down,
Maybe resting in a cushion,
Chair or sofa.
Becoming aware of the breath,
Allowing the breath to move throughout the body,
Noticing the inhale,
The suppleness of the inhale,
Noticing the energy of the exhale and allowing yourself to call in the energy of relaxation no matter what the mind is saying,
Allowing ourselves to simply focus on the breath and letting the breath be our guide,
Slowing our breath down,
Nourishing mindful space creating inhales,
Releasing exhales.
If it feels natural and safe,
Allow the upper lid to come down and meet the lower lid,
Softly noticing that space where the eyelashes come to touch.
If closing the eyes does not feel safe right now,
Take the gaze down the bridge of the nose,
Softening the eyes,
Softening the space around the eyes,
Softening the cheeks and loosening the jaw,
Letting the shoulders get heavy and feeling the arms and legs given to gravity.
Wherever you are,
You are held and supported.
Become aware of the space at the heart center and go deep within that space,
Go deep into the silence of that space,
Go deep into the stillness of that space and allow your breath to empty,
Empty,
Empty.
Focusing on the sensations of the breath in and out of the heart space,
Moving in and out of the body,
Noticing where the breath moves within you,
Where it naturally flows,
The rising and the falling of the chest,
The rising and the softening of the belly,
Maybe feeling the diaphragm underneath of the lungs pulling air in,
Creating that experience of expansion and then feeling the lungs gently release as you breathe out,
Belly moves inward,
Sensing the abdominal movements in and out.
Let your awareness ride the wave of your breath,
Wherever it feels most natural,
The nose,
The chest,
The belly,
Maybe it's even the whole body breathing.
Just let your attention ride the wave of your breath.
And as you're sensing your breath moving in and out,
Maybe you sense the vastness of your mind.
Experience the vastness of your mind as the vastness of the ocean.
Allow yourself to visualize an ocean endless,
Noticing how it seems to move forever,
Noticing the unexplored depths.
And deep in those depths below the surface,
It is calm.
It is clear.
Feel yourself relaxing into that space,
Sinking deeper despite the experiences,
Despite the mind,
Sinking into the depth,
Into the stillness,
And gazing up towards the surface.
You notice the movement and you notice that no matter what is going on on the surface,
Just like no matter what is going on in the mind,
In our relationships,
In our circumstances,
No matter what the condition is,
Deep in this space,
Deep in the ocean,
It is calm.
It is clear.
And just sensing your breath allows you to access the depth and the stillness of the ocean of your mind.
The vastness in this deep and peaceful place where you can look upward and notice the waves at the surface,
The brain waves,
The thoughts,
The emotions,
The conditions of your mind.
Can you notice now these fleeting thoughts and emotions that are just there at the surface coming and going quickly in and out of your awareness?
Just like the waves at the top of the ocean,
Sense your breath.
Bring yourself back into this peaceful place,
Feeling the profound depth of your mind.
When a thought,
When a feeling,
When a memory,
When a sensation,
When a trigger appears warmly and calmly,
Take note of the mental activity and redirect your attention to this breath.
Allow your attention to return to the breath,
To this depth of your mind,
This space where you can just sense and observe all the activities simply as activities.
This is not the totality of who you are.
Regardless of what's going on around you,
You can rest in the true and deep tranquility that comes just from sensing your breath.
Know and trust that focusing your mind on your breath brings you into this deep space of calm and clarity.
Become aware again of the space at the heart center of the stillness and silence that resides in that space and allow your attention to carry that,
Breathing it up into the throat,
Into the space between the eyebrows and into the mind.
Feeling the smoothness of the breath,
Breathing in stillness,
Serenity and peace.
Slowly gently begin to flutter the eyes back open,
Becoming aware of our surroundings,
Becoming aware of our bodies and taking a big breath in,
Let it go.
I hope you have an absolutely beautiful day.
The light in me honors the light in you.
Namaste.
