The Treasure of Pleasure Meditation.
So in the usual way allowing yourself to settle and soften into your chosen posture.
Setting aside whatever you've been doing before the practice,
Whatever's coming later.
Allowing yourself to just be fully present.
So with your next few out breaths you might like to imagine the weight of your body releasing back and down.
Like continuing to soften,
To settle.
So before we start the main part of the practice which will be focusing on the pleasant aspects of our experience.
Let's just check that there's not too much sense of resistance,
Of holding,
Of pushing away anything that might be more uncomfortable for us just now.
So it might be resistance to a sensation,
An area of the body that's feeling achy or tired or painful.
Or perhaps it's resistance to some emotion that we're experiencing.
Or maybe even some troubling thoughts that are passing through.
So if we can just allowing those perhaps less wanted parts of our experience to be here too.
So we're not going to push them away or deny that they're happening.
Seeing if we can soften into them.
So softening the resistance we might have to feeling them.
Breathing with them.
Just gently acknowledging that this is part of our experience.
So then starting to shift your focus.
So there may still be some part of you that's aware of the uncomfortable,
The unpleasant.
But seeing if we can turn towards anything that might feel good in the body,
That might feel enjoyable or comfortable.
So it's a bit like going on a treasure hunt that we're just seeking out anything that has that pleasant aspect to it.
And we're not looking for anything particularly big or exciting.
Just those everyday pleasures.
So it could just be that you're feeling warm and comfortable.
Perhaps you're wearing a soft jumper or warm woolly socks.
Perhaps you're breathing feels slow and easy.
Maybe there's a sense of softness in your belly.
Maybe you can hear a pleasant sound.
Could even just be a sense of relief that you're here now making this time for yourself to rest,
To recharge.
So just going exploring for a few minutes,
Seeing what's here that has some pleasant aspect.
Don't panic if you don't find anything right away,
Just keep looking.
So as and when you do land on something pleasant,
Giving yourself permission to stay with it and to experience it fully.
So really drinking it in,
Bathing in it.
It can be very quick to brush off the good things.
So here's a chance to build that muscle of awareness,
That habit of looking out for what's good.
So really allowing yourself to feel it fully,
Deeply,
To luxuriate in it.
And sooner or later,
You may well find that that initial pleasant sensation has shifted,
It's changed.
If that's the case,
You can just let go of that one and move on,
Keep exploring,
Seeing what else there is in your experience just now to enjoy.
So just checking,
Where's your awareness now?
If it's got caught up with thinking or planning,
Just gently,
Patiently bringing yourself back to the present moment,
Back to whatever pleasant sensation you were exploring.
So as we move towards the end of the practice,
Letting go of any of the specific pleasant sensations you've been exploring.
Coming back to rest in an overall sense of the body,
The whole body,
Sitting,
Lying here,
Gently breathing,
And perhaps just taking a moment to notice how it's felt to be on the lookout for what's good,
What's enjoyable,
What's pleasant.
And knowing that in doing this short practice,
You've been building that capacity to dwell on,
To integrate the good things that you experienced throughout the day.
So perhaps showing yourself a little bit of gratitude that you showed up,
That you sat through this practice.
And if you like,
You could even set a gentle intention to stay tuned in to the good things in your life,
To those small,
Everyday pleasures of life.
Everyday pleasures that are so easily missed.
So when you're ready,
You could start to move the body a little,
Or you might prefer to stay where you are for a bit longer to rest.
If you've had your eyes closed,
It's time to start opening them.
And we'll bring the practice to a close there.
