Elephant meditation.
Get yourself super comfortable,
Preferably on your back,
But you can also do this sitting up.
Lying or sitting.
Become aware of touch.
Where your body touches the floor or the seat.
How your clothes touch your body.
What do the different surfaces feel like as they touch your body?
Now,
Notice your ears.
The shape of them.
Your instruments for hearing.
And begin to use them to listen.
How many different sounds can you find with your hearing?
Far away and near.
Different sounds.
Now come to your eyes.
Can you see anything behind your eyelids?
Sometimes it's all black.
Other times there may be different shades of grey or colour or even images.
And of course if your eyes are open,
You can just observe whatever is in front of you and really notice the patterns within what you are seeing.
Notice your tongue.
The tip of the tongue to the bottom of your tongue at the back of your throat.
Can you notice saliva in your mouth?
Swish your tongue around.
Do you taste anything?
Imagine the taste of your favourite food and swallow the taste.
Lastly,
Your nose.
Your sense of smell.
What can you smell?
Again,
You could imagine your favourite smell.
Enjoy the scent.
Now take a deep breath in through the nose and breathe out your mouth like a sigh.
Three times.
So two more times.
Breathe in and ahhh.
One more.
Ahhh.
It's time for a quick relax.
Scan through your body and notice where you might feel some tension.
Your face and head.
Relax your temples and jaw.
Your neck.
Shoulders.
Relax.
Your arms and hands.
Heavy relaxed.
Your chest and belly.
They move when you breathe.
Notice it and feel them just relax.
Your whole back.
Relaxed.
Your buttocks and hips.
Your legs.
Heavy.
Soft.
And relaxed.
And your feet.
Your whole body.
Relaxed.
Now if your eyes aren't closed,
If it's ok,
Close them now.
It's easier to relax and imagine that way.
But if you feel safer to keep your eyes open,
That's ok too.
Imagine the majestic elephant.
Perhaps like the one on the image.
Or you can keep your eyes open and softly gaze at the image.
Picture the slow,
Heavy steps striking the ground.
Solid,
Sturdy legs.
Moving steadily towards her goal.
Her intelligent eyes roam around the surroundings.
Searching.
Long trunk gently swaying side to side.
Taking in all the rich smells.
Occasionally reaching out for an especially sweet leaf.
Her deep knowing and memory of the land guides her to where she needs to go.
Along the way,
Huge boulders block her path.
Elephant gathers her strength by connecting to earth and by breathing deep down into her belly.
She begins moving the smaller boulders with her trunk.
These boulders represent fears and worries.
The first one that she flings to the side is doubt.
Elephant does not doubt herself.
Others need to be moved.
Not smart enough.
Not enough money.
Too fat.
Too thin.
Being alone.
Being judged.
Elephant continues to fling them out of her way.
They are getting heavier and heavier now.
Elephant needs to use her whole strength.
She lowers her head and rests her forehead against one of the boulders.
This one is loss.
Loss of friends.
Schools.
Homes.
Favourite things.
She braces herself and feels her power as she pushes her full weight into the boulder.
Seeing in her mind's eye the opposite of loss.
She sees connection,
Relationship,
Friendship,
Talents,
New beginnings.
The boulder begins to crack,
Releasing a brilliant golden light.
This light fills her heart and flows down her legs,
Connecting her to earth,
Family and all of her ancestors.
She feels strong,
Safe and loved.
The boulder shatters into many tiny pieces,
Revealing a gift.
Lightly floating where the centre of the boulder should have been is a magnificent ball of red light.
Suspended within the light is a four-leafed lotus flower,
Holding within it a golden square.
The sound,
LAAAM,
Vibrates in the background and the lotus begins to gently spin.
This is a special gift.
When you draw upon this image,
It will always leave you feeling calm,
Safe,
Loved and strong.
In your mind,
Give thanks for this gift,
Knowing that Elephant's memory is long and your gift will never be forgotten.
Take your time to become aware of your body again.
Touch,
Smell,
Taste,
Sounds and sight.
Begin to blink your eyes open.
Blink,
Blink,
Blink,
Blink.
And move and stretch in whatever way you need to.
And then return to whatever it is that you need to do today.
Taking with you this lovely,
Calm,
Safe,
Strong feeling for a wonderful day or evening or night.
