Brief Arriving Practice

This simple and brief practice can be used when arriving into a new space to assess both how we are internally and to take in what is going on in the environment around us.

The meditation starts with an invitation to take 3 deep breaths - a radical practice in its own right. We briefly connect to the central channel and then start to orient - look around the space and take objects in while noticing the impact the act of orienting is having on us. Finally, we find an object which we experience as resourcing/nourishing and observe the effect it has on us.

Transcript

So, Let's take three deep breaths together, If that's comfortable for you to do so. Three deep breaths is a profound practice, Deceptively simple, And yet can be very transformative if we're able to bring the helpful support of intention. So, These deep breaths, We're creating a pause, And using the breath to support more space, Literally creating more space in the soma, The body, And then as you let the breath return to its natural rhythm, Just feeling into the central channel. So, This is a channel of energy that stretches from the crown to the navel. You could place a hand on the belly to get a sense of the rise and fall here as we breathe. And the central channel supports a connection between these major feeling centers, Navel, Heart, Throat, Crown. So, As we breathe here, We can sense into that connection, And then use the breath to smooth out the wrinkles in the central channel, Or iron out the central channel. The breath here can begin to, Without trying to force anything, Just create a sense of flow and connection between these major feeling centers. And if you're someone who knows that color is a resource, You could imagine that the central channel is deep blue in color, Like the deep blue sky, And mysteriously, The central channel is also like the sky, Full of infinite space, So we can feel into that just now, This spaciousness within, Where anything can arise and pass beyond acceptance and rejection, Just as it is. And then when you feel ready, If you'd like to join me in a little bit of orienting, Just have a look around and support our nervous systems to register that right now, Even with everything going on in our lives, Our communities, With the world, We are okay. Right now, We are okay. So just really taking your time here to allow the eyes to receive the felt sense of what's here in the space. And then also just notice the effect that that has on the breath, Muscle and organ tone, And the energy. And then just taking a moment to find something in the space that when you look at it, It feels supportive, It feels like it's supporting you, It's bringing a deepening sense of safety, Resourcing support to the system. I just noticed as I looked out my double sliding doors here that open out to the garden, There's just this wall of green out there. And all of a sudden, I just felt a little bit more here, Looking at that. So we can rest our eyes on a resource that's in the space right now. And allow it to support us. And it may be that there's a few resources, So feel free to also take in other things. Now I'm looking at my beautiful Japanese print of a woodpecker. And then just feeling free to make any movements, Stretching, Caressing, Touching, Rubbing, Pinching, Scratching. Anything the body needs right now, Feel free to bring that in as well.