Nothing can happen if we can't trust in our direct experience.
And our direct experience is only ever happening in the six senses.
So that's a great place to start,
To get interested and curious in how things actually are.
So I'd like to invite you to find a position,
Take a posture,
Allow the body to make a shape that's going to feel supportive for you just now.
It might be sitting,
It might be laying down,
It might be standing.
And do just check that you're well supported,
You've got everything you need.
And what I'm going to be doing is just inviting us to get curious about what's coming and going in each sense door,
Including the heart-mind.
So one thing we can do here,
If it's comfortable,
Is just take a couple of deep breaths together.
Just letting all the stale air out of the lungs can make sounds here that feel good to you.
And then as you breathe in,
Really letting the air aliven you and refresh you.
Refresh and liven.
Bring energy with the out-breath,
We can allow softening,
Dropping down into the ground.
And with the in-breath expansion,
Spreading out into space.
And then just letting the breath return to its natural rhythm.
Spending a little bit of time down in the points of contact with the ground.
So this is a wonderful resource,
The ground,
That provides us with a strong foundation of awareness,
Here-ness,
Presence,
Availability.
So really feeling that the ground is rising up to meet us and hold us here,
While we're also dropping down and allowing ourselves to be met and held.
Then starting to feel into the upper body,
Rising into space,
Or if you're laying down,
Opening to space,
Without losing the connection with the ground.
Just filling that out with a sense of the body held also in space,
With space stretching in all directions,
Infinitely.
Seeing if you can invite any subtle bracing against space to loosen.
Feeling the space of the body in its length,
In its width from side to side,
And in its depth from front to back.
And then spending a little bit of time with the breath here,
Just because it can be such a helpful anchor for us.
Something we can always come back to if we get lost,
Confused,
Go into vagueness,
Distraction.
And also something that can connect us with our vitality,
The aliveness of the body as it breathes.
So as we begin to explore the senses here,
There's an invitation to really welcome as much as we can whatever is here.
Practicing radical inclusivity,
So nothing need be left out.
Just appreciate as much as we can everything as it is,
In its arising and passing.
So we'll begin by beginning to open to sound.
Noticing sounds as they just begin to emerge,
Or however long they last,
And as they begin to dissolve.
Knowing sounds to support a resting back in here.
So knowing this space,
This place through sound.
Now feel free to hang out with sound as long as you'd like,
There's also an invitation to begin to just gently shift the awareness towards visual sensation.
Could stay with the eyes closed,
There's plenty going on in terms of light,
Shadow,
Color,
Shapes.
Or you could also play around with opening the eyes,
Maintaining a soft focus.
Receptive,
Open.
Knowing the felt sense of color,
Shape,
Movement,
Shadow,
Light,
As it is.
And just checking here how much effort's needed to receive visual sensations,
And know them as they are.
And like with sound,
Feel free to hang out here as long as it feels interesting and supportive.
Or you can also gently transition to noticing smells,
Might be quite subtle or neutral.
Coming and going on the breath.
And closely connected to smell is the sense of taste.
You might swallow here to get a sense of the taste of the inside of the mouth.
Might be some residue of something you've recently been eating or drinking.
Or it might just be awareness of the potential for taste,
If it's quite neutral right now.
And now I invite you to begin to open to the whole felt sense of the body,
Sitting or laying here.
The breath can be a helpful bridge,
Supporting awareness to drop into the body as you breathe in.
Maybe starting with sensations of breathing and then radiating out from there.
Just getting a sense of where there might be sensations of pressure,
Tingling,
Warmth,
Softness,
Numbness.
Maybe some physical pain,
Stiffness,
Soreness,
Aching.
Or more pleasurable sensations,
Bubbling,
Tingling,
Opening.
Beginning to be sensitive to this rich,
Diaphanous cloud of sensations we call the body.
Constantly coming and going,
Like flickering light.
And if there's not a lot of sensation happening at the level of the body,
You could just notice the lack of sensation.
At the edges where sensations begin and end,
Like where the body's in touch with the ground.
And here we can also get curious about sensations felt on the outside of the body,
Against the skin.
Clothing,
Hair,
Temperature of the air.
Blankets,
Cushions.
And sensations deep within the body.
Breathing,
Heartbeat,
Temperature.
Places of tension,
Holding,
Contraction.
Places of softening,
Ease,
Release.
Currents of energy moving,
Flowing.
And from here,
We can also begin to get curious about the arising and passing of objects within the heart-mind.
Thoughts,
Images,
Memories,
Emotion,
Ruminations,
Projections,
Impressions,
Worries.
So here the invitation is to really rest back in awareness,
Trusting in the clarity of the awareness.
And just noticing all of that as sense impressions,
Without getting caught up in the content.
Not smoothing through the heart-mind that can be known directly as it is.
Just like sounds,
Just like sensations.
And if you're finding it hard to stay in the awareness,
You could set an intention just to look out for the very beginning arisings of something.
Like a memory.
Or the formation of a plan.
And just see what happens next as you attend to whatever you find there.
At the last minute or so of this meditation,
There's an invitation now to just broaden out to include all six senses.
Sounds,
Visual sensations,
Smells,
Tastes,
Physical sensations in the body,
And sensations of heart-mind.
You could even rest back a bit in the posture,
You might put your hands palm up in the lap.
You might take a slightly deeper breath here.
We're just totally open.
Like a sea anemone in a rich,
Warm tide pool just swaying in the tide.
Supple,
Soft,
Receptive.
Just sitting as it is.
In a moment I'll be ringing a bell to mark the end of this practice,
And the invitation is to just come out of it slowly and carefully,
Doing anything you know can support you to transition.
