Take a moment to find a comfortable seated position,
Either on a chair or on the floor,
With your back straight and your hands resting gently on your knees or in your lap.
Close your eyes if you feel comfortable doing so.
Let's begin by taking a few deep breaths to settle into this present moment.
Inhale deeply through your nose,
Filling your lungs and exhale slowly through your mouth,
Releasing any tensions.
Let go of any thoughts or distractions and allow yourself to fully arrive here and now.
Now bring your awareness to your breathing.
Place one hand on your chest and the other on your belly and as you breathe in allow your belly to expand like a balloon,
Feeling the rise of your hand and as you exhale feel your belly gently fall,
Contracting towards your spine.
In the beginning it might seem that it's harder to just use the belly but with time and consistent practice the body gets used to bringing the attention to the belly and to the breathing.
Inhale,
Allow your belly to expand and exhale,
Let the belly fall back to its original place.
I will provide some extra guidance but make sure that you continue to breathe even when you're listening to my voice.
So inhale,
Rise the belly and exhale,
Fall gently.
Continue this belly breathing allowing each breath to be natural and effortless.
If your mind starts to wander just gently bring your focus back to the sensation of your belly and your breath.
Inhale,
Hand on the belly,
Exhale out.
Always keep your focus on the breath and on the rise and fall of the belly.
Make sure that you are not breathing through your chest by feeling if the hand on your chest is rising or not.
Just inhale,
Rise and exhale,
Fall.
You are starting to build your first focused muscles so be gentle and patient with yourself when your mind wanders or you get caught on noises on the outside.
Just bring yourself back to the belly breaths.
Inhale,
Rise,
Exhale,
Fall.
When your monkey mind makes you jump from one thought to another just gently bring your mind back to the breath and the movements of the belly without judging it,
Just bringing the attention and the focus back to the breath.
And inhale,
Rise,
Exhale,
Fall.
Notice the rhythm of your breath,
The gentle rise and fall of your belly.
Let each inhale bring you a sense of calm and each exhale release any tension or stress.
Inhale,
Rise,
Exhale,
Fall.
Keep this belly breathing a few more times.
Inhale,
Rise,
Exhale,
Fall.
Every time you bring your focus back to your breath you are increasing your ability to keep your focus not only in this meditation but also in your everyday life.
So inhale,
Rise the belly,
Exhale,
Fall.
Let it go back to its original place.
Now let's take the final three deep breaths together.
Inhale deeply filling your belly and exhale slowly letting go.
Two more.
Inhale,
Rise and exhale,
Fall.
The last one.
Inhale,
Rise,
Exhale,
Fall.
Gently bring yourself back into this room.
Wiggle your fingers and toes and when you're ready just open your eyes.
Take a moment to notice how you feel and appreciate the calm and centered energy you've cultivated through this practice.
If this didn't happen don't judge yourself for it.
This is why it's called the practice.
It takes time to get to where we want to be.
So remember you can also return to this belly breathing whenever you feel like you need a moment to center your awareness and bring your focus back into your breathing.
Thank you for joining this practice today.
