Sitting meditation,
Awareness of the breath and the body.
So mindful breathing is simply a calm non-judging awareness allowing thoughts and feelings to come and go without getting caught up in them.
Intention of this practice is waking up to automatic pilot and coming to our breath in the body.
We will be directing our attention to the breath,
The body and bringing attitudes of non-striving curiosity to our experience in the present moment and allowing experience to be as it is.
So settling into a comfortable sitting position either on a straight back chair or on a soft surface on the floor with the bottom supported by cushions.
If using a chair practicing sitting away from the back of the chair so that the spine is self-supporting.
So taking time to experiment with the posture to find a place of comfort and when you're ready gently closing the eyes if that feels comfortable.
If not letting the gaze fall on focused on the floor short distance in front.
Feeling the sitting bones on the chair or cushion and now tuning into the sensations of the body.
The head balanced on the top finding a position for the head where it's not too far forward or too far back and just being aware of the sense of touch.
Moving to the sense of hearing.
Noticing sounds outside the room.
Practicing non-identifying the sounds.
Just moving from sound to sound.
Awareness of hearing.
Moving to sounds inside the room.
The sound of my voice just allowing sounds to come and go as they please.
When it feels right gently noticing the movement of the breath in the body.
It's such a constant feature of life that it's easy to ignore.
So taking time with it now and actually feeling the sensations as the breath rolls in and rolls out and allowing it to move through its cycle of in-breath and out-breath without control.
Perhaps sensing the rise and fall of the tummy of your stomach or the feeling of the air in the nostrils or upper lip.
If you care to placing the hands on the tummy.
Feeling the movement of the breath,
The rhythm.
Just letting it rolling and roll out and riding the waves of the breath from moment and when you notice that your attention drifts away or recognizing mind-wandering just acknowledging that and slowly and gently bringing the attention back to the breath in the body.
As we practice this meditation if at any time sensations in the body become too uncomfortable or thoughts carry us away to the past or the future or emotions arise that are too difficult.
Remembering that it is always possible to return to the rhythm of the breath as a refuge.
Practicing coming back and being with the breath as an anchor.
So where do you feel the breath most vividly in the body?
There is no need to try to control the breathing in any way.
Simply letting the body breathe by itself.
We don't have to analyze or judge our breath.
Bringing beginner's mind a freshness.
Just inhaling and exhaling when thoughts coming to the mind which they may well do as that's what minds do.
Simply watching with a gentle curiosity.
Noticing.
If we get caught up in them what would it feel like to let them go?
We don't have to follow those thoughts or analyze them in any way.
Softening any judgments about having them.
Choosing then to come back to the body,
Back to the anchor of the breath.
Just inhaling and exhaling.
Just inhaling and exhaling.
The breath rolling in and rolling out.
When you're really expanding the attention to include the entire body.
From the soles of the feet to the top of the head.
And just being present to the totality of the experience of sitting here in this moment.
Feeling the earth beneath us.
The sense of sitting here in the present moment.
The breath rolling in and rolling out.
Earthing ourselves.
When you're really gently turning our awareness to the sounds in the room.
Maybe starting to move and stretch in any way that feels good right now.
The meditation is now complete.
