My name is Alicia and I want to welcome you to this meditation basics.
This is
great for people that are just starting out,
Maybe you're curious about
meditation,
Or even those that have a more experienced meditation practice but
are looking to get back and review some of the basics.
And so to begin I
encourage you to either sit or lie down,
Whatever will allow your body to be the
most comfortable in this moment,
Allowing your eyes to slowly begin to close or
casting your gaze downwards if that's more comfortable for you.
And I
encourage you to make any adjustments that you might need to to allow your
body to be even 5% more comfortable in this moment,
Taking away any potential
distractions that might arise from discomfort.
And now beginning to focus on some slow inhales and exhalations,
Slowly inhaling
through the nose and slowly exhaling out through the mouth.
Again,
Nice deep inhale through the nose and slowly exhaling out through the mouth.
Another deep inhale through the nose and slowly exhale through the mouth.
Now I would encourage you to continue the slow inhale and exhale at your own
pace,
And if you get distracted a helpful tool to keep you focused on your breath
is to internally say the words inhale on the inhalation and exhale on the
exhalation,
Or simply saying in and out.
And I'll go quiet for a few moments here
so you can practice being here,
Focusing on your breath in the present moment as
much as possible.
If you notice that your mind is wandering or you're tending to get
distracted,
That's completely normal even for the most experienced of meditators.
The goal of meditation is not to do it right or wrong,
It's simply to notice
when you have gotten distracted and to bring your awareness back to the present
moment.
And so allowing your mind to let go of any thoughts or worries,
You might
even imagine them being placed on a leaf and that leaf floating along a stream.
And again focusing on that sensation of your breath as it enters through the
inhalation and exits your body through the exhalation.
And maybe even deepening
your awareness and noticing where you feel that breath in your body.
Maybe you
feel the rise and fall of your chest,
Maybe you feel the rise and fall of your
belly,
Or maybe even noticing the inhale on your nose and the exhalation on your
mouth.
And continuing that inhale and exhalation for a few more moments here
as I go quiet so you can again focus on that breath.
Beautiful work.
And now I encourage you to bring your awareness to the very tip
of your head.
We're going to do a body scan just to further allow our awareness
to focus in on our body.
Again there's no right or wrong,
Good or bad here,
It's
just to be aware of what's happening in our body being as present as possible.
And so starting at the very top of your head,
I want you to take some time and
slowly work your way down every centimeter of your body.
And as you
encounter any tension,
Any tightness,
You can simply utter the words in your mind,
Release,
Allowing yourself to become a bit more relaxed as much as possible in
this moment.
And really take your time here moving down your body as slowly as
possible,
Noticing any tension or tightness that you may have not been
aware of before.
Now simply notice how it feels to be able to bring a bit more relaxation,
A
bit more sense of freedom or movement maybe into the body as you've released
more of that tension.
And now to bring an even deeper sense of relaxation,
Imagine a beautiful warm
golden light beginning to form at the center of your chest and slowly expanding
to every cell of your body,
Every aspect of your being until you are completely
enveloped in this golden warm healing light.
And I'll go quiet for a few
moments so you can really sink into this feeling of peace and tranquility that
this golden light is here to offer you in this moment.
And now simply notice what it feels like to be enveloped in this golden healing
light,
To feel that sense of relaxation that you've been able to create in this
moment.
Again not judging it,
Not making it right or wrong if it's not where you
wanted it to be,
It's simply being with yourself in this moment and noticing
what is present for you,
Noticing anything that has shifted if that has
occurred.
And taking a final deep breath in and slowly letting it out.
You can bring some gentle movement,
Wiggling your fingers and toes,
Allowing your
body to reorient to this present moment,
Maybe coming back into the room,
Back
into your body.
And whenever you're ready you can slowly open your eyes.
If you have a few moments
I invite you to stay here slowly making your way from this moment and from this
time that you gave to yourself,
Maybe even expressing some gratitude that you
showed up for yourself in this way.
I hope you have a beautiful rest of your
day.
