Deep Sleep: Control Your Breath, Not Your Thoughts

A guided sleep meditation with ocean waves in the background. Fall into a deep peaceful sleep by gently controlling the breath, allowing the thoughts to be completely uncontrolled. (Clearer vocals - March 2021.)

Transcript

This commentary will be in three parts.

The first part will be a breathing exercise,

The second part will be practicing body awareness and the third part will be developing our awareness beyond thought.

So first the breath.

So breathing into the base of the lungs with the diaphragm,

Feel the rise and fall.

Add a short pause after the in-breath before the out-breath and also at the end of the out-breath before the in-breath.

The breath is slow,

Steady and controlled.

Start with just allowing your breath to be at whatever depth and speed comes naturally.

The aim then is to gradually slow down the breath and for the breath to become longer but not breathing in deeply with effort,

Breathing in gently,

Slowly with control and breathing out slowly,

Steadily with control.

The length of the in-breath and the out-breath should be around the same.

The pause at the end of the out-breath should be about the same as the pause at the end of the in-breath.

As the breath gets slower,

More steady and longer,

The pauses between the in-breath and the out-breath and between the out-breath and the in-breath should also gradually get longer.

So don't make too much effort to slow down and lengthen the breath.

Allow that to happen gradually over time as you start to relax.

Making that you're breathing with the diaphragm,

The lower abdomen is rising and falling slowly and steadily and there is the pause between the in and out-breaths.

Whenever you notice your attention has wandered away from the breath,

Just bring it back and check that you're breathing with the diaphragm,

That you're pausing between the breaths,

After the in-breath and the out-breath,

And that the breath is as slow and steady as is comfortable.

After a while,

This breath should become natural and automatic.

Lower abdomen rising and falling slowly and steadily.

Breathing as slowly as is comfortable,

Each breath as long as is comfortable.

Pausing for a moment between the in-breath and the out-breath and between the out-breath and the in-breath.

The pauses of equal length,

The in and out-breath,

Equal lengths.

The in and out-breaths are the same as the in and out-breaths.

The in and out-breaths are the same as the in and out-breaths.

So now we can move on to the awareness of the social energies of the body.

So be aware of how your body feels right now.

Feel all the contact points.

Feel the weight of the body.

Let go of any tension and tightness in the muscles.

Now get a sense of the energy of the body,

How the body is feeling overall.

Feel the presence of the body.

Feel the aliveness.

You may feel a flow of energy,

A gentle tingling in the body or a feeling of warmth.

Have an overall sense of the presence and energy of the body.

Feeling the presence of your body here and now.

And being aware of the whole body,

Not focusing on any particular part of the body,

But getting a sense of the body as a whole.

Feeling the energy,

The sensations,

The presence,

The aliveness.

Feeling the presence of the body.

Feeling the presence of the body.

And check the breath.

See if you can maintain the awareness of the energy and presence of the whole body while checking the breathing.

Slow,

Steady and long breaths.

Causing between the in-breaths and the out-breaths.

And breathing into the face of the lungs with the diaphragm.

So the lower abdomen is slowly and steadily rising and falling.

Making sure the breath is comfortable and controlled.

Equal lengths of the in-breath and the out-breath.

Being aware of the breath and the energy and presence of your whole body.

Feeling the breath,

Controlling the breath and feeling the aliveness of the whole body.

Feeling the aliveness of the whole body.

Feeling the aliveness of the whole body.

So the third part is to allow your awareness to go beyond thoughts.

Not by stopping your thoughts in the country.

By giving your thoughts complete free rein.

Allowing your thoughts to flow completely freely through the mind.

Not editing,

Judging,

Correcting,

Changing any thought in any way.

Completely letting go of any control or particular interest in your thoughts.

And imagine or feel that your thoughts can flow freely from your brain,

From your head.

Out into the space of the room around you.

So allow your mind and your awareness to hold the space of the room within it.

Having the awareness of the room and allowing your thoughts to flow freely out into the space of the room.

So your awareness is wider,

Broader and more spacious than your thoughts.

Your thoughts just flowing freely within your wider awareness.

And holding within your awareness the space of the room.

Letting your thoughts,

The living presence of your body and your breath.

Allowing all these things to be happening within the open space of your awareness.

Letting your thoughts flow freely out into the space of the room.

So allow your thoughts to flow freely.

Let them wander any way they choose.

Let them wander into dreamlike thoughts and images.

And be aware of the subtle energy and living presence of your whole body.

Controlling long,

Slow,

Steady breaths.

Letting your thoughts flow freely out into the space of the room.

Slow,

Steady breath.

Sensation of living presence throughout the whole body.

Holding the space of the room within your awareness.

Allowing your thoughts to flow within that space.

Your awareness untouched by the flow of your thoughts.

Letting your thoughts flow freely out into the space of the room.

And returning to the breath.

Feeling the living presence of the body.

Allowing your thoughts to flow freely.

And allowing all this to happen within the space of your awareness.

Letting your thoughts flow freely out into the space of the room.

Letting your thoughts flow freely out into the space of the room.

Letting your thoughts flow freely out into the space of the room.

Letting your thoughts flow freely out into the space of the room.

Letting your thoughts flow freely out into the space of the room.

Reviews

Pleasant water and even spoken word. Plenty of time to stabilize my breath, then become aware of body sensation...what was next?😍 I slept.

Great for the insomnia I've been experiencing due to work stress. Will continue to use this method to fall asleep.

I liked the way the guidance became less & less pronounced and the waves took over.

Wonderful experience of vast awareness thank you!

I didn't fall asleep, but it did relax me. Every time I was reminded to focus on my breathing I yawned. Is that normal? I found it distracting to yawn when I'm trying to breathe rhythmically.

I loved this calming and relaxing meditation for a good night's sleep, thank you!

New favorite for falling asleep! Thanks so much!

Always effective. Methodical, calm, focused.

Great guidance. Fell asleep I think half way thru. Recommend it strongly..Thank you for providing this.

Calm and steady guidance. I fell asleep. Thanks...

Helped me get into a quick restorative sleep. Thks!

I fell gently asleep. Didn't
mean to. Grateful for this

Fell asleep in the first 5 minutes, great night sleep!!! Thank you🌠

This is very effective for me too clear my busy mind at the end of the day to relax and drift off to sleep. I like that there isn't music to distract my focus.

My go to, most nights. Thank you.

Perfect fell fast asleep x

I really like the breathing exercises Never make it to the end though

Slept like a baby

Don't remember much so it must be good! Namaste 🙏

I fell asleep and did not realise my earphones and glasses were still on! It was an effortless way to fall asleep. The sounds of the ocean waves were hitting the shores and I was hitting my pillow in a beautiful slumbering state. The perfect way to drop off to sleep, thanks to the unique commentary which helped me to stay focused in my open awareness.

Stephen has a particular touch to deliver stunning and effective guidance complemented with his soft voice which adds a special quality to the outcome of my meditation experience.

Stephen thank you for helping me to relax and rest blissfully.✨🙏🏻💤👌🏻♥️💫

(Stephen: the audio sound seemed that it was cutting out during the practice🎤)