So we're going to do a little practice now that challenges this idea of who we are.
And it's just really about the question.
It's not about the answer.
It's just about the question.
And as we ask the question,
Just sit with that.
Don't let it confuse you.
Don't let it upset you.
It's just a question.
Right,
So sitting comfortably on a chair or on a cushion,
Your back reasonably straight,
Your hands can be on your knees or in your lap.
That's right.
Let's drop our chin down to our chest.
And we're going to take in three deep breaths just to start off with,
Breathing in through the nose and out through the nose.
Breathing in.
And slowly release,
Release whatever anxiety or stress you're feeling today.
Just let it go.
Let it go.
Let's take in another beautiful deep breath.
All those lungs breathing in through the nose and slowly release out the nose.
Last one,
Breathing in through the nose and out the mouth,
Breathing in and slowly release side the breath out.
Release what doesn't serve you today.
Release that old self,
The tired self,
The stressed self.
Let it go.
That's it.
Coming now to a normal breath and feeling a sense of gratitude for yourself today,
For being here,
For taking the time,
For investing in yourself,
For giving yourself permission to be here in the now.
You are making yourself a great offering.
Settling now just on a normal breath,
If you can,
Focusing on one place,
Either at the nostrils or perhaps in the chest,
The feeling of the chest rising and falling or the abdomen.
Choosing one place and just settling your attention there.
Relaxation and calm is a practice.
It's something we need to do regularly.
The more we do it,
The better we get at it.
Every time we do it,
It's just a little bit more relief and a little bit more happiness.
Let go.
Who is breathing?
Who is breathing?
And it's not so much about the answer,
It's more about the question.
Who is thinking?
I have a name but I'm not my name.
Who am I?
I have a body but I'm not my body.
Who am I?
I have relationships but I'm not those relationships.
Who am I?
I have vivid memories of the past but I'm not those memories.
Who am I?
I have compelling hopes and dreams for the future but I'm not those thoughts.
Who am I?
I feel happiness and sadness,
Excitement and fear,
Love and anger but I'm not those feelings.
Who am I?
When everything I think I am falls away what remains?
Who am I?
And everything we are could be like clouds in the sky,
Constructs,
Shapes that are changing constantly and moving.
But behind us is just pure sky-like awareness,
Blue,
The sun is shining and whatever we feel now is just a changing process.
We are not the clouds,
We are the blue sky,
That pure awareness.
Breathing into that blue sky awareness of your mind.
Liberating ourselves from the constructs and flying freely through that sky.
I move into this brave new world,
Moving out of my fixed mindset into a growth mindset.
I'm in a flow,
I'm fluid,
I recognize my ever-changing mind and body and I can flow with it into the next amazing situation,
Into a reimagined self and there's nothing holding me back.
I'm dropping your chin now down to your chest.
Let's end with a deep breath,
Breathing in through the nose and out the mouth,
Breathing in and then slowly release out the mouth.
Taking a moment to observe how you feel.
Lifting your chin and opening your eyes.
Well done.
