Settling into your practice today,
Allow everything to begin to drop away.
As you carve out the next 20 or so minutes of your practice,
Allow yourself to soften and notice all the points where your body touches the floor.
I recommend that you sit up for today's meditation,
But if you need to,
You can lay down.
Breathing a little bit deeper into our bodies as we extend a deep sense of gratitude for showing up and doing the work.
Really wrapping that around us like a warm,
Gentle hug.
Bringing in a gentle curiosity as we call in our trusty companion,
The breath.
Bringing to inhale and exhale deeply.
Bringing in this revitalising breath energy into our bodies and allowing it to swirl around our head,
Our neck,
Our torso and our hands.
Allow it to move down through the pelvis and the legs as we begin to lay down our roots as they tumble out of us.
Imagine these roots bursting through our feet,
Down through the floor and into the ground below.
Imagine them moving through the layers of the soil,
The rock,
The mantle,
Further down and down,
Down through the earth they continue to extend.
Take note of your roots on your feminine and your masculine side and allow these to continue to grow down and down with smaller roots growing off the larger branches.
Continue to allow these roots to grow deeper into the ground,
Taking up more and more space and extending in many different directions.
Down and down these roots continue to grow,
Down and down they tumble and cascade through the earth.
Down and down these roots grow,
Down and down they continue to grow,
Down and down combining with the mycelium network,
Down and down coming more and more areas,
Down and down through the golden gateway,
Down and down wrapping tightly around the centre of the earth.
Take a minute to feel how secure and how held you are.
Take a minute to just breathe here.
And on your next inhalation I want you to imagine walking on a path and from this path you can see a mountain.
It may be a mountain that you've visited before or it may be a completely new place.
And as you walk down this path I want you to notice the ground underneath your feet and how it feels.
As you continue to walk I want you to notice what the weather's like.
Is the sun shining or is it snowing outside?
And as you continue to walk with nowhere in particular that you need to go or that you need to be I want you to feel completely calm and at ease.
And as you walk allow this mountain to reveal itself to you.
Take note of how big it is,
How the slopes look.
Have a look whether there's one peak or many.
And as you continue to walk slowly up this mountain take note of the landscape.
Is it barren or is it full of trees and bushes?
And as you continue to walk slowly up this mountain you start to feel all of your worries drift away.
You continue to walk up and up being able to see more of the landscape around you.
Being able to feel completely at ease and to feel the stillness of this beautiful mountain that you are walking on.
You continue to walk up and up,
Up and up in no rush at all feeling completely peaceful and completely at ease.
Up and up you continue to travel becoming surrounded by clouds and taking note of the landscape beneath you.
Up and up you notice any wildlife here.
Up and up you continue to walk.
You see a clearing and you take a moment to sit down and look beneath you.
Take note is there any rivers or valleys?
Are there any mountains around you?
What does it look like and how do you feel?
What energy does this mountain possess?
And as you sit here and you continue to stare out you feel a sense of peace and serenity begin to wash over you.
You feel completely at ease and totally still.
You feel a complete knowing.
Continue to breathe deeply here.
And on the next exhalation allow your body to begin to merge with this mountain.
Allow your head to become the peak.
Allow your shoulders to become the slopes.
And allow your legs to become the base.
Take note that while the outside the mountain may change the inside remains the same.
Take note that through all the seasons and all the storms the mountain remains in its power.
It remains expansive.
It remains still.
It remains wise.
It remains grounded.
It remains a home for everybody who takes shelter here big and small.
And as you continue to breathe deeply here remembering your own power,
Remembering your own stillness,
Remembering your own serenity that is just like the mountains.
Continue to breathe deep in this place.
And when you are ready you slowly come back to the edge of the mountain where you notice an animal is here to meet you.
He's here to share a message with you.
Take a few moments with this animal to hear what it has to say to you.
And when you are ready say goodbye and thank this animal knowing that you can come back at any time.
You slowly grab your things and begin to head back down the mountain.
Down and down you begin to walk.
Down and down the new sense of stillness and serenity.
Down and down back down the path.
Down and down back where you started from.
Down and down continuing to return.
Begin to become aware of where your body touches the floor.
Begin to become aware of your fingers and your toes.
Begin to come back to the room with a sense of stillness and security.
Feel your roots as you anchor yourself.
And take a moment to dedicate your practice.
It may be to yourself,
To another or for all sentient beings.
Thank you for meditating with me today.
Namaste.