Welcome,
Dear friend.
Today's meditation will offer you an opportunity to enhance your love and connection with our earth and all the creatures that share this planet with us.
Our relationship with the earth must be one of reciprocity to secure our mutual survival.
Without the earth,
We have no air to breathe,
No fresh water to drink,
No fruits and vegetables to nourish us.
Just being outside in nature for an hour can help us reduce our stress and increase our joy and vitality.
Our beautiful earth needs us,
Too.
It needs us to care enough so that all the bounteous gifts it has to offer aren't lost.
Indigenous cultures are aware of this reciprocal relationship and make a conscientious effort to grow food in a responsible way,
To use land in a sustainable way,
And to give something back for every gift taken from the earth.
People living in today's busy world,
Spending hours on computers and cell phones,
And most of their time in buildings instead of outside in nature,
Often forget to honor this special relationship.
The earth speaks to each one of us,
But sometimes we're just too busy to listen,
Or we allow technology to cut us off from its subtle communications.
We don't hear the wind rustling the leaves of a tree when we walk to our car because we're worried about an upcoming meeting.
We don't hear the sigh of a wave rolling over the sand on the beach because we're too preoccupied with a text message we received on our phone.
This meditation offers an opportunity to experience connection to the earth and for you to experience the revitalizing results.
If possible,
Enjoy your meditation in an outdoor space where you are comfortable and safe.
You can do this meditation sitting in a chair,
On a couch,
Or on a mat with a tall spine,
Or you can lie down and rest on your back.
If you're lying down,
Please position your head and neck in a neutral position with your forehead level or slightly higher than your chin.
Ensure your back is steady and stable.
Make any final adjustments you need to be comfortable,
And then allow your eyes to softly close.
Settle into stillness and rest.
Feel the easy flow of your natural breath.
Now concentrate on the space in front of your closed eyelids.
Begin to notice this screen of the mind we call Chittikasha,
The space of consciousness.
This space extends as high and wide and distant as the eye can see.
Become aware of any colors,
Patterns,
Or light you may see on this screen in front of your closed eyelids.
Whatever you see manifested by your mind.
Continue to be aware of this space,
But do not become involved.
Practice detached awareness only.
Now intensify your imagination and allow yourself to take this journey with me.
You are walking through a quiet meadow in Eastern Canada.
It is a beautiful summer morning.
The air is clean and fresh,
And the sun is shining.
Puffy white clouds are scooting across the blue sky.
You skip through the meadow,
Whistling a favorite tune,
While you feel the kiss of the sun's rays and a gentle breeze on your skin.
The brush of the grass feels soft against your legs,
And you pause to take off your shoes so you can walk barefoot in the grass.
The blades of grass feel like feathers tickling your feet and toes.
You laugh with delight and relish this beautiful connection you feel with the earth.
You watch a brilliant red cardinal fly by,
Dipping and lifting as it flaps its wings.
You hear its shrill whistle,
Along with a cacophony of many other birds' songs all around you.
You feel the earth's energy rising through the soles of your feet,
Nourishing your whole being.
Your joy and vitality escalate.
You pick up your shoes and run toward a forest of maple and spruce trees,
Leaping upward to try to grasp a tree branch as you pass by.
You jump again,
Wrapping your hands around a branch of a maple tree,
Swinging back and forth before dropping safely into the soft,
Dark brown earth under your feet.
You squeeze the dirt between your toes and smile.
You feel so connected to your authentic self.
You feel almost like you have escaped your body,
Because all your movement is so free and unrestricted.
You feel incredibly youthful and alive.
You walk back out into the meadow and soon find yourself surrounded by blueberry bushes.
You wish you could pick some to take with you,
But you didn't bring a basket along.
All at once,
You notice a woven basket beside one of the bushes.
You walk over and see there is a note inside.
It says,
Take this with you today and bring it back tomorrow.
You tuck the note inside your pocket and fill the basket with the plump dark berries,
Occasionally pausing to eat one or two.
Sweet flavor bursts on your tongue.
Your belly full of berries,
You drop down into the grass and lie on your back and look up at the sky,
Watching clouds float past,
Looking like towering mountains,
Crouching tigers and unrecognizable faces.
For a moment,
You wonder why you have spent so many days indoors on your computer without going outside.
You vow to go outside every day from now on,
No matter where you are in the world.
There's so much joy in touching the earth with your feet as you run and plucking food from a bush with your own fingers.
You imagine what it would be like to have berry bushes or lettuce growing in your own yard.
They wouldn't come in a plastic package at the store or taste pick too soon.
They would be grown by your own hands.
In earth,
You tend yourself.
As you walk back to the small house in the woods where you're staying,
Your basket full of berries,
Feeling joyful and youthful and vividly alive.
You vow to remember this day for as long as you live.
You vow to connect with the earth in a special and meaningful way every day because this relationship is too special to be missed.
Now allow these images to dissolve back into the eternal landscape of your consciousness.
Become aware of your physical body resting in the room where you are lying.
Notice the rhythm and soft sound of your natural breath,
Feeling its flow in and out of your nostrils.
Allow your breath to transport you back to present moment time.
Notice the shape and density of your body as it rests on the earth.
Notice the parts of your body that are touching the floor,
Your head and upper back,
Your elbows and hands,
Your glutes,
Your calves and heels,
And sense the space around your body.
Now bring some slow movement into your fingers and toes.
Gently circle your wrists and ankles.
If you're resting on your back,
Slowly roll over onto your right side for a couple of slow deep breaths before you slowly make your way back up to seated.
Gently open your eyes.
Have a beautiful day.
The divine in me honors the divine in you.
Namaste.
