Permission

A gentle meditation on resting — without needing to earn it first.
This meditation is shared as a companion for presence and awareness.
You're invited to listen and notice what unfolds, without pressure or expectation.
~ A Gentler Way ~
© Tarja Moles
Image: alex.stemmer | DepositPhotos

Transcript

Here we are. For these next few minutes. We don't need to be anywhere else. Or do anything. The body can begin to settle. In whatever way feels comfortable. Sitting upright. Reclining or lying down. We can listen to the body. And let it fine. Its own way of being here. The eyes may be open or closed. If they are open the gaze may soften a little. And if they are close The muscles around the eyes can soften gently. Perhaps the forehead softens. And the jaw. The neck. The shoulders and the rest of the body too. There's nothing we need to do here. With simply allowing the body some room to settle. Many of us carry an assumption. Sometimes barely conscious. That rest has to come later. After the tasks are done. After we've earned it. When things are finally finished. If that sense is here right now. We don't need to argue with it. We can just notice that it's here and then let that thought rest. For the next few moments. We might gently turn our attention towards restfulness that's already here. The body is already resting in gravity. Held by the surface beneath it. The tongue is resting in the mouth. The eyes are resting in their sockets. We don't need to search for anything specific. We're just noticing. What might already be resting? We don't need to push. For rest to happen. Or even make it feel a certain way. It may be subtle. Or very ordinary. Nothing remarkable at all. It could be a sense of ease with no effort. Is required. Like the heart beating. Without us having to make it happen. Or the breath already moving. Just happening on its own. We might allow attention. To settle lightly. Wherever it feels a little more at ease. If a thought arises that something should be done, Or that there's somewhere else we should be. That can simply pass through. And perhaps. . . We can recognize. That even that thought arrived as if by itself. Without any effort on our part. And maybe. . . Hidden somewhere in that. There may be a place of rest. That we can soften into. For a little while. We can allow this moment. To be enough. Without anything needing to be different first. And we might gently wander. What is it like? When rest doesn't need to be earned. And now. Awareness can begin to widen again. Noticing the sounds around us the sense of space in the room. The way the body rests on what supports it. We're not in any hurry. When it feels right. The fingers or the toes might wiggle a little. Maybe a deeper breath. Happens on its own. And if the eyes have been resting under closed eyelids. They can open in their own time. And take in what's around. As we continue. With the rest of the day. Perhaps this can stay with us. We don't have to wait to rest. Until some conditions have been met first. We can find it here. In this moment. Before our to-do list is finished. And from here. We can continue. In a gentler way.