Okay,
Shall we start?
As we see life throws us all the time in small ways or in big ways.
And just like a fish navigates the changing currents in the river,
We try our best to learn to move with these changes and find our way.
Because even physics tells us that nothing's static.
Our lives are not static,
Our circumstances are not static,
Even a rock is not a static thing.
Things are always in flux,
But what we can do and what Pema Chodron helps to teach us through her meditations is to find stability.
We can find stability in the midst of all of that uncertainty.
And this is a super simple meditation and what she's encouraging us to do is to find stability in three ways,
Through our posture,
Through our breath,
And through awareness of our thoughts.
And we do all of this with a friendly kind of attitude to ourselves,
No matter what's going on.
We just cultivate a friendly relationship with ourselves.
To begin with,
You can find a posture that's comfortable for you.
It helps to be upright,
Kind of regal,
Majestic posture,
And just find some balance.
So you can imagine like a drop line going from your head down through your spine,
So you're upright and relaxed.
And what that's doing is that our open heart area is encouraging our mind to be open to.
So the body is teaching the mind how to relax and be open.
So finding your posture,
Noticing if you're balanced right to left,
And front to back,
And just becoming very grounded in your seat,
With your heart area open.
Not as a bleeding heart,
But as a strong heart.
With all the changing circumstances of life,
Just feel the strength of your heart.
And your amazing capacity for love.
And around that open heart,
Just letting the whole body soften,
Letting your face soften,
Letting your upper eyelids just rest very gently on the lower lids.
Your lips gently touching or apart.
Letting your jaw relax.
Letting the whole body be at ease.
And feel your stability.
Your body here like a mountain.
The weather on the mountain may change,
But the mountain is still.
You may notice your thoughts wander.
That's just what the mind does.
Just gently bring your awareness to when your thoughts wander.
Not grasping onto them,
Not trying to push them away,
Not judging them as good or bad.
Just letting the thoughts pass across the great expanse of your mind.
Just letting them come and letting them go.
No resistance.
And bring your attention now to your breath,
Just noticing it,
Not trying to change it.
And bring your awareness particularly to the out-breath.
Just riding the waves of the exhalations.
As if you are moving out into the room with your breath.
Just feeling more and more space.
Just relaxing into the exhalations.
And when your mind wanders,
Just gently bringing it back to the breath.
Letting your breath root you here,
Stabilize you here in this moment.
Just enjoying each breath.
And when you notice your mind wander,
You can simply name what's happening.
Thinking.
Just notice thinking and bring yourself back to the breath.
No judgment.
As if you're touching the thought,
As if it's a bubble,
Touching it with a feather,
Very gently letting it go.
And coming back to center,
Letting your beautiful mind stabilize.
Feeling the steadiness of your body,
The flow of your breath stabilize the mind.
And when you notice your mind wander,
Just gently bringing it back to the breath.
The mind might wander over and over.
That's fine.
Each time with great gentleness towards yourself and great precision,
You just bring it back to this breath now.
Breathing in the breath.
Your body like a mountain.
Your breath like the wind.
And your mind like the sky.
No matter the weather of your life,
The storms,
The really difficult days.
You can always come back to this stability.
It's always here.
Body like a mountain.
Breath like wind.
And like sky.
And by centering back in this stability over and over as life throws us with its surprises and challenges,
We become stronger to respond wisely to each challenge,
To find our own wisdom.
When you're back again with this rains within you across your board.
You May all beings be safe and free and protected from inner and outer harm.
May they be happy and contented.
May they be healthy and whole.
May they experience ease of well-being.
All of us sending our beams of love from our heart.
May all beings be happy.
May all beings be at peace.
May all beings be free.
