Exploring Equanimity

Exploring equanimity through our natural rhythm of breath and exploring the space the body is taking up. We will do a short counting breath practice and ease into stillness and ease. We will become aware of and acquainted with your core state - that calm center we bring to every day and learn how to access it more freely.

Transcript

Hello, And welcome to today's mindfulness meditation practice. My name is Dana, And I'm excited to have you here with me today. Today we're going to be exploring balance and equanimity, This idea of dealing with reactivity and finding a space of non-judgment and balanced presence. This is our core, The place that we can choose to live our lives from. As Tyra Brock says, We want to live from who we really are. And that peace is this moment without judgment. And exploring this space at the heart in which everything that is, Is welcome. So I invite you to close your eyes and find a comfortable seat, One in which you are both attentive, The comfortable, Aware, But also at ease. And I invite you to notice the sit bones, And maybe the feet on the floor, And just start feeling that sense of support beneath you. And then I invite you to bring your attention to breath, And just begin to settle into the natural rhythm here within you, Your rhythm. This rhythm of inhale and exhale, Breath moving in and out. It's constant movement, Just like the oceans tides moving in and out across the shore. This is your rhythm. And take a few moments here, Just getting acquainted with this resting state, This inner place of calm that you're beginning to access through paying attention to breath and your natural rhythm of breathing. And now I invite you to see if you can slow down the breath a little bit more and deepen the inhale and exhale. And just begin to count breaths. One inhale in and exhale out, Count as one. The next inhale in and exhale out is two. And just at your own pace and with ease, Make your way up to 10. One inhale in and exhale out. And once you reach 10, Just release the counting practice. And as you sit in this place of stillness, Openness, And presence, Just becoming aware of the quality of this space. Maybe you know calmness, Stillness, At ease, Just becoming acquainted with your core state. And with each breath, Relax a little further into this space. And if the mind wanders, Just come back to the inhale and the exhale, Our natural inner rhythm of breath moving through the body. And now I invite you to envision a peaceful place, Maybe a pond, A wide open field, The view from a mountaintop, The clear open sky, Whatever is a quiet, Calming still place for you and bring that to the mind's eye. With each breath, I invite you to explore the kindness and curiosity, This calm and quiet place, And see if you can feel it and see it, Maybe hear it, Using all the senses to explore with breath, This calm and quiet place in the mind's eye. Just breathing in and breathing out. Just being in this space, Experiencing it. And on your next inhale, Letting go of that vision of the calm, Quiet place, And bring your attention back to the body, And I invite you to scan from the toes all the way up through the top of the head, Moving slowly with kindness and care and sense with breath, This calm, Quiet, Still in present space feels like throughout the whole body. Moving slowly and with care from the toes up through the legs, The knees and hips, The mid body, The shoulders and the chest, Moving down the arms, Palms of the hands and each fingertip, And then moving the attention up through the chin, Nose and the mouth, Eyes and forehead to the top of the head, Sensing through the whole body, Your whole being, The state of present calm and quiet. And then I invite you to bring your attention back to the breath. Maybe you focus at the tip of the nose as you inhale through the nose and exhale out through the mouth. Take one more inhale through the nose and exhale out through the mouth. Before opening your eyes, Just taking a moment to share gratitude with yourself for exploring the space, Calm, Quiet and peace. This is a space we always have access to and we can use our breath as a way to reach it. As you open your eyes, Become acquainted with the room around you, Sensation of possibly air on the body, Light, Dark spaces. And as you become aware of the space that you're in, Maybe set an intention if you would like to bring a piece of this practice into your day. I thank you so much for spending the time with me and practicing and I wish you well.