Every new day,
And especially during meditation,
There is an opportunity to dig deeper into the intention and meaning behind how you live,
What you say,
What you do,
And how you interact with others in this world.
I would like to take this opportunity to guide you,
To consider the idea that in love,
We are all one,
And everything in the universe is connected.
Welcome to today's practice.
I'm Sarah Raymond from the Mindful Movement.
Even though we are not physically practicing together,
Know that I am sending my positive energy your way as you listen to my words.
Let's begin.
I invite you to make yourself as comfortable as possible.
Take a seated posture where you can maintain a straight spine,
If comfortable,
So that you can be relaxed,
Yet attentive,
And allow for the fullest connection to your experience.
Allow your eyes to close if you wish,
And begin to relax.
As you begin to settle physically,
Start with three deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth like a sigh.
Take these breaths at your own pace,
Welcoming a slowing down of the momentum of your energy to gradually find stillness.
These deep breaths send the signal to your mind that it is okay to slow down and relax both your physical and your mental state.
I would like to open this practice with the gesture of Namaste.
This word translates to mean,
I recognize the divinity in you,
Which is also the divinity in me.
Or,
I honor the place in you where the entire universe dwells.
So I offer this greeting to you today.
Namaste.
My soul honors your soul.
I honor the place in you where the entire universe resides.
I honor the light,
The love,
The beauty,
And the peace within you because it is also within me.
In honoring these qualities within each other,
We are one and the same.
We are united.
Become aware of your breath's natural rhythm and let your focus settle on the sensations of your breath.
Sense whatever part of your breath draws your attention first.
The first aspect of your breath that you notice can be your reminder for this practice when you find your mind wandering,
As it will often do during meditation.
Notice the rise and fall of your body being moved by the breath.
Even without trying to move or control your breath,
Your body breathes.
There is an in period as well as an out period.
Fear comes in and goes back out.
Your breath rises and falls away.
Make your breath rising and falling away,
Your thoughts too rise and fall away.
No matter how many thoughts come up,
Allow them to flow by easily.
If you find yourself following a thought or reacting to a thought,
Bring your attention back to the sensations of your breath.
Life consists only of this moment,
Only the present.
This breath right now and this breath.
There is no past and no future,
Only right now.
You cannot get back a past breath or breathe in a future breath before the present moment.
This present moment is the same moment available for every being alive.
This present moment connects us as one.
If you recognize this idea and allow it to,
It can provide a source of comfort and peace.
Be here right now as an observer of your own experience in connection with the energy of the universe.
There is no right or wrong,
No good or bad.
You are exactly where you need to be.
This body,
This moment,
This breath.
Nothing has happened in the past,
Nothing will ever happen in the future.
Life always takes place in this present moment.
Your lives are a series of present moment experiences.
Notice the air around you as it gently touches your skin.
Feel the fabric of your clothes as it meets your body.
Notice the weight of your body as it makes contact with the surface below you.
Notice your boundaries and the boundaries of the surface below you.
What are the sensations of your outer body as it meets the outer environment?
What does it feel like for your edges to blur with the edges of your surroundings?
Can you sense that these boundaries are an illusion?
With each exhale,
Perhaps sense the blurring of the edges that separate you from everything else.
Each breath you take opens you and connects you to the energy around you.
Allow this connection and expansion to feel good.
Let go into the weight of gravity and the blurring edges.
Feel the freedom and expansion created by the releasing of boundaries into the vast spaciousness.
Feel the openness of being one.
Invite the sensation of freedom and spaciousness to expand outward and move all throughout your body.
Sense your body is wide open and connected to the universal energy.
Allow this expansion to open your heart and open your mind.
Sense the positive energy of the room around you and open to this energy.
Invite these areas of ease and openness to spread.
We know that what we focus on expands.
Welcome your sense of spaciousness to move and grow,
Expanding outward.
Connect with what is good and allow the good to radiate outward.
What would it be like for you to experience a feeling of spaciousness,
Yet connection to all beings in your body right now?
Breathe this in.
Be spaciousness right now.
You are one with the universe right now.
Rest here.
Be here.
What would it be like for you to open a little bit more,
To expand and experience universal energy?
Take a moment longer to enjoy this connection to the universe.
Breathe.
Bring your awareness to the fullness of your breath once more.
Breathe in this flow state,
This expansive energy.
Feel it in your body like muscle memory.
Know that you are one with all other beings.
You are love,
And love is the most powerful and unifying force.
Shine light on any darkness by moving towards love,
By becoming love.
Remember how it feels to be loved and to love.
Feel the quality of love in your heart,
The warmth,
The spaciousness,
The pure joy.
Offer yourself love and compassion.
Offer all beings love and compassion.
Recognize and connect to the commonalities between all humans.
As humans,
We all need food,
Shelter,
And safety.
We all crave love and desire happiness.
Know that everyone is doing the best they can with the tools they have at the time.
It is often easy and comes without thought to judge someone for doing something differently than you would like.
Remember they are doing the best they can,
Just like you.
Hold space in your heart for them.
Hold love in your heart.
In your mind or out loud,
Repeat to yourself the following phrases.
Just like me,
Everyone is seeking happiness.
May we all find the happiness we are seeking.
Just like me,
Everyone is protecting themselves from suffering.
May we all be brave and strong enough to make space for our suffering.
Just like me,
Everyone has known sadness.
May we all experience love and joy to balance the sadness.
Just like me,
Everyone is doing the best they can.
May we all offer compassion to ourselves and others.
May we all accept compassion from ourselves and others.
For a moment longer,
Sit with this love and compassion for yourself and for all beings.
For a moment longer,
Sit with this love and compassion for all beings.
Deepen your breath again.
Allow yourself to begin moving back to a fuller awareness,
Back to the space you are in,
And sense a change,
A subtle shift.
Perhaps your mood has lifted or you can sense that your energy has shifted.
Smile for a moment and feel love in your heart.
Become aware of the energy in the room around you.
Take out the experience of your outer world,
Yet remain relaxed in your inner world.
Breathe in deeply and blink your eyes open just a small amount to sense a bit of light and see some of your surroundings.
Then gently close your eyes once more,
Returning your attention fully to your inner sensations.
Connect once more to the feeling of ease and openness in your body and sense that it is always within you.
Now allow your attention to coexist in both your inner and your outer experience.
If it feels right to you today,
Pay this positive feeling forward and offer a gesture of kindness to someone else.
Perhaps dedicate this practice to a loved one or someone you don't know that might be in need of an act of kindness.
Connect with the energy of the universe.
Connect with the love that is the most unifying force.
Expand the positivity,
Expand the love.
We will bring this meditative practice to a close with a deep inhale and a slow exhale.
And when you feel ready,
Open your eyes.
As always,
It is an honor to have the opportunity to practice with you.
May your inner and outer worlds exist in harmony as they are one.
Namaste.
My soul honors your soul.
