This is a short guided body scan meditation.
This is not a practice to be mastered or won.
This is a lifelong journey.
So let's begin by sitting in a comfortable chair or a seated position,
Sitting tall,
Crowned towards the ceiling,
Tucking the chin for a little length in the back of the neck.
If you prefer to lay down for this meditation,
Find the position lying on your back.
And if you're sitting or lying down and the body tends to get a little achy whenever it sits for long moments of time,
Explore placing a couple of pillows under the thighs,
The head,
Maybe the feet,
And anywhere that just needs relief.
And this will help your body stay relaxed,
Making it easier to stay in the present moment of the meditation.
Take a few moments to allow the eyes to close.
And then a few extra minutes just to shake any tension.
And then come to begin to notice the sensations of the breathing.
You may notice the rise and the fall in the belly or the chest.
Maybe you feel the air flowing in and out of the nostrils.
And then you can take a few more minutes to notice the rise and fall in the nostrils.
Now drop the attention down to your feet.
Notice the pressure of your feet against the floor or the bed.
Are they hot or cold?
Is there any level of discomfort?
Is there any other observations that I haven't mentioned?
Allow this to surface without judging.
Just let be whatever is here.
At some point,
The mind will begin to wander.
This is normal and should be expected.
So give yourself a little bit of space,
Not a hard time.
And then bring your attention back to the feet and once again,
Rest in this presence of awareness.
Allow the focus to rest within the feet.
Now move your attention up the legs to the calves and just notice what you feel here.
Maybe you're feeling a touch of clothing or a blanket.
Maybe some circulating air in the room and you might feel nothing at all.
Whatever you're experiencing in this moment is what's supposed to be at this moment.
And so let's move up the legs to the thighs,
Observing any areas of sensations or maybe even a lack of sensations and that's okay too.
Continue and up the body,
Moving the attention to the core from the belly all the way to the chest and allow this attention to also include the back body.
Are you noticing any physical sensations?
Maybe even breathing,
Tingling or vibrations,
A feeling of hunger or fullness.
You may have also noticed hints of emotions,
Feelings,
Maybe happiness,
Sadness,
Tension,
Anger,
A feeling of openness or closed.
And don't get caught in thoughts or the emotional cycle.
Just notice and come back to the body,
Noticing the sensations of the tingles,
The breathing,
Maybe sounds.
Next,
Let's move the attention to the neck,
The shoulders and the arms.
Are you holding tension in the shoulders,
Maybe drawing the shoulders up to the ears?
If there is any tension,
See if you can soften in the shoulders and then allow the weight to drop into the elbows and the fingers.
And being mindful to notice the position of the neck.
Has the neck moved slightly forward or maybe the nose is pointing up towards the ceiling a little bit?
And if so,
Go ahead and tuck the chin in slightly,
Creating that length in the back of the neck again.
Moving into the face and the head,
Notice if there are any expressions of emotions that may have appeared around the mouth or the eyes and then soften in those areas.
And notice if you're feeling a sense of relief when you do this.
And if not,
That's OK too.
Now finally,
Bring in your attention to the whole body,
Staying here with what is present,
Feeling grounded and supported.
And in a few moments,
You will hear the sound of the bell.
The.
Stay here for as long as you like.
Take in a couple of natural breaths.
And proceeding on with the rest of your day or evening.
Namaste.
