Hi,
Chetna here from Yoga for the Soul Retreats.
I'd like to take you through a practice,
A meditation practice called Kaya Stereum.
Kaya is body,
Stereum is stillness.
So set yourself up,
You don't have to be seated on the floor,
But if you are,
Use a couple of cushions under the buttocks,
Get a tilt in the pelvis so you're easing through the lower back.
If you'd like to sit in a chair,
Do a meditation stool.
So find your chosen posture and then bring your hands into a mudra known as Yoni Mudra,
The source.
Bring the back of the hands together,
Thread the fingers through,
Touch the index fingers together and the thumb,
And then just rest them down in the lap.
I love this mudra,
It really helps to focus the mind and concentrate the mind on what's being done,
And in this case,
Meditation.
And if comfortable,
Close the eyes.
Otherwise,
Just lower them to a fixed point on the floor that's not moving.
And just take this time to adjust the body,
Make any adjustments to bring further comfort to the body.
Notice if the legs are comfortable through the buttocks,
Check if there's an ease to the abdominal muscles and the back,
If the shoulder blades feel loose,
Shoulders are hanging,
Relaxed,
Arms are soft,
Fingers relaxed even though in a mudra,
A hand gesture,
And travel the awareness from the tailbone up the length of spine to crown.
Soften through the scalp,
Release through the jaw,
Relax the root of tongue,
Scan down through the chest,
Soften the abdominal muscles,
Ease in the pelvic region.
And with the next three breaths,
Soften with each out breath,
Bringing further comfort to the body,
And bring the awareness to the tailbone.
Trace a line from the tailbone along the right thigh to right knee,
Across to left knee,
Back to tailbone.
Feel into the stability this base triangle creates.
Trace a line from tailbone up the back of spine to crown,
Down to right knee,
Back to tailbone.
Feel into the steadiness this triangle creates.
Trace a line from tailbone up to crown,
Crown to left knee,
Left knee to tailbone.
Feel into the stillness this triangle creates.
Awareness to crown,
Draw a line down to right knee,
Over to left,
Up to crown.
Feel into the strength this triangle creates,
Feeling the stability,
Steadiness,
Stillness,
Strength of body.
Experiencing the body as a pyramid,
Body as a pyramid.
And imagine sitting in front of a large mirror and seeing the front of the body.
See the facial expression,
Throat,
Chest,
Arms and legs.
See the whole body from the front.
The mirror slides around to the right side of body.
Begin to trace the profile over the forehead,
Nose,
Lips,
Jaw,
Throat,
Chest,
Right arm,
Leg.
See the whole body from the right side.
The mirror moves to the back of body.
See the back of head,
Back of neck,
The shoulders,
Waist,
Buttocks and legs.
See the body from behind,
Moving to the left side of body.
See the left side of face,
The ear,
Side of throat,
Arm and leg.
See the whole left side of body and go above,
Looking down on the crown,
Shoulders,
Chest,
Legs.
See the body from above and go beneath as if looking up through a glass floor.
See the placement of feet and legs,
Buttocks,
Maybe able to see elbows.
See the body from beneath.
And now see the body from all angles at once.
Front,
Back,
Sides,
Above,
Below.
Whole body,
Whole body,
Whole body.
Allow that image to fade.
And imagine the body as a tree,
The legs,
The feet and toes extending down into the earth.
The roots of the tree spreading,
Creating stability.
The torso becoming the trunk,
Tall,
Steady and strong.
The arms and fingers extending out as the branches and twigs,
The head,
The canopy.
The body is a tree,
Body is a tree.
And allow this image to fade and become aware of the steadiness of body,
The stillness of body.
And within this stillness,
The subtle breath.
Maintain that awareness of the subtle breath within the motionless body.
And turn the awareness back to the body.
Feel the weight through your base and that contact with the surface beneath.
Feel into where body parts meet and touch.
Feel into the position of your hands and your fingers into the mudra of Yoni Mudra.
Feel the coolness of the air traveling in your nostrils and throat.
And begin to extend your awareness out to the surrounding sounds.
And seek out the louder sounds.
Invite them in.
Become fully present to where you are sitting and the environment around you.
As the practice of Kyastereum is coming to an end,
And if you'd like to join me in the mantra Om three times,
And the peace invocation of Om Shanti,
Shanti,
Shanti,
Meaning peace,
Hari Om,
Please do.
Shanti,
Shanti,
Shanti.
When you're ready,
You can start to wiggle your fingers,
Rotate your wrists.
You might like to lower your chin to your chest and raise the head up a few times or lower from ear to ear,
Shoulder to shoulder.
And when ready,
You can gently open your eyes.
So thank you,
I hope you enjoyed that practice of Kyastereum,
Body stillness,
Pratyahara practice.
