🎶 Hi and welcome back.
In today's practice we're going to do a mantra meditation.
A mantra is a favorite word,
Phrase,
Prayer,
Or even part of a poem that is something that is uplifting to you,
Inspiring for you,
Something that you can use as your point of focus for this meditation today.
Ideally it's only a few words or just a few syllables so that it's short,
Easy to remember,
And easy to repeat without getting lost in a long phrase or sentence.
You can choose something that's uplifting to you,
Personal to you,
Something that you feel inspires you and engages your heart.
And try to avoid any words that stir up thoughts or disturb your mind.
And try to avoid using any negative words like no or not or don't,
But rather choose a positive phrase,
Something that you truly believe or something that you want to aspire to achieve.
So for the next few moments as we settle into our meditation position,
Just keep in the back of your mind what you want to use as your mantra.
Go ahead and find a comfortable seat,
Lying position,
Or even find a comfortable stance standing up.
Take a full breath in through your nose and exhale through your mouth.
And take one more just like that.
Take a full breath in,
Find a length through your spine,
Stand,
Sit,
Or lie down straight,
And then exhale through your mouth.
Relax your shoulders,
Relax your hands,
And settle into your position.
Breathe naturally in and out through your nose.
Close your eyes if you feel comfortable doing so.
Just take the next few breaths,
Settling into your body,
Into your meditation position,
And notice if naturally any words or phrases or an internal mantra is coming for you.
Maybe something like,
I feel loved,
I am at peace,
I am at peace,
I am successful,
Or anything that feels natural for you today.
Once you've selected your mantra,
Continue breathing slow and slow,
And steady,
Starting to internalize.
Take a few moments to settle into your body,
Maybe take a scan from the top of your head,
Checking in with your face,
Relaxing your eyes,
Relaxing through your jaw,
Relaxing your forehead,
And checking in with your neck and shoulders,
Softening through your upper back,
Allowing your arms to feel heavy,
Lying wherever they feel comfortable.
Checking in with your chest,
Pause here for a few moments and notice the rise and fall with your breathing.
Continue scanning down your torso,
Sending your awareness anywhere where your body needs some attention,
Checking in with your hips,
Feeling the surface you're sitting or lying upon,
And scan through your legs,
Ankles,
Feet,
And toes,
Maybe feeling the ground beneath you.
Continue breathing gently in and out through your nose,
And then bring to mind again the mantra you've chosen for your meditation.
And when you feel ready,
Start to say it out loud to yourself,
Repeating it gently,
Slowly,
And steadily,
Concentrating on the sound as fully as you can.
Repeat your mantra in unison with the natural rhythm of your breath.
So maybe split it up so you repeat half of the mantra while you inhale and the other half while you exhale.
Or take your breath in and say your mantra on your exhale,
Whichever feels more comfortable for you right now.
And try to picture exactly what it means when you're embodying or living your mantra when you say these words out loud.
What does it mean to you to embody and live your mantra?
Repeat your mantra once more out loud to yourself.
And then start to repeat your mantra silently by moving only your lips.
And continue the same pace as before,
Either half on your inhale and half on your exhale,
Or breathing in and moving your lips in rhythm with your mantra as you breathe out.
If you feel your thoughts wander or intrusive thoughts coming in that are not in line with your mantra,
Come back to your breath.
Come back to this word or phrase that you've chosen to embody in your meditation practice today.
And rather than shutting down external thoughts,
Try to let more positive thoughts come in and join you in your meditation today.
Continue silently reciting your mantra,
Moving your lips,
Following your steady breath.
Notice how your body adjusts,
How it feels when you start to believe and manifest this mantra you've chosen.
Notice if anything changes.
And after the next time silently repeating your mantra,
Start to recite it only internally without moving your lips.
Keeping the steady rhythm on your in and out breath.
Maybe picturing the words in your mind if that helps you.
Or picture yourself writing the words down on paper.
Believing in what you say,
Knowing it's not just words,
But a feeling that you want to create in your everyday life.
Continue gently bringing your attention back again and again,
Experiencing the internal sound of your mantra as fully as possible.
Take one more in and out breath.
Repeat your mantra internally to yourself one more time.
And take a full deep breath in through your nose.
Open your mouth and let it go.
And last one,
The deepest breath so far today in through your nose,
Expand your chest,
Feel your lungs fill with air,
And then sigh it out.
Notice how your body feels.
Notice how your mind feels.
Notice how your spirit feels.
Whenever you feel ready,
Gently open your eyes,
Give yourself a smile,
And have a great rest of your day.
