Our fast-paced world really pulls us in countless different directions,
And so today's practice invites us to surrender our restlessness and embrace the present moment so we can discover the beauty that lies within the simple act of being and then to reconnect with our own inner peace.
So please find a quiet place in which to take a comfortable seat,
Sit up tall.
If it's comfortable,
Go ahead and close your eyes or simply take a very soft downward gaze.
Just begin to breathe patiently and fully,
Yet gently,
In and out through the nose as long as you're able to,
And I invite you to give yourself permission to do nothing.
Give yourself permission to embrace this moment of stillness in which there's nothing at all that needs to be done other than staying here,
Relatively still,
Observing the breath.
And as you observe,
Breathe with an easy,
Relaxed,
And spacious mind.
Place just some small amount of attention on what else the mind or the body is feeling.
Notice your own discomfort in simply being present,
Doing nothing.
Notice if there's any restlessness.
Perhaps you find that the mind would rather run off towards the future,
A to-do list,
Or plans.
Notice if the mind would rather busy itself with reviewing the past or thinking.
And each time you notice,
Acknowledge the pool of movement,
Of distraction,
Of restlessness,
And then with the loving patience of a compassionate teacher,
Give your mind permission to rest.
Help the mind settle,
Be at peace,
And be still by guiding it towards a gentle awareness of your body and your breath.
So allow yourself to be aware of the breath.
Allow yourself to be aware of the body.
Feel into the breath and body.
Notice where you feel the breath moving and expanding and expanding.
Then contracting.
As you allow the attention to rest on the body and the breath,
Allow the mind to begin to feel spacious,
Open,
And at ease.
There are so many times in life where we feel so busy,
Perhaps even so busy,
That we feel like we have to multitask.
So allow the mind to simply drop into the joy,
The bliss,
Of no longer needing to do anything.
There's nowhere to go,
Nothing to do,
It's just the bliss of simply being.
You are a human being,
Not a human doing.
Simply being.
You are a human being opening into the spaciousness of your experience right now,
In this moment,
Aware of your body,
Aware of your breath.
And not doing includes no longer fighting against the movement of the mind or the rising of your thoughts.
Allow this too to simply be.
Chase nothing.
Know that distraction will naturally arise,
But there's nothing to do and nowhere to go.
You can simply notice,
Acknowledge,
And accept whatever arises in the present moment.
And then you'll find yourself again in the spaciousness of presence with the body and with the breath.
Feel into the preciousness of this moment,
This relative quiet,
Relative stillness.
And recognize the beauty of the moment with your whole body,
The freedom that comes in resting into the spaciousness of stillness.
Allowing the body to rest,
Allowing the mind to rest,
Simply observing whatever is present.
And just continue to give yourself permission to stay right here for as long as you'd like,
Knowing there's nowhere to go,
Nothing to do,
Nothing more sacred or more worthy than just this.
Just watching,
Noticing,
Being present with your body and your breath.
Give yourself permission to be still.
And again,
Bringing your attention back to the body,
Back to the breath.
Feel the parts of your body that are making contact with your chair.
Begin to expand your awareness outward so you're listening for any sounds happening in or around the room.
And when you're ready,
Slowly come back and open your eyes.
Thank you so much for joining me today.
