And we can start by settling down on a chair,
Not leaning back,
Maybe putting ourselves on the edge of the chair with the support on all the surface of the feet,
Allowing the spine to stretch naturally,
Placing the head,
Balancing it on top of the spine,
Maybe closing your eyes and just moving a little bit to find the most stable position,
Most comfortable position and if it will be necessary during the practice to make it more comfortable for us,
Just do it.
This way we are showing kindness towards ourselves and we are sitting with an intention to allow ourselves to be exactly what we are in this moment,
With an intention to stay in this moment,
Returning our mind back to our breath or anchor of the physical sensations in the body,
For instance such as full of the gravity sensed in the feet,
Maybe in the buttocks touching the seat.
We will be paying all our attention to the sensations in the body and to the rhythm of the breath,
Quitting the mode of planning to do something,
Willing,
Wishing,
Just being as we are and we do it all with the attitudes of curiosity and we are teaching our attention to be non-judgmental,
To notice all the sensations in the body without labeling them as pleasant or unpleasant.
And let's take a deep breath.
Notice the pose at the maximum expansion of our body and just let it go.
Now we draw our attention completely to the sensations in the feet.
First the soles,
The top of the feet.
Can we feel that they feel are naked or not?
Which sensation tells us?
And if we notice that some thoughts are entering our mind,
Thoughts are carrying us into the future,
Into the past,
Concentrate on the sensations on all of the feet,
The temperature.
Can we sense all the fingers separately?
Making a breath in and breath out.
And when we are ready letting go of the feet,
Moving to the ankles.
What is here to sense,
If anything to sense at all?
Just asking ourselves this question and listening for the answer.
And if there is nothing to feel at all,
Then it is what is to be noticed.
This is our experience in the current moment and it's totally okay.
Letting go of the ankles,
Moving to the calves,
Sensing the muscles,
The shins.
Can we feel some kind of pressure there or maybe touch?
Are the sensations in the left calf and the right one different?
Is it possible to feel the bone running through the muscles?
Just being open to any kind of sensation.
And if our mind is carrying us away,
We just notice where it has taken us to.
We say,
Oh,
Here is some thought.
It's okay.
Let's return to the knees.
Drawing our fullest attention to this part of the body.
Knees on the top,
On the inside,
Below the knee,
Where the skin is folded.
These complex joints,
What do we feel inside?
And what do we feel on the surface?
What kind of signals our skin is sending us?
Signals of temperature,
Of touch,
Of pressure.
And if sensations become uncomfortable in any moment of the practice,
Then just returning always to the anchor of our breath,
Making an intentional deep breath in,
Noticing the pose and allowing it to roll out.
Maybe placing the hands on the belly to drop deeper into the rhythm of the breath.
And just allowing the body to breathe.
There is no need to change anything,
Because our body takes care of it.
And when we are ready,
Gently but firmly drawing our attention to the thighs.
Scanning it from the knee upwards.
Is there relaxation to feel?
Or maybe tightness?
Scanning the muscles in the front,
In the back,
Noticing the pressure of the seat on the back of our thighs.
And if we notice some spot which is tense,
We just breathe into it,
Breathe out of it.
With every breath in,
We are able to feel the energy of the body.
We just breathe into it,
Breathe out of it.
With every breath in,
Filling our body with vital energy.
And with every breath out,
Softening towards any discomfort we can find.
Now letting go of the thighs,
Moving to the hips,
Scanning all the zone,
All the way around and front from one hip joint to another.
Is there breath in the lower tummy?
The sides of the hips.
Can we feel the texture of the textile touching our skin in this spot?
Being very interested in our sensation in the current moment.
Maybe there are many of them.
Then feeling the tummy,
The vital organs inside.
Feeling if there is stillness or movement in this part of the body.
Observing,
Exploring.
Feeling upwards to the belly button,
Feeling the belly rounded.
Noticing if our attention wants to rest in some parts of the body and avoids some others.
And saying ah,
Here is resistance.
Moving upwards in the center of the chest.
Can we feel the breath here?
Knowing that we don't have to change anything.
And we don't need to be anything else than who we are right now.
Just allowing the body to breath,
Think,
Feel and acknowledging all of this.
So when we are ready,
Moving upwards to the shoulders,
Feeling the clavicles.
How heavy or light the pressure of the clothes on the shoulders is.
How do we feel temperature with our shoulders?
Noticing the position of this part of the body in this space.
How do we feel it?
And if the mind wanders,
Because it will for sure do so.
That's what minds do.
Knowing that it is absolutely normal.
We focus our attention again on the deep intentional breath in and the expansion of all the body when we inhale.
And noticing how it feels to let it go.
Allowing the chest and belly to fall.
Returning all of our focus of attention to the upper arms.
Scanning.
What is here to feel?
Tension or relaxation?
Is it warm or cold?
Is there tingling?
What thoughts are arising in this moment when we feel our upper arms?
Maybe temperature is not as we like it.
Just notice it and say to yourself,
This is judgement.
It's totally normal.
I see you.
Letting go of the upper arms.
Moving the attention to the hands.
What do the fingers feel like?
Are they relaxed or curled up into the palm?
Perhaps noticing the spaces between the fingers and feeling their position.
Including all the hands and arms into our awareness.
And when we are already moving the attention to the shoulders.
What is there to feel in the muscles here?
Maybe tightness,
Looseness?
If we sense any tightness in this zone,
Just pay more caring attention to it as you breathe into it and out of it.
Releasing and softening.
And then into the neck and the head.
Does the neck feel tight or relaxed?
Does the head feel heavy or light?
Now feeling into the scalp,
The forehead,
Relaxed.
Is the forehead relaxed?
Or there is a nick of some emotion on it?
Some furrow?
The eyebrows?
How do we know that we have the eyebrows?
And now the cheeks?
Maybe movement of the ear in the cheeks?
Paying attention to the eyes.
What do we see behind the eyelids?
Darkness?
Or colors?
Some light?
How much effort do we need to keep the eyelids shut?
How heavy they are?
Now letting go of the awareness of the eyes and moving down to the jaw.
Is there a space between the teeth?
Maybe allowing the jaw to drop a bit lower and noticing what changes this light move causes in our body.
Does it feel more relaxed now?
Opening the awareness to include all of the face.
Spreading the awareness into the scalp and the back of the head.
Going down till the shoulders.
And when ready,
Bringing the awareness to the spine.
Noticing any sensations that are here.
Pressure,
Tightness,
Parts touching the occludes.
If we encounter some unpleasant sensations in the muscles of the back,
Then we just pay additional kind attention to this tension.
Breathing into it and out of it.
Maybe there is nothing at all to sense in the back.
And that's okay,
That's just the experience in this moment,
Just in this part of the body.
And allowing the awareness to open to include the entire body lying or sitting here.
Breathing as our body inhales and exhales.
Noticing how this move of the breath has been a constant companion,
Bringing the whole body together,
Filling it with vital energy.
Perhaps imagining a wave of breath flowing from the tips of the toes to the top of the head.
As you breath in,
Feeling the feet on the floor.
Going deeper into a sense of being grounded here in the present moment.
With every breath out through the soles into the ground.
As we draw this practice to a close,
I invite you to reflect without judging the experience as good or bad.
How was this practice for me?
And when we are ready,
Turning your awareness to the sounds in your body.
The sounds of breath and heartbeat.
Then the sounds in the room and outside the room.
Starting to bring some movement back into the body.
Whatever feels good.
Expressing gratitude for taking this time to dedicate it solely to ourselves.
And now practice is complete.
