Well done on choosing to meditate today.
Invite you to take a seat or lie down.
And get yourself comfortable.
You can close your eyes if you wish.
Just begin by taking some slow,
Deep,
Sighing breaths like this.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm and another one.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm and one more,
Releasing and relaxing every muscle in your body.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Today we're going to be practicing a technique called the flame and the void.
It's a type of mindfulness exercise.
And it begins.
By picturing a flame or a fire.
Or maybe even a candle.
With your eyes closed.
I want you to imagine.
A fire.
Or flame.
Or a candle.
However it looks to you,
Is perfect.
Are really picturing that flame in your mind.
And want you to focus all your attention upon it.
If you get distracted.
If thoughts or memories or feelings or sensations or things outside of your body distract you from that picture in your mind.
That's okay.
Just return your focus back to the flame.
Okay,
Well done.
Now we're going to begin feeding the flame.
Do you know when you put wood onto a fire?
Some paper onto the fire and it grows?
Or when you blow onto the fire.
It gets brighter.
We're going to feed our inner flame.
With those distractions.
If you notice a thought,
Or a memory,
Or a feeling,
Or a sensation,
Or anything else arise.
Simply feed it to the flame.
With love,
With compassion.
As an offering.
Feed that thing to the flame.
And watch it disappear.
That thought that just popped up?
That memory?
That sensation.
Put it in the flame.
And let it gently burn away.
Let's try this now for 15 seconds.
I'm gonna go quiet.
And you're gonna feed the flame with anything that arises.
Let's begin.
So how'd you go?
Now we're going to add to this practice just a little bit.
The pause after you breathe out.
And as you begin to breathe in Scan your body.
Scan your mind.
And find all of the thoughts.
Feelings,
Emotions and sensations that are there.
Gather them all up in a big bowl.
And on the out-breath.
Release it all into the flame.
On the in-breath.
.
.
Gathering all of the things up.
And on the out-breath.
Release it into the flame.
If at any time,
You find that there's nothing left to release into the flame.
Just let the flame go,
And sit in the void.
In this moment.
And if those things come back.
.
.
Turn that flame back on.
And begin again.
Let's try this together now.
For 30 seconds.
And see how we go.
Feeding everything that arises into that flame.
Let's begin.
Okay.
Well done.
This technique,
The flame and the void technique,
Is always available to you.
If at any time during your day,
You find yourself overwhelmed or angry or scared,
Just turn that flame back on and feed it all in there.
And let's finish by taking one more slow breath.
Sighing breath together.
You ready?
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm I'll see you next time.
