We teach mindfulness.
It is,
Of course,
Important to offer clear guidance and instruction.
But there is a possibility that the guidance becomes a sequence and over time a pattern or a formula.
And there's a chance that we can slip into a very subtle form of autopilot.
So while structure is important and helpful,
It can take us away from the qualities that mindfulness invites us to cultivate,
Including ease,
Openness and curiosity.
Playfulness allows us to move from,
Am I doing this right,
Towards,
I wonder what happens if.
And that small shift can transform our experience from one of routine into one of exploration.
So in this practice,
Which is based around a simple body scan.
I'll add invitations for you to approach your experience with a spirit of playfulness and curiosity.
There will also be plenty of space for you to explore in your own way,
Discovering what you notice.
Always feeling free to ignore my guidance if it's not helpful to you.
So inviting you now to find a position that feels steady and grounding for you.
Just noticing the points of contact between the body and whatever's supporting you.
Just noticing the body in the seat.
And any feeling of support that the seat provides.
Maybe just starting by taking a couple of deep breaths.
Maybe sensing into the breath.
Really noticing the full length of the in-breath.
And the full length of the out-breath.
And tuning into any feeling of settling.
Settling into this position.
And becoming alive to this present moment.
And inviting you to use the analogy of a flashlight or a torch if it feels helpful to you.
But maybe experimenting with a different analogy.
So maybe the idea of sunlight,
Or perhaps the image of your body filling up with warm water.
Feeling free to invent your own imagery for your attention,
If that's helpful.
Inviting you now to move your attention down with any analogy you've decided on.
To the legs and the feet.
So just gently exploring the legs and the feet.
So working with quite a large area.
Maybe noticing the feet on the floor.
The soles,
The heels,
The ankles,
The knees and the thighs.
Just sensing into what's here.
Sensing rather than thinking.
About the feet and the legs.
Be noticing the air on the skin.
Sensations inside the legs.
Maybe noticing areas where there's lots of sensation.
And others where perhaps there's a curious lack of sensation.
Just exploring what's here.
And perhaps as well as what's not here,
With a sense of playfulness,
Curiosity.
Moving away from any expectation about what you might find.
Maybe noticing the breath in the background.
Just resting in the tangible reality of sensations in the feet and the legs.
Nothing else you need to do,
Nowhere else you need to be.
Just here,
Sensing into the legs.
And the feet.
Maybe seeing what you notice at the toes.
Tops of the feet.
Maybe the complex bone structure inside the knee.
And inviting you now only if it feels helpful for you.
To identify two areas in the feet and the legs.
One where you can feel lots of sensations.
And one where you can feel very little sensation.
So for example,
I'm noticing lots of sensation in the bottom of my foot.
But very little in the thighs.
And as much as you're able to.
Holding or alternating your attention in these two areas.
Just exploring what's here.
As well as what's not here.
With a sense of playful,
Open curiosity.
So noticing richness and a lack of sensation.
All at the same time.
And as we prepare now to move the attention away from the feet and the legs.
Just inviting you to gently and playfully consider.
Which of your feet?
Feels like it's more awake.
Inviting you now to let go of the legs and the feet.
And to move your attention to the torso.
So the tummy and the lower back.
The chest and the upper back.
And the shoulders.
You may sense here the sensations of the body moving as it breathes.
Maybe the feeling of clothing on the skin.
Maybe this slide did.
And rise of the shoulders.
As the chest moves.
You might notice the chest expand.
And just the movement of air in the body.
And the invitation here is to identify two areas of the torso.
One where you can feel a subtle sensation on the outside of the body.
One where you can feel the richness of sensation inside the body.
So I'm noticing the clothes moving on my shoulders.
And the strong sensations at the wall of the tummy.
And just as much as you're able to,
Just holding or alternating your attention between these two areas.
Just noticing what's here.
Noticing subtle and prominent sensations.
Both at the same time.
Inviting you to consider now any sense of ease in the torso.
Maybe gently exploring what makes up this ease.
What sensations contribute to a feeling of ease?
And moving your attention away from the torso now.
And exploring the hands and the arms.
The upper arms,
Including the armpits.
The elbows.
The lower arms.
The wrist.
The hands and the fingers.
Maybe the palm of the hands.
And the pack behind.
Be noticing each and every finger.
Noticing any variation in sensation across the fingers.
And inviting you now to identify two areas of the hands and the arms region where there is an extreme variation in temperature.
So maybe extra warmth at the armpits.
And maybe a coolness.
On the back of the hand.
And as much as you're able to,
Just alternating your attention between these areas.
Exploring it.
Zooming in.
Noticing the differences.
And inviting you now to ponder the question,
Do the hands feel the same weight?
Or does one hand feel heavier than the other?
And inviting you now to move your attention to the head and the neck area.
Noticing the muscles in the neck.
The jaw.
The Faith.
Eyes and the muscles around the eyes.
A nose.
Forehead and the ears.
And perhaps any sense of any hair on the head.
The back of the neck.
And inviting you when you're ready too.
Identify two areas of the head and the neck.
One where there's a sense of ease.
And one where perhaps you notice some tension.
So for me,
I'm noticing a bit of ease at the back of the neck.
Put some tension in the forehead.
As much as you're able to,
Just holding or alternating your attention in these two areas.
Just being curious.
Knowing you don't need to change anything.
Just noticing what's here.
Inviting you now just to rest in this whole body.
Noticing all any sensations.
From the top of the head,
Right down to the tips of the toes.
Just inviting you to go on a little bit of a treasure hunt.
Noticing where you can find warmth.
Noticing where there is coolness.
Perhaps tingling or pulsing.
Feelings of pressure or contact.
Movement.
Perhaps caused by breathing.
And also inviting you to rest your attention in places where you'd perhaps previously have thought there's nothing to notice.
When there's very limited or very subtle sensations.
Maybe noticing if you can sense into a single point on your thumb.
Perhaps now holding awareness in the whole of one hand.
Is the whole of an arm.
Just feeling free now to linger somewhere that feels interesting.
Just seeing if you can discover one thing.
That until now you've never noticed.
About your body.
As it sits here and as it breathes.
And as we start to bring this practice to a close,
Maybe just taking a couple of deep breaths,
Really noticing the sensations created by this breathing.
Maybe starting to open the eyes if they've been closed and bringing a little bit of movement back into the body.
And inviting you now to bring this sense of curiosity,
Playfulness.
Exploratory mindset.
Into the rest of your day and into your practice.
