Welcome to Winter Stillness,
A Spiritual Reset Meditation.
Begin by settling into a comfortable position,
Either lying down or sitting up,
Letting your spine rise naturally without any strain,
Allowing your hands to rest easily by your side or in your lap.
And if it feels comfortable,
You might gently close your eyes,
If you prefer to leave your eyes open,
You might just invite a soft gaze cast downward,
Perhaps looking down at your lap or at the floor,
As a way of signaling your mind that this is a time to turn inward.
And take a slow breath in through the nose and release it slowly through the mouth.
Again inhale deeply and then exhale fully.
And then just allow the breath to come in its own natural rhythm and pace and depth,
No need to try to control it in any way and just allow yourself to arrive fully in this moment,
Trusting that there is nowhere else you need to be,
Nothing else you need to accomplish.
This time can be one of a sacred pause.
And I'd invite you now to bring awareness to your feet,
Noticing where they meet any other surfaces.
Perhaps they are resting on the floor.
Sense the steady support beneath you and let that support travel upward,
Moving through the soles of your feet,
Up into your ankles and your legs,
Into your hips and your spine.
Soften the shoulders,
Loosen,
Unclench the jaw.
Invite and allow the muscles around the eyes to relax.
With each breath,
Imagine the body becoming more and more settled and at ease.
And again,
Bringing your attention to your breath,
Not controlling it,
Just noticing.
Noticing breath as life,
Breath as spirit,
Breath as the quiet rhythm that carries you.
As you inhale,
Feeling life entering the body.
As you exhale,
Offering yourself back to the present moment.
If thoughts arise,
As they often do in meditation,
Just allow them to pass like clouds through the sky.
You do not need to follow them.
Simply return again and again to the breath.
And if you'd like to,
I'd invite you now to imagine yourself standing in a winter landscape.
The air is cool,
Crisp and clean.
There is a stillness all around you.
Notice how winter holds the world in quiet rest.
Nothing is rushing,
Nothing is forcing growth.
Winter teaches us that rest is holy.
Imagine the pale winter light filtering gently through the sky.
This light does not demand attention.
It simply is soft,
Steady,
Present.
Allow yourself to stand in this light.
And as you stand in this winter stillness,
Bring to mind anything that you've been carrying.
Worries,
Fatigue,
Expectations,
Emotional weight.
You do not need to name them clearly.
Simply sense their presence.
With your next exhale,
Imagine gently releasing them on the out breath.
You are not abandoning them.
You are resting from them.
Winter reminds us release is not failure.
Release is wisdom.
Once again,
Take a nice slow deep breath in and a long breath out.
And now imagine the light around you slowly moving inward.
Not overwhelming you,
Just warming you.
And with each inhale,
You can receive a sense of renewal.
With each exhale,
You can soften resistance.
You might silently repeat,
I allow myself to be renewed.
Allow that renewal to flow into the heart space,
Into the belly,
Into every place that has felt tired or overextended.
And now silently or softly within,
Just allow these words to echo.
I am allowed to rest.
Stillness restores me.
I release what no longer serves my spirit.
I trust the quiet seasons of my life.
I will repeat those and invite you to allow each phrase to land gently.
If one resonates more strongly,
Stay with it.
I am allowed to rest.
Stillness restores me.
I release what no longer serves my spirit.
I trust the quiet seasons of my life.
And now bring awareness to the heart area.
Notice if there is even a small sense of warmth,
Peace or openness.
It doesn't need to be dramatic.
Spiritual peace is often subtle.
And now slowly begin to sense the space around you.
The room that you are seated or lying in.
The sounds both within and without this room.
Feel your body again.
The surface beneath you.
The floor supporting you.
Take one final deep breath in.
And release it slowly.
Whenever you are ready,
You can gently open your eyes.
Honor any need of your body to stretch or wiggle or readjust.
May this sense of renewal stay with you today.
May this serve as a spiritual reboot that you can return to whenever the world feels loud or heavy.
May it be so.
