My name is Larissa.
We're going to practice together for about 15 minutes.
It's always just taking a couple of moments to settle in.
We're continuing to just show up moment to moment,
Moments of presence,
Moments of awareness.
As you're settling into your posture that you've chosen,
You can close your eyes or set your gaze downward.
Choosing to turn inward,
Turn your eye inward.
This eye of the heart.
And that can be a concept.
How do I open an eye in my heart if the only eyes I've ever known are on my head?
But when we close those physical eyes that we're so used to seeing the world with,
We start to awaken within us all of these other ways to see.
And to the best of our ability.
Witnessing,
Seeing.
With as much tenderness as possible.
Part of our growth is to see the different lenses that we've put on and claimed them as who we are.
And slowly and gently and softly starting to remove those lenses.
And giving ourselves a lot of time and tenderness as we reorient to seeing the world in a new way.
That's part of the practice,
Is having some spaciousness to witness yourself.
And then give yourself time and permission to allow change to occur.
One of the most challenging parts is that we try to think our way into change.
Change is already happening.
Can you just witness the change from inhale to exhale and trust?
The changes that are occurring.
Because when we slow down and we can witness ourselves with the open eye of the heart,
We start to witness ourselves.
In growth.
Rather than trying to make growth happen.
It already is.
And right here we've set aside time to just simply witness.
Let your body be held.
Give your mind permission to rest a moment.
And notice what it feels like to just land.
In the landing.
Place we get to witness everything.
Not the everything of all the things you need to keep track of.
The everything that is expansive and endless.
That is the eye of the heart.
It doesn't grip and try to cling to the good.
It doesn't take that same gripped fist and try to force away anything that's challenging.
I have the heart as this endless ocean.
And we just get to be here.
Sometimes visuals are helpful,
Perhaps imagining you're sitting on this shore,
Waves lapping at your toes.
Just getting to witness.
Those moments you might've watched the sun set.
Or cried.
Alone.
Or allowed yourself to express some joy that you didn't even know was possible.
Or held someone in their darkest moments.
All of these moments are equally as important as right now.
This is part of everything.
This pure moment of awareness.
Seeing through all of the lenses of the eyes.
And the thicket of views and opinions in the mind.
Just experience a breath.
There's never anywhere you need to get to because right here again.
Is your breath.
It's a beautiful,
Roomy quote many of us know,
Many of us have heard,
But what you seek is also seeking you.
And he wrote that.
Hundreds and hundreds of years ago.
What we seek is what is seeking us.
And at the same time.
We don't need to seek.
Because everything is within.
Your breath,
Your heartbeat.
Everything that you need.
To heal.
A human form,
A cocoon wrapped around all of the tenderness and the pain in your heart.
And when we can stay long enough to witness ourselves in these moments of difficulty.
And joy.
Everything transforms.
You don't need to get to transformation.
You stay.
And it comes.
Watch your breath moving.
Just a moment of presence.
And then when you notice your mind has wandered,
You just invite it back here again,
A moment of presence.
This is all that is needed.
You don't have to be perfectly kind.
You don't have to be perfectly stable.
You might fall asleep.
You might get distracted.
Sometimes you might even forget you're meditating and you just wander off.
All of this is perfection.
Not because there's a perfect form you're trying to get to,
But because it's already here.
Witnessing a breath.
There's another quote from an author,
Poet,
Speaker,
Jayajan.
And he said,
Spend your life loving.
Not seeking love.
Ocean need not seek water.
Spend your life loving,
Not seeking love.
Ocean need not seek water.
And that is that moment of pure awareness.
The ocean is within.
The love is within.
Everything that you seek is within.
And this practice of witnessing yourself allows.
You just start to see.
The vastness within you.
And the tight grips that we try to hang on to,
I should be like this,
I'm not like this,
They just fade away with the waves.
You don't have to fix or change anything.
Just watch your breath.
Let it move you.
As you notice again this breath.
Notice the subtlety of movement that occurs,
Ribs expanding.
And remember that subtlety.
It helps us remember to appreciate.
All of the moments.
Not just the big ones.
Not just the ones that are exciting and not waiting.
For any suffering to occur,
Just allowing.
Tenderness to move through you like a wave.
I invite you to bring your hands into any of your closing habits or practices.
External way to thank your body,
Hand on heart,
Palm on palm.
Hands,
An extension of your heart.
It's holding yourself.
Repeating these loving kindness phrases back as they make sense for you.
May I remember the innate goodness of my breath.
May I pause and witness myself today.
To the best of my ability.
May I see you through lenses of kindness.
When action is needed.
May I choose to move with ease and peace.
May the merits of our practice ripple out to benefit all beings.
And when you're ready.
Allow your being to find movement.
Thank yourself,
Your body,
Your heart,
Your mind.
And as always,
Thank you for being here.
Thanks for supporting each other.
