To begin this 20 minute sitting meditation,
Give yourself some time to get into a sitting position that's comfortable for you,
Either in a chair,
Or on a meditation stool,
Or seated on the floor,
Perhaps with cushions underneath you to keep your hips above your knees.
And adopting an upright posture,
Checking to see if your chin is tucked under slightly.
And if you're seated on a chair,
Having your feet flat on the ground,
And your hands resting on your thighs.
Then closing your eyes if that feels comfortable for you.
Otherwise allowing your gaze to fall unfocused on the floor in front of you.
And reminding yourself that there's nowhere else you need to be,
But right here.
Right here in this moment.
And then when you feel ready,
Becoming aware of the sensations of sitting.
Focusing on the sensations of touch,
Contact,
And pressure of your body against the surface underneath you.
Perhaps spending a minute or two exploring these sensations.
And now bringing your attention to the physical sensations of breathing at your lower abdomen.
Seeing if you can focus on the gentle sensations of stretching as the abdominal wall expands with each in-breath.
And also of the sensations of the release as the abdominal wall deflates with each out-breath.
As best you can following these physical sensations for every moment of the in-breath and every moment of the out-breath.
Perhaps noticing the slight pauses between the in-breath and the following out-breath.
And of the out-breath and the following in-breath.
As an alternative if you prefer,
You may want to choose a different area to focus on.
An area where the breath is most vivid and distinct.
Such as the nostrils,
Or the chest,
Or maybe the back of the throat.
Wherever the physical sensations of breathing are most vivid to you.
Remembering we're not trying to change the breath in any way.
We're just allowing the breath to be as it is.
And your mind may be wandering off to other things.
This is completely okay.
It's not a mistake.
It's just simply what minds do.
And so just take the moment to realise where your mind went off to.
And then guide your attention back to the breath.
And your mind may take you off to other things over and over again.
And so the task is just to guide your attention back over and over again.
And now as we near the end of this meditation,
Just expanding your awareness to include the whole body along with the breath.
Noticing any physical sensations in the entire body as you sit here breathing.
And then loosening the grip of your focus.
And then opening your eyes when you're ready.
