Start by settling into a comfortable position and softening your gaze or allowing your eyes to gently close.
Take several long,
Slow,
Deep breaths,
Breathing in fully through your nose and exhaling fully through your nose or mouth.
Allow your breath to find its own natural rhythm.
Bring your full attention to noticing each inhale as it enters your nostrils,
Travels down to your lungs and causes your abdomen to expand.
And notice each exhale as your abdomen contracts and air moves up from your lungs and out through your nostrils or mouth.
Invite your full attention to flow with your breath,
Perhaps you can notice some subtle differences between the inhale and exhale.
Take a moment to simply experience how they feel and sound.
As you turn more deeply inward,
Begin to let go of the noises around you.
If you're distracted by sounds in the room or the world outside of your space,
Simply notice them and then bring your attention back to your breath.
Simply breathe,
Not striving to change anything about your breath or to control it in any way.
Observe and accept your experience in this moment without judgement,
Only paying attention to your breath and my voice.
If your mind wanders to thoughts,
Plans or problems,
Just notice your mind wandering.
Watch the thought as it enters your awareness as neutrally as possible,
Then practice letting go of it like a leaf floating down a stream.
In your mind,
Place each thought that arises on a leaf and watch as it floats out of sight downstream,
Before bringing your attention back to your breath.
Your breath is an anchor you can return to,
Over and over,
Whenever you become distracted by thoughts.
If you notice your mind has wandered,
Observe the types of thoughts that distract you.
Noticing is the richest part of learning,
And with this knowledge you can strengthen your ability to detach from thoughts and mindfully focus your awareness back on the qualities of your breath.
Practice coming home to the breath with your full attention,
Watching the gentle rise of your abdomen on the inhale,
And the relaxing and letting go on the exhale.
Allow yourself to be completely with your breath as it flows in and out.
You may become distracted by a feeling of discomfort in the body,
Or a twitching or itching sensation that draws your attention away from the breath.
You may also notice feelings arising,
Perhaps sadness or happiness,
Frustration or contentment.
Acknowledge whatever comes up,
Including thoughts or stories about your experience.
Simply notice where your mind went without judging it,
Pushing it away,
Clinging to it or wishing it were different,
And just refocus your mind and guide your attention back to your breath.
Breathe in and breathe out,
Following the air down from the nostrils to the lungs,
And then as it turns and reverses all the way out,
Mindfully be present,
Moment by moment,
With your breath.
If your mind wanders away from your breath,
Just notice without judging,
Be it a thought,
Emotion or sensation that takes your attention,
And gently guide your awareness back to your breathing.
As this practice comes to an end,
Slowly allow your attention to expand,
And notice your entire body,
And then beyond your body to the room you're in.
When you're ready,
Open your eyes and come back to feeling fully alert and awake.
Remember that breath is always with you as a refocusing tool to bring you back to the present moment,
So feel free now to set the intention to use this practice regularly to help cultivate and strengthen your awareness.
