This body scan practice will guide you to bringing awareness to each part of the body,
Noticing any sensations that may be present,
Whether pleasant,
Unpleasant,
Neutral,
Or perhaps no sensations,
And simply being aware of what's already here,
Observing with gentle curiosity,
And letting go of that part and moving to the next.
And so taking a moment to settle into a posture of comfort,
Noticing points of contact of the body on the supporting surface,
Allowing the eyes to close if it feels comfortable,
Or if you prefer,
Allow the gaze to soften and trail downward.
And bringing attention to breathing,
Not changing the breath in any way,
Simply experiencing the breath moving in and out of the body.
And on the next breath,
Moving the focus of attention down through the entire body,
All the way down to the feet,
And noticing sensations at the feet,
Noticing all parts of the feet,
The toes,
The bottoms of the feet,
The tops,
The ankles,
And simply placing attention on whatever sensations that may be present here,
Or perhaps no sensations.
And on this next breath,
Letting go of attention from the feet and directing attention to the legs,
Noticing all parts of the legs,
The calves,
The shins,
The knees,
Front and back,
The thighs,
Outsides of the legs,
Insides of the legs,
Being aware of any sensations here at the legs.
Throughout this practice,
Each time the mind pulls you into distraction,
Into thoughts,
Stories,
Images,
Narratives,
Without adding to the stories,
Simply noticing that you were distracted.
Congratulate yourself for waking up and gently guide attention back to the practice,
Wherever it may be.
And on the next breath,
Releasing attention from the legs and moving up to the hips and pelvis,
Simply noticing sensations here at the sides,
The front,
The back,
The inside,
The outside of the hip and pelvic area.
And on the next breath,
Releasing attention from the hips and pelvis and directing attention to the abdomen and chest,
Noticing any sensations that are here to be noticed,
Or perhaps no sensations.
Noticing the outside of the abdomen as well as the inside,
The outside of the chest area as well as the inside,
Bringing a gentle,
Curious attention to this important region of the body,
Containing and holding most of our life-giving organs.
And simply observing with tender awareness whatever may be here to be observed.
And on this next breath,
Directing attention and noticing sensations at the shoulders and down through the tops of the arms,
At the elbows,
Through the bottoms of the arms and down to the hands and fingers.
Noticing without judgment whatever may be here to be observed,
Simply being aware.
And on the next breath,
Directing attention up to the neck and throat,
Noticing any sensations here in this area,
And noticing life-giving breath as it moves rhythmically through the throat and nourishes each and every one of the billions of cells in the body.
And now releasing attention from the neck and throat and directing attention to the head,
Noticing sensations that may be present on the outside of the head,
At the face,
The forehead,
The ears,
Sensations at the back of the head,
At the top of the head,
Perhaps noticing any sensations that may be present on the inside of the head and the face.
On the next breath,
Expanding awareness to include the entire body,
Sensing breath moving through the entire body,
Through all parts of the body.
And resting here for another few moments,
Savoring this gentle awareness of the body just as it is.
Acknowledging your ability to care for yourself by attending to the moment-to-moment experience of this body in this way.
And now gradually releasing attention from the practice,
Noticing sounds around you,
And as you're ready,
Opening the eyes if they were closed.
This body scan practice,
Ideally practiced regularly,
Is helpful in cultivating gentle,
Peaceful presence with the body as it is,
And in turn allowing a more peaceful presence in day-to-day life.
