Welcome to this gratitude for your body,
Body scan meditation.
Let's open the practice today by bringing hands together,
Palms facing in front of your chest or placing your hands on your chest or clasped together or somewhere that feels comfortable for you.
Bowing your head down towards your chest and maybe taking a moment to acknowledge that you have come here today to heal your relationship with your body and that taking that step is an act of courage and an act of love.
So thank you for being here with me in this moment.
Lifting your head back up you can place your hands down by your side or in your lap and this meditation can be done lying down,
Sitting in a chair with both feet flat on the ground or sitting in a seated position on the ground.
Wherever you choose,
Choose a place that is comfortable for your body where you can feel relaxed and at ease but also maintain some level of focus.
Shuffle and shift around as much as you need to to get comfortable,
Maybe even getting a pillow or a blanket if that feels right for you in this moment and then invite your body to stillness.
Of course you can move your body at any point in this meditation,
If you notice the urge to move you might bring some awareness to that movement rather than responding automatically.
You can choose to gaze softly,
Sort of at nothing and everything at once or close your eyes or maybe it's gazing at one thing in particular that works for you.
Once your eye gaze has settled or eyelids dropped,
Take a big breath in your nose and sigh it out your mouth,
Let's do that together again.
Letting it all go,
Letting anything from the day,
The week,
Anything in your mind,
Letting it go for this moment,
Allowing yourself to focus on this gratitude practice just for now,
Just for this moment.
Continue to focus on your breathing,
Noticing where you feel sensation as you breathe in and where you feel sensation as you breathe out.
Perhaps your attention follows the breath as it moves down into the bottom of your lungs and leaves your body,
Maybe there's one place in particular like the entrance to your nostrils or the back of your throat that demands your focus as you breathe.
Simply noticing,
As you breathe out invite your body to relax,
Invite your jaw to soften,
Your tongue to spread in the bottom of your mouth,
Shoulders to drop down towards the earth.
Invite your belly to relax,
If you're someone who habitually holds your belly in all the time,
Invite it to soften just for this moment,
You might like to roll your pants down beneath your belly button if they're tight around your belly or even undo a button,
Do whatever you need to,
To allow your belly to relax for this moment.
If any emotions or thoughts arise as you do this,
Acknowledge them,
Acknowledge that this might be challenging for you,
That's okay,
We're here together,
It's just for this moment,
Just for this moment.
Invite your hips to relax,
Invite your feet and hands to open,
Relaxed,
At ease,
Body soft.
Starting at your head,
Scanning down from the top of your head,
Over your eyes,
Nose,
Mouth and chin,
Over your ears,
Into your neck,
Noticing any sensations,
Those that you might be feeling.
Noticing any thoughts or feelings or stories that arise when you place your attention on your face or your head,
Acknowledge them,
The thinking or story.
Come back to your breath,
To those sensations of your breath coming in and out and bring to mind something that you are grateful for,
For your head or your face,
What has it allowed you to do in your life or even today.
That has brought you joy,
Grateful for your head and your face.
Scanning down neck and throat,
Shoulders,
Upper arm,
Elbows,
Forearm,
Wrist and hands,
Feeling the sensations in your arms.
Noticing any thoughts,
Feelings or stories that pop up for you as you think of this area of your body,
Label,
Thinking or the feeling that comes up.
Acknowledge it and come back to the breath,
To the sensations of the breath and then take a moment to give thanks for your arms.
What is something that your arms allow you to do or have allowed you to do in your life,
Why are you thankful for your arms?
Attention travelling down your torso,
Down your chest and upper back,
Down to your belly and your lower back,
Noticing all sensations in your torso.
As you think of this area of your body,
Notice any thoughts,
Feelings or stories that arise,
Label them.
Judging,
Shame,
Story,
Breath going in,
Breath going out,
The rhythm of the breath ever present.
Taking a moment to give thanks for your torso,
For your belly or your back,
What are you thankful for?
Attention travelling to the pelvis,
To your bottom,
Noticing sensations here and in your knees,
Calves,
Shins,
Ankles.
As you bring attention to this area of your body,
Notice if there are any stories,
Feelings or thoughts that arise,
Label them,
Acknowledge them.
Without believing them,
Acknowledge that they're there,
They're not facts,
They're not necessarily truths,
They're just thoughts,
They're just electrical impulses in the mind.
They might have an emotional charge,
Acknowledge that and come back to the breath.
Thinking of what you are grateful for,
Your bottom,
Legs and feet,
What do they allow you to do,
What have they allowed you to do in your life?
Now attention on the body as a whole,
Whole body awareness,
You might feel your body as one field of energy or your mind might be drawn to sensations in different places.
Both and anything else is okay,
Feeling the body here as one.
As you think of your body as a whole,
As you think of yourself,
Notice any thoughts,
Feelings or stories that arise,
Without trying to generate but just acknowledging what comes up for you naturally when you think of your body,
When you think of yourself.
Acknowledging the thoughts,
Stories or emotions,
Coming to the breath,
The breath that rises and falls constantly,
Every moment.
And thinking what you are grateful for in this moment,
What are you grateful for as a living being in this moment?
Breathing in that gratitude.
And now to seal our practice,
Let's start how we began.
You can place your hands in a prayer position in front of your chest,
On your chest or your belly or giving yourself a hug or wherever feels right for you.
Bowing your head and acknowledging the time that you've spent now,
Showing yourself some love and compassion,
Putting the energy in that you deserve to have a good relationship with your body.
Thank you for joining me today,
You might repeat this after me if it feels right for you.
May I be free of suffering.
May I live with ease.
May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May all beings be free of suffering.
May all beings live with ease.
May all beings be healthy.
May all beings be happy.
Thank you.
