Hello and welcome to the daily insight.
My name is Anne-Marie Rowley and I am a meditation teacher in Melbourne,
Australia.
And it's a pleasure to be with you here on Insight Timer.
Lie down now on a soft surface with a light blanket covering you to keep you warm and cosy.
If you need support beneath your knees or head or both,
Just arrange this.
Do you crave to stop and to restore?
Our heart calls out for peace.
It doesn't want to be broken or sad or hurt or angry.
It wants to beat peacefully,
Doesn't it?
Our body doesn't want to be sore,
Stiff or in pain.
Doesn't the body scream out for peace too?
And our mind,
It doesn't want to be foggy,
Confused,
Fearful or obstructed,
Does it?
Are you alert enough to hear the beckoning of peace?
Or do you ignore its imploring plea?
Sometimes I simply stand still and feel its presence,
Time and thought suspended,
Heart gently pulsing,
Hearing the sound of my own breath and feeling the breath's energy coursing through my veins,
As though there is nothing more to be done and nothing more important than taking my next breath.
No inner turmoil,
No outer distraction,
Complete,
Whole,
Content,
Strong.
And then I move on into the next moment calmly,
Clearly,
Gently,
As though I had left that me behind and replaced it with the true me in its stead.
As a songwriter,
John Lennon wrote,
Peace is not something you wish for,
It's something you make,
Something you do,
Something you are and something you give away.
Yes,
There is no use just wishing for peace.
We do need to take the steps to create it,
Become it and exude it to all those around us.
It is not something we shall find outside ourselves.
It is from within.
Outward peace is simply non-existent without inward peace.
Peace is something that you embody,
Patiently creating its place and space within you.
When you are peaceful and emanate this peace to all around you on a larger scale,
You are contributing peace to the world.
You become peace.
Your fellow travelers come from far and wide to be in your presence,
To feel that sense of safety,
Timelessness and compassion that radiates from the peacemaker.
People are attracted to those who are serene and quietly poised.
It is said that peace is the warrior,
The weapon of the strong.
It conquers darkness,
The darkness of anger,
Sadness,
Anxiety,
The sense of separation and the feeling of isolation.
It is the sunshine to the psychic and the panacea to the spirit.
But you must be it in order to radiate it.
Peace is power.
For a little while let's paint a picture of peace in the mind's eye.
As you are lying down and beginning to let go,
Your body will cool down as you relax.
The body is soft.
Check that your legs are loose and long.
That your feet are flopped to the sides and your arms loosely beside you.
Your palms facing upward in an attitude of allowing and surrendering.
Eyes are softly closed.
Gather all scattered aspects back to yourself.
Just relax and bring your mind home to a state of calm.
Picture you are lying in a field of green in the quiet of the morning.
As your sky is above you,
Clouds softly drifting by.
You are warmed by the gentle rays of the sun penetrating your skin.
You can smell the crispness of early morning.
You can feel droplets of dew on your fingertips.
The grass is shimmering around you.
You can hear the birds calling to each other to greet the morn.
And somewhere there is a gentle sound of trickling water gently dancing over tiny pebbles.
Pebbles that are shiny and gleaming in the early morning sun.
A gentle breeze wafts across your cheeks.
Every so often there is a rustling of the leaves.
Sometimes the wind whispers in your ear.
And every so often the breeze strengthens for a few split seconds and everything dances around you.
Draw in a peaceful breath.
No force.
No holding.
Just a flowing breath.
Gently in and out.
Gently in and out.
Picture the sunlight flowing through your whole being.
The body melting into the earth.
Feel as though you are opening more and more to the sunshine and allow the sun's warmth to penetrate your heart center.
Observe the breath for a little while until you hear my voice again.
And now quietly listen to the call of peace.
Peace is calling me.
Where do I find you,
I ask.
I hear you calling me.
Come within,
It says,
To that sanctuary that is within us all.
Where your true self lies waiting.
Hear my whispers through your body.
Feel my presence in your breath.
Let me flow through you.
Let me embrace you.
Let me move by you.
Let me surround you,
Says the breath.
Feel me above you.
Feel me beneath you.
Apart from you.
Apart of you.
I shall slow you down and expand this moment,
Says peace.
For I am the reason to live.
A peaceful heart.
Peaceful body.
A peaceful mind.
A peaceful soul.
Follow me in your eyes.
Imagine I am being breathed in and out of your eyes.
Feel me glide across your forehead.
And resting at the third eye.
That quiet place between the eyebrows.
Drawing you inwards,
Away from all,
But towards the now.
Let me take you,
Says peace.
Deep within.
Deep,
Deep within.
Feel me soften your cheeks.
And smile.
For a smile is my way of guiding you to love.
Turn your smile inwards.
Turn your inward smile outwards.
Let me clear the path to your very essence.
Let me clear the path to your soul.
Feel me in the tips of your toes,
Says peace.
Feel me in the tips of your fingers.
Feel me sink into your very core.
With calm and gentility and kindness.
Hear my voice.
For I am calling you.
And I know you're calling me.
May the voice of peace whisper to you.
May the voice of peace sing to your soul.
May the voice of peace speak to your thoughts.
May the voice of peace be with you to wherever you go.
Be with me always,
Says peace.
As I shall be with you.
Be peaceful.
Be loving.
Breathe with ease.
And enjoy.
