Okay,
So just checking in with your body in whatever position you're in to see if this is the position you need to be in in order to be the most comfortable for this meditation.
And if not,
You can shift your position to find an even more comfortable position.
And we'll start with a bell.
So begin by just coming back to your body.
Hello,
My dear body.
I know you are there.
Feeling yourself sitting,
Lying,
And what you're being supported by.
Breathing your breath,
The movement of the breath in the body.
Breathing in,
I can feel I'm breathing in.
Breathing out,
I can feel I'm breathing out.
And when your mind wanders,
Gently bring your mind back to the breath.
Letting yourself settle into these moments of deep rest.
Notice your feet and legs,
How they are.
Notice your hips,
Your back,
Your shoulders,
Shoulder blades.
Notice your hands and fingers and your arms.
Notice your neck and your head,
Your forehead,
Your face,
And your throat.
Notice your chest and heart center,
Your rib cage,
And your belly,
And all the way to your groins.
And sensing your whole body breathing.
Breathing in and breathing out.
And maybe just sensing a little gratitude for your body being well enough to be here in class and to breathe.
And if this feels like where you need to be for the remainder of this practice,
You can just stay right there resting in the breath.
Otherwise you can begin to notice any area of the body that might feel tight,
Tense,
Or having an emotion,
Feeling.
Just notice it.
Maybe noticing where it is in your body and what it feels like.
And just letting whatever it is that's there that's large or small suffering,
Whatever it is,
Just letting it know that you are here.
You are here with it.
In fact,
We are all here with it together.
And if there's an image of something,
You can just notice that.
If there's a feeling word,
You can notice that,
Like sadness or anger or irritation or whatever it might be,
Fear.
You can just notice that something in me is feeling this way.
And you are the one,
We are the ones who can hold it.
Just let it know you're here.
Keep listening to your own body,
Heart,
Mind,
To whatever is arising in you,
With the only purpose being to understand,
Not to change or push away,
But just to understand.
You can see what this part of you might want from you.
Would it like you to sit beside it or embrace it?
Or does it just want you to know it's there?
Or does it want to tell you something?
Whatever it is,
You can just be there for this.
If there's a part,
If you feel this part somewhere in your body and you want to,
You could place a gentle hand on that location,
Like you're saying,
I'm here.
I'm here for you.
You don't need to go anywhere.
I'm not trying to get rid of you.
I'm just here for you.
I know there's some reason you're here and I may not know what it is right now,
But I know there is a reason,
A good reason you're here.
I know there's a reason why you're here.
And you might see if there's something that this part of you is worried about or wants to let you know about it.
You can just listen to see what's it worried or what's it wanting for you or sort of sensing into why it's there with an open heart and mind.
And if you get pulled away or caught up,
You can always just come back to the breath or feel the seat underneath you or you could,
If it feels overwhelming,
You could look around just trying to understand this part of you.
And then if it's okay,
You can let this part of you know that even though we're going to be wrapping up soon,
That you're not abandoning it,
That you'll come back later if it needs you or wants you.
That we will be finishing in a moment that you really appreciate this part of you and also appreciating whatever it's shared with you in this short meditation and thanking it and listening to the sound of the bell.
Thank you.
