Hi,
Thanks for joining me,
Clara,
And allowing me to help you relax and fall asleep.
Before we begin,
Please find a comfortable place where you can relax for this guided meditation about the ancient island.
Gently close your eyes or keep them open with a softened gaze.
Let go of all the tension you might have in your face.
Neck and shoulders.
Allow your breath to carry you into relaxation and find its natural rhythm.
Notice each inhale as your breath travels down onto your lungs and into your belly.
And when you exhale,
How your belly contracts as your breath moves back out of your nostrils or mouth.
Invite your awareness to flow with your breath.
Be present in this moment with your breath.
And if your mind wanders away with a thought,
Emotion or sensation that catches your attention,
Gently guide awareness back to your breathing.
At different times in your life,
You may have wanted to crawl under a rock and hide away,
Preferring invisibility rather than allowing your light to shine.
The desire to hide may stem from feelings of fear,
Sadness,
Anger or weariness of the world.
When you hide and believe you're invisible,
You hide from yourself.
And although you may think you're hiding inconspicuously,
Some may notice you're concealing your light.
You aren't meant to hide.
On the contrary,
When you suppress your light,
You deprive the people around you of the natural,
Remarkable gifts and talents you're here on Earth to share.
Stepping out of the wings and allowing your light to shine is a way you can serve the planet and contribute to your community.
Also,
Letting your light be a beacon for others around you may inspire them to shine as well.
You're rowing a small boat through an archipelago of islands which are little more than oversized rocks with a few scrappy trees clinging to them.
It's late afternoon and the sky is a hypnotic blue.
High overhead,
Seagulls fly and occasionally dive into the water for fish.
The oars and the pulse of the water gently help move the boat towards a larger island composed of crumpled mountains.
After a little while,
You can make out pine trees and perhaps an odd cypress tree or two,
Sheltering in the opaque shadows within the folds of the hillsides.
Simply pause when you get near the island and allow the boat to drift.
The shallow water is crystal clear here and when you gaze over the edge of the boat,
You see patches of pale rock scarred by black sea urchins.
A shoal of sardines skim up and shimmer under the surface of the water.
You start rowing again and before long,
Reach the shore of the island where the translucent blue sea gently laps on a crescent beach.
As you pull the boat up onto the shore,
You can hear the island vibrating with the sound of cicadas.
Date palm trees fringe the beach.
The palms on some of the islands here are said to have sprouted from date stones tossed away by Roman soldiers or pirates ages ago.
You sit down in the calm,
Shallow water and put your hands in the coarse white sand.
Occasionally you find a smooth pebble or a piece of a bottle which has been rubbed and licked by the sea into a beautiful jewel,
Green and translucent.
After cooling down,
You lie on a nearby rock to dry off in the sun before heading inland.
A The meandering path is well-worn from the traffic of goat hoofs.
Grasshoppers and locusts were like clockwork as you walk along.
Then fly away on wings shining in the sun.
When you look down,
You notice the ancient,
Pale dust of the island coating your feet.
The trail meanders through a small grove of olive trees,
Whose branches seem weighted down by smooth drops of jade fruit.
Then,
You're in a field of green myrtle,
Wild thyme and other plants.
You pick some and rub the leaves together in the palm of your hands,
Which makes them smell like sage and mint.
Close by,
You hear the drowsy tinkling of bells in a shady hollow.
Some brown,
Droopy-eared goats are fast asleep underneath an old,
Twisted olive tree.
As you pass by,
One of them wakes up and observes you with amber-coloured eyes.
You arrive at a large clearing where ruins of broken marble columns and other rocks,
Split like dice,
Lie in scattered,
Disorganised pieces all over the ground.
Most of the ruined parts are overgrown with wildflowers,
Bristling in yellow,
Pink and purple carpets.
The sweet smell of the wild thyme hangs in the air.
Once,
This place was a temple,
A shrine,
A palace or a villa.
Who knows?
You walk across the area,
Sit on the side of a broken pillar and imagine all the people who must have passed through here in ancient times.
Who were they?
What were they like?
What did they wear?
If only the stones could talk.
Every ruin has a saga and every stone has a story to tell.
The cicadas abruptly stop their wearing and the atmosphere becomes completely calm.
You breathe in the peace and the feeling of a sacred kind of solitude.
The sun is beginning to float down the mountain.
And the sea glitters lazily at the front of its smoky shadows.
As the sun sinks lower,
A brief apple green twilight fades in to move.
Now,
The sea is smooth and dark,
Like black velvet without a ripple.
It's time for you to turn around and slowly walk back down the path.
You breathe in more deeply,
Focusing clearly on your senses.
Aware of your footsteps and the soft,
Mediterranean air.
As your pace slows,
Your heart quiets and you lose yourself.
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
And you deeply inhale the renewing tranquillity.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
As your body moves,
Your mind and soul lift to a gentler place.
