The RAIN meditation is a practice adapted from Tara Brock where we bring to mind something challenging.
Now this could be something from the past week or something that's lingering around now.
Nothing too heavy,
Just something that stirs up a little bit of difficulty.
Or alternatively you could choose a moment of joy or something wonderful that's happened and explore your experience through RAIN in that way.
It's up to you.
RAIN is an acronym that stands for Recognise,
Allow,
Investigate and Nurture.
Each stage flows naturally into the next and it offers a gentle way to bring acceptance to whatever it is we're experiencing.
Whether that's stress,
Frustration,
Pain,
A sense of unease or perhaps a sense of giddiness and joy.
Now as part of this practice I'll be reading Rumi's The Guesthouse Poem before moving on to then explore RAIN.
But to begin with we'll take some time to settle ground and rest if that's okay with you.
We're starting by finding a comfortable posture.
Feeling the points of contact between your body and whatever you're sitting,
Lying or standing on.
Creating a stable base and allowing the spine to lengthen naturally.
You might like to lift your shoulders up and then drop them back and down to open up the chest.
And if it feels comfortable I invite you to let your gaze soften or close your eyes completely.
Taking a moment to set an intention for this practice.
Perhaps it's an intention to explore acceptance.
Whether in relation to a challenging moment or a joyful one.
And checking in with your motivation.
Asking yourself the question,
Why have I set aside this time for meditation today?
What do I hope to gain from this practice?
Now bringing awareness to the breath.
Taking a slightly deeper inhale and a longer exhale.
It may be helpful to just allow the in-breath and the out-breath to settle into a steady rhythm.
And to help with this you might like to use a simple phrase.
Silently noting,
I can feel the body breathing in,
And I can feel the body breathing out.
You may find that the mind will wander naturally.
And that's completely okay.
There's no need to resist it,
But we can just notice when it happens.
And then bring your attention back to the breath with kindness.
I can feel the body breathing in.
I can feel the body breathing out.
Gently shifting our awareness to physical sensations in the body.
And I invite you to now move with me through a gentle body scan.
So,
Starting at the crown of the head,
And then working down.
Noticing any tension or ease,
Any warmth or coolness.
Moving through the forehead,
Eyes,
Jaw,
Down to the shoulders.
Letting these areas soften as best as you can.
Continue scanning down through the arms,
Hands,
Chest,
Torso.
Bringing awareness to the hips,
Thighs,
Knees,
And lower legs.
And finally resting attention on the feet.
Expanding awareness to the whole body.
Allowing it to soften and rest fully.
Supported by the ground beneath you.
Surrounded by space.
And as we allow the body to rest,
Let's invite the mind to do the same.
Nothing to fix,
Nowhere to be,
Nothing to achieve.
Just resting in presence.
Now I'll read Rumi's The Guesthouse Poem.
If you've heard this before,
Just see if you can listen with fresh ears.
Bringing an attitude of beginner's mind.
Allowing the words to land like pebbles in a still pond.
Creating ripples of awareness.
This being human is a guesthouse.
Every morning,
A new arrival.
A joy,
A depression,
A meanness.
Some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all.
Even if they're a crowd of sorrows who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture.
Still,
Treat each guest honorably.
They may be clearing you out for some new delight.
The dark thought,
The shame,
The malice.
Meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.
Beginning now with the RAIN part of the practice and the letter R,
Which stands for Recognize.
So as we sit with our unfolding experience,
We simply recognize what's happening.
Thoughts,
Emotions,
Sensations,
Whatever arises.
No need to push anything away or cling to anything.
Just noticing.
If you find your mind repeatedly drawn to a particular issue,
You might bring it to the forefront of your awareness.
If nothing stands out,
You could reflect on the past week and choose something.
It could be a challenge or it could be a joyful moment.
What feels right to explore?
As you hold this experience in awareness,
Paying particular attention to any physical sensations that arise with it.
Are there areas of tension or ease?
Warmth or coolness?
See if you can just meet these sensations with curiosity.
Moving on to A,
Which is for Allow.
So we're just allowing our experience to be as it is.
Accepting with compassion whatever comes up.
Not trying to change anything here or somehow make it different from how it is.
Recognizing the importance of simply being with your experience.
We're simply allowing and letting go.
Moving on to I,
Which is for Investigate.
So we're spending some time now investigating and exploring gently whatever you're experiencing.
These could be thoughts,
Feelings or sensations.
Looking at thoughts,
What stories is the mind telling?
Can you observe thoughts with a sense of spaciousness rather than getting caught up in them?
Noticing feelings and sensations without judging.
So we're just exploring here with interest and care.
When you're ready,
I invite you to move along to N.
N is for Nurture.
And we're nurturing with self-compassion.
So taking a moment to look after ourselves.
This could be by offering ourselves some kind,
Loving words and thoughts.
If you like,
You could use a nurturing touch like placing your hand on your heart or holding one hand in the other,
All while breathing easily.
Just reminding ourselves of the importance of taking this time to offer ourselves some nurturing and self-compassion.
How can we care for ourselves?
Rather than resisting the experience,
How can we really put our arms around ourselves and look after ourselves at this time?
Being kind to ourselves.
And if the mind wanders here away from the experience,
We can use the support of the breath again.
And if it's helpful,
Utilizing that phrase so I can feel the body breathing in and I can feel the body breathing out.
Then if it feels comfortable,
Going back to nurture and looking after ourselves.
Now,
As we begin to bring the practice to a close,
Perhaps taking a few deeper breaths and then bringing that awareness back into the body and the space that we're in.
Perhaps setting an intention at this point to just carry this sense of presence with you and know that whatever arose in today's practice is simply a part of being human.
We meet it all with awareness,
Kindness and acceptance.
So wiggling the fingers and toes if that feels good and perhaps having a stretch and gently opening your eyes if they were closed.
Thank you for practicing with me today.
Go well.
