Body Scan Meditation To Relax & Center Yourself

This moment is yours.

A time to come home to yourself,

To your center,

To your truth.

And so take a moment just to make yourself comfortable.

Whether you are lying down or sitting,

Just check in with your body and notice if you have any areas that might be tense or uncomfortable.

Just adjust yourself.

Relax your forehead,

Your shoulders,

Your belly.

For the next few minutes there is nowhere else to be,

Nothing to do,

Nothing to become.

Just breathe and be.

We always open our meditations with a moment of gratitude.

So pause now and bring your awareness to something in your day so far that you can feel grateful for.

Maybe a moment of joy,

Perhaps the morning sun,

Or a cup of tea.

Just choose something of your day so far that you can feel grateful for.

Maybe even this very moment of peace.

But just awaken yourself to a sense of gratitude.

Some of you know I have been hosting an annual meditation and mindfulness poetry contest for the past 11 years.

To begin today's meditation I'd like to share one of our winning poems,

A Free-for-All,

Written by Wendy Nguyen in Luxembourg.

There was a performance artist,

Bill Harding,

Who used to carry about a briefcase filled with sod.

He would surprise everyone by opening it,

Setting it down,

Removing his shoes,

And stepping into his own private park.

Meditation is like that.

My parents used to fly private airplanes.

It always amazed me that down here it could be gray and miserable and full of car horns and traffic lights.

And up there,

Up past the clouds,

Petty problems disappeared and everything was always peaceful.

Meditation is like that.

You've maybe heard about creating a special place to hold in your mind at the dentist's in traffic under stress.

I used to always use the linens department at Sears or Penny's.

Among soft folded towels in coral and turquoise,

Among display beds piled high with throw pillows and matching comforters,

Who could be worried?

Meditation is like that.

Your own private park you can slip off to whenever you need.

A quiet moment to reconnect to the earth and all that turns with it and all it turns in.

Your own blue sky above the rain clouds you can fly off to whenever you need to rise above the trivial rain showers of the day today to become the sky itself.

Your own perfect image of calm and order,

Not necessitating terry cloth or combed cotton or 100% down.

A realization that everything is in its perfect place and time,

Including you.

It's all yours.

It's all mine.

Anytime.

Meditation is like that.

Bring your awareness now to your breath and just notice your breath as it enters your nostrils.

Just notice the breath coming into your nostrils.

And notice your breath as it leaves your nostrils.

And bring your awareness to the temperature of your breath.

Is there a difference?

Is the breath of the inhale cooler and the breath of the exhale warmer?

Just notice.

And notice the movement of your belly as you breathe,

Your body completely still except for the movement of your breath.

Let your belly relax.

We have such an attraction to tight abs,

But we don't want belly tension.

Let your belly relax.

Just notice the movement of your belly as you breathe.

And now notice the movement of your chest as you breathe.

And bring your awareness to your whole body.

Breathe in from the tips of your toes to the top of your head.

Breathe out from the top of your head to the tips of your toes.

One more time.

Breathing in from the tips of your toes to the top of your head.

Breathe out from the top of your head to the tips of your toes.

And bring your awareness to the top of your head,

The top of your head,

Your forehead,

Your temples,

Eyebrows,

Your eyes.

Just bring your awareness to your eyes.

Breathe into your eyes.

Smile into your eyes.

Just feel a sense of appreciation for your eyes.

Bring your awareness to your nose.

Notice the movement of your breath.

Notice your breath quietly brushing across your upper lip.

Bring your awareness to your lips,

Your teeth,

Your tongue,

Your whole mouth,

Back to your lips.

Bring your awareness to your chin,

Your jaw line,

Your ears.

Just bring your awareness to your sense of hearing.

Notice any sounds you are able to hear.

Feel a sense of appreciation for your hearing.

And bring your awareness to your whole face.

Feel the presence of life in your face.

Feel a sense of appreciation for your face.

Bring your awareness to your neck,

To your shoulders,

Your back,

Your upper back,

Your lower back,

Your whole spine,

Back to your shoulders.

Bring your awareness to your upper arms,

Your elbows,

The insides of your elbows,

Your lower arms,

Your wrists,

Your hands,

The backs of your hands,

Your fingers,

The tips of your fingers,

The palms of your hands.

And just notice what your hands are touching.

Are your hands touching each other?

Or touching something else?

Something warm or cool?

Smooth or rough?

Hard or soft?

Just notice what your hands are touching.

Smile into your hands.

Breathe into your hands.

Feel a sense of appreciation for your hands.

That you are able to feel the softness of a flower petal.

That you are able to wash your dishes,

Fold your clothes,

Hold the hand of someone you love.

Bring your awareness back to your wrists,

Lower arms,

Upper arms,

And back to your shoulders.

Bring your awareness now to your chest.

Pause for a moment and notice if you are able to feel your heartbeat.

Can you feel your own heartbeat?

Breathe into your heart.

Smile into your heart.

Feel a sense of appreciation for your heart.

Bring your awareness to your lungs.

Notice the movement of your chest as you breathe.

Your body completely still.

Nothing moving except the movement of your breath.

Bring your awareness to your belly.

Again,

Just notice the movement of your belly as you breathe.

Smile into your belly.

Feel a sense of appreciation for your belly.

We don't often send a lot of love to our belly,

But our health and peace depend so much on this part of our body.

Bring your awareness to your thighs.

Feel the strength of your thighs.

Awareness of your knees,

Those precious jewels,

And the backs of your knees,

Your lower legs,

Your ankles.

And bring your awareness to your feet,

The tops of your feet,

Your toes,

The tips of your toes,

The bottoms of your feet.

And notice what your feet are touching.

Just notice what your feet are touching.

Feel a sense of appreciation for your feet and how your feet connect you to the earth.

Breathe into your feet.

Smile into your feet.

And bring your awareness to your whole body,

Your whole body.

Breathe in from the tips of your toes to the top of your head.

Breathe out from the top of your head to the tips of your toes.

We close today with a few peaceful affirmations.

Just follow along with my words.

I am present in this moment.

I am calm and at peace.

My mind and body are relaxed and peaceful.

My breath is steady and deep.

My mind is at peace.

I am peaceful and centered.

I am in harmony and balance with life.

I choose peace one day at a time,

One step at a time.

This concludes today's meditation.