So let's begin by becoming aware with our senses.
So with your eyes open,
Look around your space.
Notice if there's something that attracts your attention.
Maybe something that you haven't really looked at so much before.
And give it a good look.
And when you feel satisfied,
Close your eyes.
And what do you hear in your room?
Do you hear sounds from outside?
Do you hear ambient sounds in the room?
Or is it so quiet that you can hear your own heartbeat or your own breathing?
Sometimes when you tune into this,
You are surprised at how many sounds there are that you haven't really noticed before.
And this is all about noticing,
Really.
It's not about judging or putting the emotion into whatever you're hearing or feeling or sensing.
It's about just being aware.
Is there anything in your space that you smell or taste?
The coffee or the toothpaste?
And now become aware of your skin,
The sensations that your skin has touching the seat where you're sitting or the bed you're lying on.
Can you feel where your clothing is touching your skin or a blanket?
Where your feet are touching the floor?
Where your hands are touching your lap?
Just become aware of your skin as this precious wrapping of your body.
And now become aware of your body as it sits or lies.
Think about all of your bones,
How they're stacked up,
The strong presence that allow you to be upright.
All these things that we don't often appreciate,
Appreciate.
But now we get to appreciate our bones and all the work that they're doing,
Not only holding us up,
But on the inside,
Creating our blood cells.
And appreciating all the muscles that are attached to those bones that are making us strong,
Giving us posture,
Moving our blood vessels around,
Allowing us to breathe.
And now tapping into your natural breath,
Which happens by itself without your conscious control.
Check in and see what that rhythm is like when you're not controlling it.
Is it faster than you thought?
Slower?
Is there a pause between breaths?
And now we bring our conscious control into it and make the breaths a little bit deeper,
A little more regular.
On the in-breath,
Notice the air coming in is cool.
And on the out-breath,
Notice that the air going out is warm.
You can even say to yourself silently or out loud,
This is the in-breath,
This is the out-breath.
If that's helpful to you.
If that helps you anchor.
And as we go through this process,
Just know that your mind will wander and maybe start thinking or planning or worrying.
And if you could just say to your mind,
Not right now,
I'll get to you later and go back to the breath.
As your breaths get deeper,
You might notice that the walls of your abdomen and chest expand a little bit more.
And then the air comes out as they relax.
Almost like a bellows that you use to get a fire going.
When the chest and abdomen expand,
The air rushes in.
When the chest and abdomen relax,
The air comes out.
So we're going to breathe for a few minutes,
Whichever anchor feels the best to you.
Or you can switch off or you can count your breaths.
Anything goes.
And when you get distracted,
Just notice,
Do not judge.
That's the practice.
And go back to the breath.
Again,
When thoughts start to wander,
Just acknowledge,
I'm thinking again.
And put it aside.
So,
For those of you who have done this chakra cycle with me before,
You know that I usually talk about creativity for the second chakra,
Which is what we're doing today.
So I use the metaphor of flowers and bloom and give you these images of flowers to think about,
But today with so much going on in the world,
I thought I would do something a little bit different.
So,
Let's talk about the second chakra for a second.
It is down in your lower abdomen,
Between your navel and your pubic bone,
Down in there.
And so,
Let's bring our attention and awareness to that area.
Don't stop breathing,
But bring your awareness into your lower abdomen and see if you can create some energy there.
Maybe a warmth or a buzzing energy or a ball of light.
And the second chakra,
As I said,
Is the seat of our creativity.
And today,
I've been thinking about light.
The Buddha said,
Be a lamp unto yourself.
And I think if we can generate more light within ourselves,
That will help us get through this difficult time.
So,
I'd like you to think about a candle that is lit in your abdomen.
And as you add your energy and intention,
It starts to burn a little bit brighter.
Flickering with light and radiance and a little bit of heat.
And breathe into your lower abdomen because,
As you know,
Flames need oxygen.
We don't want to flame out of control.
We want a very controlled,
Bright,
Loving,
Compassionate light.
Jack Kornfield said,
The invitation is not to look for light outside ourselves,
But to discover the radiance and awareness that has always been within us.
So,
Let's sit for a minute with this light generating peace,
Love,
Compassion,
And breathe.
When we sit together in this little virtual circle,
The light gets more powerful.
And when we sit together and we expand our circle out to the world,
It just feels like more love and peace are coming.
And more love and peace are inevitable.
So,
Let's take one big,
Huge breath together.
And as we come back into our respective rooms,
Maybe move some things around.
Wiggle your fingers,
Toes,
Your neck,
Shoulders.
And when you're ready,
You can allow your eyes to open.
Thank you all for being here once again.
And I'll leave you with our little Friday morning Metta second chakra prayer.
May your own inner light always give you peace.
And may we have peace on earth.
