All right,
Take a moment to feel the posture you are in,
Just feel the body as it comes up very naturally.
So today we are going to do a very simple practice,
One that will explore different faculties of mind,
And again we are trying to maintain a natural flow.
These are faculties of mind that we all have,
And it doesn't need to feel complex or fancy.
So just let the mind freely explore whatever is happening right now,
Just as if you were watching a landscape,
Letting your eyes drift from one place to the other,
Now even with your eyes closed,
You can do that with attention,
Different sounds,
Different feelings in the body,
Some pleasant,
Maybe some unpleasant feelings,
All of that is just happening right now.
This is one of the most fundamental skills we are developing,
Coming back to what's happening now,
And coming back to the now just means feeling what's happening.
Now again,
Just as if we were looking at a landscape,
Observing it,
Letting our gaze go from left to right,
Up and down,
Maybe something in particular catches our attention,
And we are able to see the full landscape,
But pay extra attention to one specific part.
We are going to do the same,
But with sensations in the body,
We are fully feeling everything that's happening in the room,
But the center of our attention is around sensations in the body,
The feeling of sitting,
The breath coming in and out.
We are aware of what's happening right now,
Aware that we are sitting,
Aware that we are meditating,
Aware of this room,
Aware of the context in which this is happening,
But we're attentive to body sensations.
Now let's look more specifically at what's happening with the breathing.
How does the breath affect the body?
What are the sensations that make you notice that you're breathing?
Feel the breath in all of its details,
The feelings in the nose,
In the throat,
In the chest,
In the abdomen,
Even the slight movements of the body.
This is all the breath.
As you breathe in,
Feel the body expanding,
The belly rising.
Feel the air passing through the nostrils or the mouth.
As you breathe out,
Feel the abdomen and chest falling.
Feel the air passing through the nostrils or mouth again.
Feel the temperature of the air.
Is it colder or warmer when it comes in?
Is it colder or warmer when it goes out?
We are using our mind to notice all these little things that go unnoticed in daily life,
Feeling them fully,
And even as sounds come in,
Don't try to push them away,
But rather leave them in,
Leave them in consciousness,
But in the background.
Bring back attention to the breath.
We're not pushing away anything.
Attention is on the breath,
On breath sensations in the body,
Still open to everything else that's happening right now,
Very naturally.
Just as if you were watching the sunset,
Not trying to adjust anything,
Just letting things be.
Now,
Let's bring attention back to the full body,
Feeling all sensations,
Looking at them regardless if they're related to breathing or not,
Just widening attention a bit more,
Still fully aware of the atmosphere in the room,
Of everything else that's happening right now for you,
Including everything in the practice,
Thoughts,
Emotions,
Intentions,
That can all be there.
We're attentive to body sensations,
That's our task.
Now,
As we keep feeling the full body,
I will ring the bell,
And once I do,
You can open the eyes,
But practice will continue for a minute or two.
I want you to keep practicing with eyes open,
By putting attention on the full body.
So,
Eyes will be open,
There will be seeing happening,
But the emphasis is on body sensations.
So,
Notice how opening the eyes affects attention,
Affects what you're conscious of,
Might affect how you perceive the body.
Still bring sensations to the foreground,
At the center of experience,
And as I ring the bell again,
To end the meditation,
You can bring back attention to the visual field,
And let the body sensations take a background role.
