Hello,
My name is Bella,
And today I will be guiding you through a 10-minute meditation on gratitude.
I invite you to find a comfortable space,
Free of any distractions,
Choosing a posture that is sustainable within your own body,
Whether that's sitting upright cross-legged or laying down.
We will begin this practice with an inner exploration of the physical body,
Noticing any areas that we may feel a sense of holding,
Breathing into them to find a sweet release,
Traveling inward,
Noticing where we are today and what we have brought to this practice,
Allowing your body to soften,
Your shoulders dropping away from your ears,
Letting the tongue fall away from the roof of your mouth,
Your jaw unclenches.
And as we begin to quiet the mind,
Imagine a flame flickering about an inch away from the base of your nose,
Feeling its warmth and the way that it dances ever so slightly.
And as you focus your attention on the flame,
Begin to deepen your breath,
Breathing slowly enough that your exhale won't disturb or blow out that flame,
Taking long,
Slow,
Deep and gentle breaths,
Keeping that warm flame alive.
And if you find your thoughts beginning to get louder,
Draw your focus back into the flame and the deepening of your breath.
See if you can keep this slow,
Intentional breath as we move into a practice of gratitude.
Breathing in a state of gratitude allows us to be in an ultimate state of receivership.
As we experience gratitude in the body and heart,
Feelings of lack or separation begin to dissolve.
For this gratitude practice,
Imagine that your palms are outstretched in front of you,
Facing up towards the sky,
Sort of like they're in a little cup shape.
And begin to lovingly,
One by one,
Place things that you are grateful for into the palms of your hands,
Softly cradling them,
Expanding your state of gratitude within your heartspace.
Let these come up organically for you.
There is really no need to force anything,
And it's okay to take your time.
Even if you can find just one thing in your life to place within your palms that brings up a feeling of gratitude.
It could be as simple as this present moment and the aliveness that you feel within your body.
A beating heart,
Your breath flowing in and flowing out.
That is enough.
We'll be here for a few rounds of breath.
Now,
Begin to take whatever may be in your palms and start to visualize yourself placing each object of gratitude inside of your beating heart.
Feel free to place your hands over your heartspace,
Allowing the energy of your heart,
Swelling with love,
To envelop and bathe everything inside with an overflowing feeling of gratitude.
Rest your attention here and allow your breath to deepen into this center,
Relaxing the body,
Quieting the mind as you expand and surrender to this feeling.
A beautiful quote by Eckhart Tolle reads,
When you go deeply into the presence,
Gratitude arises spontaneously,
Even if it's just gratitude for breathing,
Gratitude for the aliveness that you feel in your body.
Gratitude is there when you acknowledge the aliveness of the body.
And as we close out this practice,
Take a few moments to ask yourself if you notice any subtle shifts that have occurred from when we started this practice.
And it's okay if the answer is no.
Simply observe the body,
The breath,
And the mind.
Placing your hands over your beautiful heart,
Give one final moment of gratitude,
Saying thank you to yourself,
Giving yourself this time to explore feelings of gratitude within the body,
Remembering that it is always available to you whenever you may need it.
And whenever you may be ready,
You can slowly begin to open your eyes.
Thank you.
