Hello and welcome to meditation.
All right,
So let's start by settling in,
Allowing the body to be comfortable as much as you can in your chair.
And if you want to close your eyes,
You can,
Or just gaze down.
Feel the spine straight without forcing,
Just alert,
But still comfortable.
Getting into your body in the most gentle way possible right now.
And as you come into your body and settle in,
You're going to feel the body just as much as you can,
Just as much as you can.
And as you come into your body and settle in,
I invite you to start to notice your breath,
Feeling the breath coming through your nostrils,
Allowing any thought that pops in and takes your attention away from the breath to be recognized,
Acknowledged,
And kindly returning the attention back to the breath whenever that happens.
And as you breathe in,
You're going to feel the breath coming through your nostrils,
And kindly returning the attention back to the breath whenever that happens,
Without judging,
Without condemning.
It's just how it is.
And then you're going to feel the attention back to the breath.
Noticing the moment the air comes in to the moment it goes out and comes in again,
Feeling the temperature of the air,
Feeling the movement of each inhale and exhale inside your body,
Allowing each breath to be relaxed,
Allowing each breath to relax your body a little bit more as you bring your attention to your breath,
Letting all other things be on the side for a minute as you kindly pay attention,
Non-judgmentally,
To your breath as it comes in,
As it goes out,
Feeling each breath,
And I invite you to recognize that with each breath,
You are connected to the entire world.
This breath is the same for all of us.
You are connected to the entire world.
This breath is the same for all of us.
You're all sharing the oxygen,
The air on this planet.
So as you feel the breath coming in,
You feel the connection with the entire world,
And as you exhale,
You recognize your part in it.
You are connected to the entire world.
As you exhale,
You recognize your part in it,
The portion that you are contributing back to the entire world as you breathe out.
In this invisible connection with each other,
With the planet,
Feeling each breath inside your body,
And feeling the connection in your body as well,
Breathing this connection,
And as if with each breath,
We are holding hands.
And again,
If thoughts popped in and your attention went away,
Kindly recognize that that happens,
And that's normal.
That's okay.
And with gentleness,
Return the attention back to this breath in your body right now,
This breath.
And I invite you to feel the breath beyond your nostrils,
To feel the breath coming down to your throat,
Maybe on your chest,
Feeling your lungs,
Expanding your ribs,
Moving your low belly.
Each breath brings in this movement.
Each breath is felt in your body.
Each breath is an opportunity to recognize our interconnection.
And as you feel the breath inside your body,
See if you can focus on your heart space,
The movement around your heart space in this center inside you.
And as you breathe,
You breathe in and out from your heart space,
However that feels like to you.
And as you breathe in and take the air in your body,
You allow it to fulfill your heart space,
And as you exhale,
You allow it to go out and touch each and every one of your hands.
You allow it to go out and touch each and every one outside your own body in this exchange of breath into your heart and out from your heart.
Recognizing with each breath our connection,
Cultivating and savoring the fact that we are never alone,
That we are always connected through the breath.
And maybe with each breath that you take in,
Take in also the sense of gratitude for this breath.
And as you breathe out,
You also give out gratitude,
Allowing the heart to pulse with each breath,
A sense of gratitude,
Gratitude for the breath,
For being here now,
For sharing the air,
For being connected.
Letting everything else wait for you at this moment,
And kindly,
Gently bringing the awareness into the breath,
Into the heart space,
And cultivating with each breath a sense of the body,
A sense of feeling the breath,
And feeling gratitude for this connection with all things.
And allowing the sense of gratitude to spread all over your body,
Allowing the sense of gratitude to spread all over your body,
With each breath,
Taking in with the inhale,
Allowing the gratitude to be inside your body,
And giving out as you breathe out,
In this balanced movement of life,
Breathing in,
Breathing out,
Receiving,
Giving,
Savoring,
The felt sense of gratitude in your body,
Savoring each breath that you feel inside your body.
Whether it's an inhale,
An exhale,
Both are needed for the breath to be whole.
And as we get to the end of this practice,
I invite you to again feel the breath in your nostrils,
Feel the temperature of the air,
And know that each time you breathe,
You are connected.
