Meditating Through The Senses

Welcome to this guided meditation.

In this meditation we will be using our senses as a tool to bring us into the here and the now.

So the invitation here is to fall awake through the senses and to bring curiosity to our emotional and mental state.

This idea of the beginner's mind as if experiencing our emotional,

Mental and physical way of being as if for the very first time.

Closing the eyes if you wish or you can have the eyes with a soft gaze looking downward past your nose.

So connecting first with our intention to practice.

Why have you come to meditate?

So maybe even placing a hand on the heart here.

So your intention may be to develop healthier ways to deal with stress,

To get to know yourself and your internal state,

Mental,

Emotional,

Physical.

So you may even want to show up at your best for others,

To be really present in your life.

The sense of being completely here in every moment of our lives.

So really connecting with your intention now.

And how are you sitting?

So taking a few moments now to find a posture that gives you a sense of comfort yet wakefulness at the same time.

So maybe making some movements here that help you get into this posture,

This way of being.

And as you do so,

Making these movements,

Do so with mindfulness.

Make them a mindful practice.

So the back should be erect.

So however you're sitting,

Maybe imagining a thread.

So a thread being pulled from the lower spine right up through the spine and through the top of the head and being pulled a little bit taut.

So this imagining gives us an elongated back.

Maybe dipping the chin as well so we are not straining the neck.

So this slight dip in the chin can really elongate the neck.

So maybe placing hands on lap,

One hand on top of the other.

And really sensing into this posture,

Even imagining the shape of the body now,

Really connecting with the body and its shape and its posture.

And now just beginning to become aware of how the body is just naturally breathing itself.

Taking a few moments to notice where you're aware of the breath most prominently.

So where do you feel the breath in this body?

So this may be the tip of the nose,

Cool air coming in on an inhale,

Warmer air going out on an exhale.

Are you maybe aware of the breath in the body in the chest?

So maybe there's shallow breathing and it's all in the chest here.

So the rise and the fall of the ribs,

The chest wall.

Maybe your breathing is deeper.

So maybe you're noticing in the diaphragm,

Upper stomach,

Or maybe even deeper in the lower stomach.

So really not changing,

Trying to change the breath in any way here,

Just noticing where you sense this breath in the body.

Where is it the strongest?

And as you become aware of this breath in body,

Breathing in and just noticing the breath coming in,

Breathing out and just noticing the breath going out.

As it's happening moment to moment.

Being aware of the breath coming in on an inhalation,

Going out on an exhalation.

Just being aware of the simple inflow and outflow of the breath.

Just letting it be.

Body breathing itself.

This body that has been breathing itself since you were born.

The sense of the breath as it comes in through the nostrils and the mouth.

The texture of the sensation of the breath.

Temperature of the breath.

This felt experience of breathing.

And just taking this part of the practice one breath at a time.

And in doing this practice or indeed any meditation practice,

It's very normal and quite natural and expected for the mind to wander off,

Thinking about this,

Worrying about that,

Planning.

Could be a memory or a dream,

A fantasy.

So when this happens,

When the mind wanders off,

Just take a moment to notice where the mind has wandered to.

And maybe even just labeling it as simply thinking.

Thinking.

And then very gently guiding the awareness back to just breathing.

Breathing in and breathing out.

So just allowing for this natural inflow and outflow without any need to push the breath out or pull the breath in.

We're simply being aware of breathing.

Much like the inflow and outflow of waves coming onto the beach on an inhale and off the beach on an exhale.

This ocean breath.

And so too our awareness can simply ride the natural inhalation and exhalation of breath.

So now just allowing the breath to go into the background of our awareness now.

As we shift our awareness and our attention to include the entire body.

So this field of sensations that we call the body.

Just being aware of sensations in the body.

So this body has a field of sensation that is occurring at any given point.

They appear,

They disappear,

They come,

They go.

Some sensations may linger longer than others.

Some are just fleeting.

So there may be sensations of temperature.

So warmth or heat or coolness.

There may be a sense of shakiness in the body.

Itchiness,

Tingling,

Pressure pulses,

Heaviness or lightness.

And there may be even parts of the body that feel pain or discomfort.

None of this is wrong.

And as much as possible holding this body in awareness.

And just being aware of the variety of sensations that seem to be coming and going,

Appearing,

Disappearing.

And just allowing them to be.

And all the while bringing the mind back that has wandered.

And as we pay attention to sensations in the body,

We might even adopt this attitude of curiosity or beginner's mind.

So becoming aware of these feelings that are here in the body as if for the very first time.

And in doing this practice we may even notice emotions or feelings arise.

And at times a sense of frustration,

Boredom,

Irritation.

Maybe a little bit of anxiousness.

Maybe there's not very much at all.

Maybe there's a sense of calmness.

And these emotions or feelings again arising,

Hanging around for a while and disappearing.

And now becoming aware of where these experiences,

These emotions are felt in the body.

So this mind-body.

So what happens in the mind is felt in the body.

And what's happening in the body is felt in the mind.

This connection here.

So bring awareness of where these experiences,

These feelings are felt in the body.

And again,

Just being aware of them without striving to change them or make them any different.

Just allowing the presence and letting them to be.

Now beginning to gently shift from the field of sensations in the body and allowing that to fall in the background of our awareness.

So we bring now to the foreground of our awareness these strange looking things that are attached to the side of our head.

We call them the ears.

So bringing awareness to our ears as we become aware of hearing.

So the outer ear,

The inner ear.

Because of the brain and the ears,

We have this gift of audibility,

Of hearing sounds.

So sounds come in the form of pitches or tones,

Sometimes frequency sounds.

Even my voice right here is a sound.

And you may notice that a sound comes from a sense of silence.

Then has a picture tone.

And then rises and falls and then goes back into silence.

So you may have noticed that even in between the silence there is some sound there.

There is not complete silence.

Even trying to listen now,

Opening up the ears to listen to the sound of silence.

So just being aware of this very fundamental aspect of hearing sounds.

Rising sounds.

Falling sounds.

And taking a moment now to know if you're trying to hear sounds.

And if you are,

Just being aware of whatever hearing is occurring.

So allowing the ears to open and receive sound.

So this receptive place of just hearing whatever sounds are landing on the ears.

So recognizing and allowing and letting it be.

And in doing this practice you may become aware of how the mind becomes busy with images or stories connected with the sounds.

And as much as possible just noticing this and coming back to just being aware of the fundamental aspect of hearing.

Sounds appearing and disappearing.

Just sounds.

So becoming aware maybe of the sound that is furthest away from you.

Now becoming aware of the sound that is closest to you.

So if the sound that is closest to you isn't your breath already,

Connecting with that.

Connecting with the breath once again.

Simply this inhale and exhale.

Like waves coming on a beach and off a beach.

Like the ocean.

Breath like an ocean.

And the sound of the breath like an ocean.

Inhaling and exhaling.

And now once again connecting to this body that is sitting here.

In this posture and maybe placing a hand on the heart.

Giving yourself thanks for taking the time out of your life to come and practice in this way.

No matter how it's gone for you,

There's no bad meditation.

We're coming to know ourselves as we are.

So giving yourself thanks for this.

Acknowledging that.

And just coming aware of the breath once again.

The body and the breath.

So how the breath is in the body.

Maybe opening your eyes if they were closed.

Looking around the room.

Stretching if you wish.

And see if you can bring this sense of presence,

Curiosity and kindness with you as you go about the rest of your day.

Thank you.