Equanimity

And I wanted to do this practice.

It's called equanimity.

And this was inspired by my friend,

Nancy Williams,

Who recently did a talk on it,

And it just landed for me.

So I'll introduce it to you.

So first of all,

Let's just start with let go of any expectations.

And just kind of arriving as we are into the space.

And just allow yourself to settle.

And just almost have that felt sense of really landing into your body.

And feel into it.

And as a physical being,

See if there is a sense of steadiness that comes with that physicality of our body.

And to resource further the sense of steadiness,

We can envision the image of a mountain.

Establishing the connection with the earth,

Building on that.

Feeling that sense of support.

Just notice the position of your hands.

You don't have to adjust it,

Just observe it.

Wherever it natural position there soon.

See if you can invite your shoulders to just relax a little bit,

Maybe back and down.

And really connect with the sense of the breath going towards maybe the base of your body.

Just follow the breath in.

And whichever way you connect to your breath,

See if you can feel into the sense of whole body breathing.

Just notice in the space of this breathing happening.

On its own.

See if there could be a place where your body and mind can rest.

And you can even assist it by guiding your,

Just a gentle attention to allowing your eyes to rest.

Your jaw to relax.

Your shoulders and neck release any tension.

Or move towards it.

Soften and settle your hips.

And really soften your belly.

Let it be there just simply receiving the breath.

And relax.

And if you find in yourself,

Holding,

Not holding on,

But using the breath in a useful way,

You can choose to stay here and continue.

Alternatively,

You can choose the anchor or the way to connect to this present moment through your body in the way that's easiest for you.

It could be the sound vibration,

Sensations in your body.

And maybe noticing your thoughts coming and going.

Whatever it is,

See if you can stay with it as an observer in this non-reactive way where you're just watching the sensations or thoughts or sound.

And not clinging to them and just noting the next one that arise.

Good.

And see if you can bring to your mind and to your body.

This felt sense of being at ease.

Or if you don't know what that feels like,

What do you,

How would you imagine it would feel like?

Just resting in this awareness,

Having an open mind and heart.

Somewhere between resisting and cleaning.

And if you can embody it,

Stay with that,

Let it kind of fill your cells.

And if not,

You can think of a creature,

It could be a person or animal,

That has that quality when you look at them or around them.

They just seem so at peace.

And see if you can hold that energy.

Touch it.

Again this is not a cognitive process,

It's a felt sense in the body.

And sometimes phrasing can help in kind of going and allowing that energy.

So if it works for you,

You can either feel into them or even say it to yourself.

May I be with things as they are.

May I accept myself exactly as I am.

May I remain steady during the constant change.

May I experience joy whenever it is present.

And may I let it go freely when it leaves.

And may I be with sorrows and trust that there is enough space to hold it.

May I offer my care and presence to myself and others and not expect anything in return.

May my heart be balanced,

Peaceful and at ease in the midst of all things.

And remember to have your attention into some parts of your body.

The more embodied you will be with the feeling,

The more memory you will have and you could use it as a resource,

The body memory.

So really pay attention to the felt sense of either spaciousness or ease,

Even if it's just a tiny speck.

Because every time you notice,

You give it space and resources to grow.

And may the Slayer be with you.

There is this great quality about this sense of peace and steadiness.

Just can't help but wanted to share it.

See if you can bring to mind anybody that you close to,

Somebody you care about.

Maybe somebody who is struggling or you want to support.

And you can imagine holding that person or creature close to your heart.

May you feel balanced and peaceful.

May you feel ease in your life.

May you feel ease in your life.

And again remind yourself to connect with your body somewhere between heaven and earth.

Notice what energies are present.

The quality of you residing in your body right now.

And whether or not you feel this but there is a spaciousness that we are part of.

And it's vast and can hold of everybody in this world experiencing 10,

000 joys and 10,

000 sorrows.

And we all connected with this capacity to be with the full range,

Full spectrum of our experience.

And as the mountain is connected simultaneously to the ground and to the sky and to the air,

You can imagine yourself connected with all living beings.

And join me in this wish,

May all beings accept themselves as they are.

May all beings feel an inner sense of balance and ease.

And may all beings including us know the deep peace of equanimity.

And I'll ring the ball three times to remind us of how connected we are and how we hear the sound in different spaces and how there is no barriers between us.

May all beings feel an inner sense of balance and ease.

May all beings feel an inner sense of balance and ease.

And whenever you're ready,

You can start transitioning by gently moving your body,

Maybe deepening your breath,

Awakening it from the inside.

Moving gently,

Your fingers and toes.

Allow some stretch.

Welcome back.