Hello,
My name is Leigh Anderson.
I'm so happy that you are here.
This meditation practice together,
It means a lot to me.
It means a lot because you have found your way here and chosen to be here.
You are doing something on purpose to promote a peacefulness in your body,
In your life,
In your community and in the global body of everything that you do.
Thank you for practicing with me.
This meditation is about reigniting a sense of freedom and creating balance and harmony within ourselves and the many relationships we invite and embrace in our lives.
These relationships can be with ourselves or with other people,
Projects,
Ideas and even time.
This beautiful and complex matrix of all these interconnected energies that comprise our relationships makes up our relational space.
And within this relational space we have the power to define what or who is allowed into this space,
How much room they take up and how much attention we give to them.
The new moon is a time to wipe the slate clean and write a new script.
This new moon in Libra brings an opportunity to reorganize our relationships and ensure that they are serving our highest potential.
You can ask for new programs to manifest what you need and create a new pattern of emotional and even behavioral reactions.
And so I will show you the Velvet Dark.
This is a special space inside your body.
This is a space of creativity,
Manifestation and abundance making.
This is the calm and forgiving space where we make our peace offering when we are meditating.
It's an unconditional,
Honest and loving space.
And as I invite you to explore this space with me,
Please leave any expectations or opinions outside,
Outside of the Velvet Dark and this will deepen your experience.
Let's begin.
In finding a comfortable seated position,
A posture where you feel dignity in the spine.
You feel a sense of physical balance and it's not uncomfortable.
If at any time it becomes uncomfortable or if you are newer to practicing,
You might decide to reposition or transition during the meditation and lie back.
If you do lie down,
You are deciding to stay awake.
And then letting the eyes close gently as your facial muscles relax and ease.
And letting that relaxed feeling sweep over you and skim all down your head,
Neck,
Shoulders,
Arms and continues to release tension and tightness as it just blows all through your hands and fingers.
Trust into the structure of your body.
Know that the bones will hold your body up even as the muscles relax and ease,
Especially in the jaw,
Neck and shoulders.
And notice that even with your eyes closed,
There is a sense of proprioception.
There's a sight without seeing and you can sense the position and location and orientation of your body and its parts.
Notice your spine lengthen as your crown lifts and your shoulders align over your hips,
Gently turning the palms upwards,
Receptive.
You can rest the hands on the knees as your arms rest and maybe they start to feel a little heavy.
Notice there is a clear channel in the centre of your body for your breathing.
And notice if your chin feels like it is level with the floor and then tucking it in just a little.
So there's a slight flexion and curvature in the back of the neck,
Releasing a little bit of the weight of the head from the shoulders.
Finding a sense of trust in your posture as your structure supports and maintains you,
Holding you up.
And with the eyes closed,
I love this symbolic gesture of directing your vision inwards,
Taking a look on the inside with your spiritual eyes.
And now you can see this velvet dark,
This special endless and boundless space of the velvet dark.
In this space there is no time.
You have no age.
And you have no shape.
In this velvet dark there is just you,
The unpeeled you,
The unburdened,
The unhinged,
Raw and authentic.
Realise you are proof of manifestation – you are the universe having made manifest in the form of a human being.
The universe manifests many forms but you have taken shape in the sheath of skin.
And you have developed opinions through your experiencing and you've got attachments and preferences,
A persona,
All kinds of things.
And yet in this velvet dark space a clarity comes in.
Notice that you are already breathing and simply observing the breath without changing anything at all.
Perhaps you can focus all of your attention on the tip of your nose,
Where you can feel the breath coming in and going out.
Even if you can't feel the breath,
Keep your attention here allowing time for your senses to sharpen.
Observing the feeling of the inhale and the exhale.
Letting go of the intellectual knowledge of the incoming and outgoing breath and your awareness feels the breath flow.
Suspending any judgement on the quality of the breath and letting it be.
If your mind wanders gently bring your attention back to the breath with compassion.
You can do this as many times as needed.
There is no need to fight the thoughts,
Let them pass and simply redirect your attention back to the breath.
Feel the flow of the breath at the tip of the nose as if this is the only part of you that exists in this moment.
And perhaps you notice there is a holding feeling in your body.
If there is a certain part of your body that feels something or everything,
Some tightness or stiffness and it's taking your attention.
Maybe it's your shoulder that's sore or knee feels injured,
There's a feeling of tired or maybe there is hunger.
Notice any and all of these things that are calling on your attention and label these things external.
Label them external,
They are things that are outside of the Velvet Dark.
This Velvet Dark space is open and free yet contained within your skin.
From within this Velvet Dark sense the outline of your skin,
Only the outline where you perceive your skin to be.
Everything else is external.
Invite your awareness towards the heart.
Let your awareness travel within the Velvet Darkness towards the heart and so all of your focus now rests on the space inside the left side of the chest,
The heart centre.
And now imagining the heart was a chamber,
A natural enclosed space and big enough that you could enter.
Visualise a door to this chamber.
Allow all your imagination and awareness to picture the door to the chamber of the heart and you collect all of your courageousness as you reach out and start to open that door and you slowly enter the chamber inside the heart,
Inside the chest,
Inside the Velvet Darkness.
Looking around,
Noticing inside this chamber there is your favourite kind of chair.
Find this chair and as you sit down take in the panoramic view around this room,
This chamber of the heart.
Allow yourself time to recognise and return to yourself.
Give yourself permission to see and reconnect with who you are at your very heart.
Feel into this beautiful,
Honest and pure chamber and breathe in a sense of freedom and you can breathe out a sigh of relief as you rest in this space of not having any shape or age or size.
And with a kind curiosity your attention re-enters the Velvet Darkness.
Follow your attention with the Velvet Dark to the expanse of the centre of your head.
There is a space in the Velvet Dark in the centre of your head,
Behind the eyes,
In behind the ears,
Above your throat,
At the centre of your head,
Inside this Velvet Darkness.
And in this space ask the inside for an image of a diamond shape.
And in this space there is a diamond shape.
See this diamond shape.
It has many sides,
Many connections and reflects light and energy.
It represents our many relationships,
Our relational space that affects our conscious and subconscious mind.
Focusing on this diamond shape and you notice that it starts to shake.
There is a shaking happening with this image,
Your diamond in the centre of your head.
There is a rattling on the inside and as you take a closer look you see at the bottom of the diamond there is an opening and unfolding from this opening is a golden thread descending into the body.
The diamond stills and this golden thread descends into the body through the throat,
Past the shoulders,
Down into the abdomen,
Down into the pelvis.
This golden thread all the way to the earth underneath you.
Descending into the earth underneath you,
Splitting and spreading this golden root system underneath the body all stems from this diamond inside the middle of your head.
This golden thread descending through the body all the way into the earth out stretching into a profound root system all beneath you.
See your golden root system descending through this dark earth,
Through this damp dirt.
Descending,
Sprawling and searching like it knows the way until they reach a well spring.
This well spring is everything you imagine it to be.
There's cool clear water surrounded by lush flora and it's thriving peacefully in harmony with an abundant ecosystem.
Notice everything about it,
The depth of the well spring,
The shapes,
The colours,
The mood and the freedom it breathes.
You realise that it has always been here and you have delight and irreverence for this durable well spring deep within the dark earth.
And feeling back into these tip tops of the golden threads,
This root system lightly touching upon the surface of the well spring and they start drinking.
They start consuming from this well spring and every time that you breathe in there is drinking happening.
This well spring offers willingness,
Belonging and freedom as its nourishment travels up the root system ascending all the way back through the earth into the body up through the abdomen,
Past the heart,
Through the throat and feeding into this diamond shape.
The golden threads siphon the compassionate energies of the well spring from underneath the body.
You feel a soothing sense of peace and calm deep inside this velvet dark.
You are safe.
It is all going to be okay.
Every breath in more drinking.
Every breath in more harmony.
Feeling this diamond shape inside the head and the energies of this well spring flow transfusing your diamond shape with clear communication.
Listening and speaking with respect and tact within ourselves and with others.
Flows with understanding to develop realistic expectations of ourselves and others.
It s filling with appreciation of all the beauty and all the ways you make the world a better place.
It s transfusing harmony as you restore your own energy and can distinguish what is yours and what is others.
It s filling with openness to change and expansion that supports your evolution and allows you to grow and being amiable as others grow around you.
There s joy of realizing and sharing the true compromise without resentment.
It flows in empathy for different perspectives,
Different energies and different life paths and knowing that all this is what makes us human.
It s transfusing patience and time to refine and advance within yourself and to improve and nourish relationships with others.
A kind and never ending well spring far beneath the body feeding the golden threads.
Filling your diamond shape as the golden threads harvest continuous joy and love.
Filling your diamond shape with supportive and compassionate energies to restore virtue,
Balance and harmony.
It all travels up the golden threads from far beneath the body.
Filling up your diamond shape improving your relational space with all these energies and intentions.
This diamond shape is almost full and it s okay if this seems like hard work.
Breathe gently as you traverse speed bumps and obstacles that test your reserve.
If vulnerabilities arise take a deep breath and use this as an opportunity to identify what is worth your continued effort because you are.
And show a grateful smile as this beautifully significant well spring just gracefully delivers to your diamond shape and perhaps checking in on your progress as it is filling,
Filling and filling.
Your diamond shape is full.
Feel into the soothing fullness of your diamond shape.
Full from the generous supply and offering of your well spring.
The next time that you breathe in start to renounce your golden root system from the well spring.
Asking these cords to start recoiling back towards the body.
Ascending up towards the body reaching the earth point.
Coming up into the body becoming again one single golden thread curling and climbing back towards the diamond shape.
Arriving inside the diamond shape all your attention on your diamond.
As you exhale your diamond descends.
Your diamond descends through the throat into the chest and into the centre of the heart.
Into the centre of the heart the centre of the chamber where you are.
You see this diamond shape gets smaller and smaller until you can hold it in the palm of your hand.
You hold it in the palm of your right hand here inside the chamber.
Inside the heart.
Inside the velvet dark.
Breathe into this freedom offered in the velvet dark.
This space right here where you can make manifest everything that you desire.
And now harnessing the natural courageousness inside the heart.
You are already free.
You are already free.
Repeating internally.
I am already free.
I am already free to let go.
I am already free to move on.
I am already free to start over.
I am already free to walk my path.
I am already free to rebuild strength.
I am already free to say goodbye.
I am already free to put the past behind me.
I am already free to release what holds me back.
I am already free to take care of myself.
I am already free to find myself.
I am already free to chase rainbows.
I am already free.
In this velvet darkness,
This ageless,
Timeless,
Shapeless,
Peaceful space.
Ask this inside space,
What do I desire?
What do I desire?
What do I desire?
What do I desire?
Gently softening the awareness around the image of the diamond shape in your hand.
Gradually softening the awareness around the image of yourself in the heart chamber.
Let the image start to fade.
The image starts to disappear leaving only your awareness of the eternal velvet dark.
Inviting your attention to the feelings inside the body.
Noticing any release of energies or feelings of lightness in your body and simply resting here gently with clarity in these illuminating moments.
I'd like to read a poem by Jeff Foster.
The call of freedom is to be prepared to be judged,
Called selfish,
Irresponsible,
Even unhinged when you take a step towards freedom,
When you leave the known and walk your path.
Be prepared to feel guilt and shame too,
Like you have done something wrong.
It's just an old feeling from childhood.
Be prepared to feel unprepared.
But be prepared to feel more alive than ever.
Freedom is your true nature.
See you are not trapped in your body,
You are not trapped in your mind,
Your conditioning,
The roles you play,
Even the language you use.
None of these things are who you really are.
You are the presence prior to all identification,
Prior to form itself,
Naturally free and unidentified and unattached and whole.
The great mystery of I am,
Before I am this body,
This gender,
This age,
This name,
This religion,
This unique human form.
Before all the roles I play,
Before this job,
This relationship,
So many tribes to which I imagine I belong,
Before I belong to anyone or anything,
I am freedom itself.
That is my nature.
I was born free and I inherited imaginary chains,
But in any moment,
An insurrection,
A revolution.
Breathe.
Feel the belly rise and fall.
Feel the aliveness in your body.
Hear the sounds all around you begin again.
Hear.
Always hear and you are free wherever you are.
Jeff Foster.
Keeping your eyes closed and perhaps noticing any sensations on the skin,
Your clothes or the air lightly touching your face.
Perhaps you are beginning to notice gravity in the weight of your body again,
Supported by your seat or the floor and perhaps noticing extra sounds again.
Slowly remembering the space around you,
The room around you.
Invite into your awareness the room around you.
Welcoming a longer breath in and an enduring breath out.
Perhaps small movements in the fingers.
If you are seated,
You might start to lean the body forwards and backwards a little or side to side just a little.
If reclined,
A gentle sway or rock or stretch,
Moving just a little until you are ready to return to an upright position or not.
However feels best for you as you transition back into this room.
As you feel ready,
Please raise the hands to your heart center,
Either resting your hands over your chest and heart or bringing them together in Anjali Mudra prayer position.
Notice the palms,
The touch,
There is a connection and an awareness of this moment.
There is balance and harmony in your own energetic space.
Graciously accept and acknowledge your own beauty.
You are wonderful and magical.
You are an amazing creation in the body and mind.
Bliss.
And while we are in this space together,
There is no separation between us.
We are one.
I honor the place in you which the entire universe dwells.
I honor the place in you which is of love and trust,
Of light and of peace.
When you are in that place in you and I am in that place in me,
We are one.
Thank you.
Many blessings.
