Welcome to our second of the series of the Nature Meditations and today we're going to be focusing on the sense of hearing,
Tuning into the sounds that are around us,
As well as listening to a recording of birdsong.
So as always,
Find yourself a nice comfortable position and you can do this seated or lying down,
Just making sure that it's comfortable for you and your back is supported.
Maybe just paying attention to some of those niggly spaces,
Our shoulders,
Our neck,
Our hips,
Our lower back.
And when you feel ready to do so,
Gently close your eyes and if that's not comfortable for you,
Just lower your gaze.
So one,
You're hardly seeing through your eyelashes,
But also fixing your gaze,
You're giving your eyes some rest.
And just bring your attention gently to your breathing,
Not trying to change it in any way,
Just feeling that natural rhythm of in and out,
However that is for you.
And maybe noticing those minute movements within you that your breath creates.
So our focus today is to bring you to the sense of hearing.
So firstly,
I wonder what sounds are around you right now?
And there may be human noises as well as the natural world and just see if you can accept that and add those sounds into the overall tapestry of the orchestra.
I know you can hear my voice and my tone,
The rhythm of the speech,
But also the silences between my sentences.
And I wonder how those moments of silence land in your body.
And then bring in your hearing to the very furthest sound that you could possibly hear.
If you really reach it out as far as possible,
What can you hear?
And then if you bring it all the way back in to as close to you as possible,
To as close to you as possible.
Can you hear your breath?
Maybe your heartbeat?
Or the natural swallowing in your throat?
Maybe you can hear the movement of material,
If you're lying up against something.
Or sitting up against something.
And in a few moments,
This recording will move across to a pre-recorded soundscape of a mixture of birds in the morning and the evening,
With a bit of water.
And just allowing yourself to absorb all of this natural soundscape.
Letting it take you off to maybe creative memories in your mind.
Just easily and gently.
Nice space of pause.
And I wonder if you can bring that then back into your heart.
That sense of maybe calmness or stillness that it might invoke within you.
So I'm going to sign off now,
And the end of the recording will be the end of the soundtrack.
Thank you for joining me today.
So so Bringing yourself very gently out of this session.
Stretching your body.
Wiggling your hands and feet.
Your toes,
Your ankles.
You've been lying down.
You may want to bring your knees up to your chest and just roll from side to side.
Just to massage your back a little.
Come round in your own time.
But when you're ready,
Very slowly open your eyes.
Have another stretch.
And gently bring yourself back into your own surroundings.
Thank you again for joining me.
