Welcome,
And I hope that each one of you will come to find peace within yourself.
Welcome to this new day.
If you've listened to some of my other lessons,
You know that I'm a huge fan of meditating first thing in the morning.
In fact,
It's been my practice for many years to get in touch with my breath every morning before I get out of bed,
And I've found that doing so helps get my day off to a good start.
Ah,
But I know that not everyone is prepared to do that,
Especially before coffee.
But there's no reason to skip a good morning practice altogether.
Perhaps you can do yours after you've had your coffee,
Or perhaps after you've had a shower and gotten ready to face the day.
No matter how you want to do it,
Doing a morning meditation is always a great idea.
So let's pretend that we're at the point in your morning where you're ready to get in touch with your breath.
Close your eyes now,
And take a breath in slowly through your nose,
And then exhale through your mouth,
Letting out a sigh.
Perfect.
Now it doesn't matter if you're sitting,
Lying down,
Or standing.
The only thing that does matter is that you are comfortable,
And that you won't be disturbed in the next few minutes.
And make sure you've silenced your devices so you don't have any distractions.
This.
Here.
Now.
This is your time.
Let's make the most of it.
And while I often have my eyes closed,
On occasion I do keep them open.
But what I want you to do is whatever makes you happy,
And whatever helps you to feel most at peace in this moment.
I'd like each one of you to get comfortable with the idea that this is your meditation practice.
Teachers just give recommendations based on their experience.
And my experience is that you need to do what works for you.
Take in a breath,
And then gently exhale.
This is a time when you can greet a new day.
Just continue to breathe naturally and don't force anything.
Breathing in,
And breathing out.
One breath at a time.
This is a time when you can be grateful for being alive,
For being able to appreciate this moment in time.
Breathe in peace and calm.
Breathe out any negativity.
Breathe in compassion and gratitude.
And breathe out feelings of inadequacy.
And as you breathe out,
Be thankful for being able to begin a new day.
Remember to just breathe at your own pace.
Now feel the air as it comes into your body.
Feel it as it moves inside you,
Filling you up with life.
Use these precious moments to be truly in touch with yourself.
These are moments just as your day is beginning,
When there are no expectations or demands.
And the only thing you have to do next is take your next breath.
Relax your body as you slowly breathe.
Notice any tension that's in your face.
Relax your neck.
Unfurrow your brow and unclench your jaw.
Feel yourself coming fully awake and alive.
Now listen to the sounds that may be around you.
The ticking of the clock,
The snoring of your partner,
The meowing of your cat.
Perhaps the wind in the trees outside or the rain falling softly on your roof.
There is no judgment in this moment.
You're just opening yourself up to the world around you.
Relax your arms and hands.
Relax any tightness in your chest or belly.
Let your legs and feet relax.
Don't clench your hands,
But just breathe,
Just breathe.
And in this moment,
Be grateful for this breath,
This morning,
This time to be alive.
You've heard me say before that your life is like a river and your breath is a river of calm.
It's a stream of tranquility and peacefulness.
It doesn't matter what's going on in the world right now.
It only matters what you do in this moment.
You control your breath.
And by doing that,
You control the way you enter into your day.
Breathing in and breathing out,
One breath at a time.
Listen to the flow of your breath as it moves gently in and gently out.
Your body is awake and alive and the whole day is ahead of you.
Just continue to breathe slowly in and slowly out.
Your minds are so powerful and we can tap into that power just by getting in touch with our breath.
It doesn't require an investment in money or equipment.
It just requires your investment in time and focus.
Time in practice so that it feels normal and you feel confident and comfortable when you sit down to meditate.
Now sniff the air and see what you detect as you continue scanning your body.
Maybe you're lucky and someone has gotten up before you and made coffee or maybe bacon.
This moment,
Right when you're first waking up,
Is a perfect moment to get in touch with your breath and take stock of your body.
A perfect time to acknowledge just how lucky you are to be able to greet another day.
As you do this morning practice,
Be open to whatever comes in the coming day.
In this moment there is no future.
It hasn't happened.
It doesn't exist and the past is gone and unchangeable.
Both past and future are things that only exist in your mind and they needn't occupy our thoughts.
As you breathe,
Feel the energy flowing into you.
It doesn't matter if it's raining or snowing,
Whether it's hot,
Cold or windy.
You are in this moment and that is all you need to know.
Getting in touch with your breath is something you can perfect if you just decide to do it.
And by doing that one thing,
You can conquer problems with anxiety or pain or sleep problems and so much more.
I have found peace within myself and so can you.
Now you're ready to start the day.
You're calm and centered and ready to face whatever the day has in store.
You're ready to move into the day with calm and confidence.
Move into the day being thankful.
The Buddha said,
Let us rise up and be thankful.
For if we didn't learn a lot,
At least we learned a little.
And if we didn't learn a little,
At least we didn't get sick.
And if we got sick,
At least we didn't die.
So let us all be thankful.
And as we come to a close,
Open your eyes and come back into the room.
Wiggle your fingers and toes and stretch and notice how relaxed you feel.
Take one deep breath and let it out through your mouth,
Letting out a sigh.
You're ready to begin your day feeling a greater sense of peace and calm.
I hope this has been a calming session.
Until next time.
