Take 5 Minutes To "Re-Lax"

Welcome friends to this meditation.

We'll take the next five minutes to just sit and relax.

We'll use our breath to calm the body and still the mind.

So wherever you are,

Get comfortable and if it's okay,

Go ahead and lower your gaze or close your eyes and take a deep breath in.

And exhale,

Let it go.

Let's do that again.

Take a long,

Slow,

Deep breath in.

And a long,

Slow,

Deep breath out.

Now just begin to watch the breath,

That gentle,

Natural rhythm and maybe bring your awareness to the sensation of breathing,

Feeling the air flow in through the nose and perhaps noticing the warmth of the air as you exhale.

Maybe you place your hands on your belly,

Feeling it gently expand and contract,

Letting that motion soothe you.

And maybe you also become aware of the slight rise and fall of your shoulders as they ride the waves of your breath on top of the ribcage.

And if it feels good,

Start to lengthen the breath,

Finding a sweet,

Soothing rhythm.

And now let's introduce a mantra to give the mind something new to focus on.

As you inhale,

Think re.

And as you exhale,

Think lax.

Inhale re,

Exhale lax.

Inhale re,

Exhale lax.

And as you exhale,

Think re.

And as you inhale,

Think re.

And as you exhale,

Think lax.

Re-lax.

Re-lax.

Repeat this mantra silently to yourself as you continue to breathe slowly and comfortably.

It's time to release the mantra.

Take a long,

Slow,

Deep breath in.

And exhale with a long,

Slow breath out.

When you're ready,

Lift your gaze or open your eyes and return to the space around you.

Namaste.