This practice is an introduction to building awareness.
So sit comfortably either on a cushion or a chair.
Rest your hands in your lap.
Now just gently bring the attention to your breath.
Just notice your exhale.
And notice your inhale.
And notice the pauses in between your inhale and exhale.
And between your out-breath and your in-breath.
And then begin to find your own rhythm that's comfortable for you.
Feel that rhythm naturally flow.
The practice has simple parts.
One,
Conduct a gentle,
Kind body scan.
And two,
Label any distractions as they occur and let them pass.
I'd like you to begin to scan your body slowly from head to toe.
Just lightly notice all the main areas of the body.
As you literally scan down from your head,
Into your neck,
Into your shoulders,
In your arms,
Your chest,
Your heart,
Your torso,
Your gut,
Your hands,
Your pelvis,
Your upper leg,
Your lower leg,
Into your feet and down to your toes.
When you get to your toes,
Gently start the scan again from your head.
And I invite you to gently but mindfully repeat this body scan throughout the entire practice.
If you miss parts,
Don't worry.
You can pick them up on the next scan through.
As you scan your body,
Distractions will come in many forms whilst you're doing this.
And each time those distractions arise,
I would like you to simply notice them and label them.
We're going to label them very simply as either external,
Emotions,
Or feelings,
Or thoughts.
Remember to keep gently and slowly scanning your body.
Be kind to yourself as you scan your body,
And don't judge whatever you notice.
External distractions may happen frequently.
Distractions such as noises,
Smells,
Light and temperature changes,
Or even movement.
For example,
If you happen to be a passenger on a train or a plane.
Notice these external distractions when they occur and label them as,
Emotions,
Or thoughts.
As external,
And let it pass.
Give it no more attention.
Don't look for these distractions,
Just label them if you notice them.
Once you've labeled them,
Let them go.
And keep gently and slowly scanning your body.
The more you practice this slow gentle body scan,
The less you'll even notice external distraction.
As your attention will be focused more and more internally.
Whilst you are practicing,
You may be distracted by your own interoception.
Your internal senses that notice changes in your organs and internal systems.
For example,
A growling stomach,
Tense muscles,
Your lungs expanding and contracting,
Or maybe your pelvic floor contracting,
Or your heart beating.
When you notice any of these occurring,
I would like you to simply notice it's occurred,
And label them as emotion.
And let it go.
And keep gently and slowly,
Kindly scanning your body.
Labeling any distractions as they occur.
If you notice you are distracted by a combination of energy and motion,
Whose pattern you might recognize as say,
Anxiety,
Discomfort,
Restlessness,
Or even excitement,
Hunger or thirst.
I invite you to just notice those,
And label them simply as a feeling,
And let them go.
For this practice,
Just label it as feeling.
That is enough for now.
And keep gently and slowly scanning your body.
Labeling any distractions that you notice as they occur.
Let's now look at the final form of distraction you may be noticing during this practice,
That of thoughts.
If you notice your mind has started to wander,
Or you start to ask questions or follow trains of thoughts,
Just gently notice it's happened,
And notice and label it as a thought,
And let it go.
You may find your mind racing or jumping from thought to thought,
Or idea to idea.
When you regain your attention,
Just notice the thought,
Be kind to yourself,
Don't judge or criticize yourself.
Simply label it as a thought,
And let it go.
And keep gently,
Slowly,
And kindly scanning your body.
Labeling any distractions as they occur.
As each emotion,
Feeling,
Or thought shows up to distract you,
Just label it,
And let it go.
Become the witness of what is going on within your system.
Do not be subject to it,
Do not be caught up in it.
See these distractions as objects,
And label them as they arise.
Notice the more you practice,
The bigger the gaps become between the distractions.
Notice the peace that arises in the gaps.
Enjoy that peace.
In this practice,
Don't focus on what the emotion or the feeling was,
Or what the thought was.
Simply label the phenomenon.
Don't chase it,
Just let it go.
And notice the peace in the gaps.
And really enjoy that peace.
I now invite you to try this practice on your own.
I'm going to give you three minutes to gently scan your body,
And label the things that arise,
And let them go.
Gently bring your attention to your cushion or your seat.
And just let your breath do its own thing naturally.
Let it find its own natural rhythm,
Don't try and control it.
Feel your body well grounded,
And when you're ready,
Open your eyes.
This practice is designed to help you build your interoception,
The ability for you to notice and sense what's going on inside of your body,
And begin to distinguish between the different phenomena that occur.
This sensing system gathers vital information,
Which we all too often ignore.
Or just as unhelpfully,
On the opposite extreme,
We become their servant,
Unconsciously attending to their every call.
Being able to see and understand the different types of messages that our body-mind is giving us,
Is an important factor in our ability to sense and perceive.
So let's begin with the first step,
Before we can begin to choose how to respond.
By focusing inwards,
We can improve our ability to sense this important area of information,
Which is often overlooked.
This practice is just the start of improving our awareness,
And finding the peace that occurs,
When we improve our ability to focus,
And our ability to let the noise pass.
Being able to choose which signals to let pass,
And which to take note of is vital.
This may enable us to make better quality choices for our quality of life and our well-being.
Regularly practicing this simple skill,
Can stop us from being caught up in our emotions,
Feelings,
Or our thoughts.
So I invite you to practice this on a regular basis,
And develop your skills of being able to create some space between what is happening within you,
And being able to witness it.
May you be safe.
May you be well.
May you be happy.
And may you always live with ease and peace.
