Allowing this opportunity to gently let the eyes close or finding a gaze point somewhere down in front of you to let the eyes rest.
Allowing awareness to begin to make contact with this inner landscape.
Beginning by taking notice of maybe qualities of the mind.
The mind is a bit restless,
Busy,
Hurried with the activities of the day leading up to this moment,
Maybe anticipating what's to come.
And just to gently acknowledge whatever's arriving here as you settle into this practice.
And also noticing what's arriving here in the state of the body.
The body is tired or energized.
And just allowing for a moment of connection to whatever it is that's here.
And as you sense the body,
Allow awareness to take notice of where the body feels grounded,
Both stable and supported.
See if you can really let the body receive the support that's here.
And also to take notice with the stability that's here,
This body is also engaged and alert and active.
Seeing if you can allow awareness to connect to a sense of actively taking one's seat to practice.
Allowing for any subtle adjustments as you meet the conditions of the body as it is now to be shifted to allow for any sense that might need more openness or more ease to fully arrive this body into this moment,
To this practice.
And allowing now the awareness to connect to the breath.
Settling awareness to notice the qualities of the breath that are here.
Maybe inviting and noticing of the temperatures of the breath.
Coolness or warmth.
Maybe notice of the sense of expansion or opening that arises in the inhale or the falling away or contracting that occurs in the exhale.
Trusting the attention to this experience of moment to moment awareness of breath.
You might notice the attention is distracted,
Becomes pulled away in some particular way to maybe thinking,
Experiences in the environment,
Sensations of the body or even feelings.
This is what's just arising.
So allowing for a gentle acknowledgement,
A gentle allowing for whatever it is that's pulled the attention away.
Not judgment or needing to hold on or doing anything to the experience is noticed.
Let the attention come back and reconnect to the breath.
Now allowing awareness to shift from the focus of the breath,
Letting awareness begin to take notice of this body and sensations alive in the body.
And so opening the awareness to just notice qualities of sensations that are here.
Maybe sensations of temperature,
Pressure,
Touch,
Expansion,
Contraction,
Tight,
Loose.
Just sensing into this body as it's here now.
And as awareness begins to make contact with the sensations of this body,
Seeing now if you can let the attention begin to investigate in this field of awareness to sensations in the body,
Any particular emotion that might be present,
Making itself known or alive,
Expressed in the body.
And so beginning to just take notice if maybe agitation,
Restlessness,
Sadness,
Happiness,
Excitement,
Boredom might be here.
And to allow awareness to begin to investigate in the same way that we can the breath,
Noticing the qualities that are here now.
What qualities of sensation in the body are making themselves known with emotion?
Understanding that there may be a tendency to want to push away or pull away from emotion that may feel challenging or difficult and also maybe the pull to want to follow emotions that feel more pleasant and enjoyable.
And in this practice of awareness to emotions,
Just to allow awareness to connect,
To be with,
To observe the unfolding moment to moment-ness of emotions,
Making themselves known and alive in the body.
Sensing into the contraction,
Sensing in to the pull,
To the lightness,
To the heaviness,
To whatever it is that's here.
Having awareness to observe,
Allow,
Be felt and known and then let go.
And then gently now allowing the attention to release from an awareness of emotion and direct attention back to just the breath.
Taking notice of the breath as it moves in to the body and as it moves out.
Sensing the qualities in the unfolding moment to moment-ness of this breath.
