Namaste,
My sacred,
Magical,
Divine,
And magnificent beings.
This practice,
If followed like a disciplined yogi,
Is all you'll need to completely transform your life.
Our minds have a limited capacity to focus.
Today,
We are bombarded by so much information overload that our attention and focus are never sharp.
The mystic Jiddu Krishnamurti famously once said that the ability to observe,
To observe without reacting is the highest form of intelligence.
This meditation,
When practiced on a regular basis,
Equips you with the superpower of observing life without reacting to it.
And this makes you among the rare few who can create a world of love without reacting to it.
Create the life that you want.
Sit comfortably on your yoga mat,
Chair,
Or the floor,
And have your chest slightly up.
Let your eyes shut close,
And let's bring a gentle smile upon your face.
Now,
Get yourself 10% more comfortable,
Than you already are.
This practice is very basic,
Very sort of non-glamorous,
And very straightforward.
It's time to get intimate with your breath.
Let's bring our attention to the breath,
And take a really deep inhale,
And feel that fill your belly.
Let's take a deep breath,
And feel that fill your belly.
And now,
Have a long,
Relaxing exhale.
Continue your awareness on the breath,
On the inhale,
And the exhale.
I'll let you in on a little secret that'll make your meditation journey really effective.
And the secret is,
That concentration in meditation and in life comes from relaxation.
The more relaxed you are,
The more relaxed you feel,
The more laser-focused you can get.
Allow your forehead to relax,
Especially those muscles that help you frown.
Let them really be relaxed.
If you've stopped smiling,
Curve your lips gently into a smile.
Relax your lower jaw,
And drop that tongue loose.
The neck and shoulder are the storehouses of stress and trauma.
As you smile,
Give your neck a relaxing roll,
And shrug your shoulders into a really easy surrender.
Let your hands hang in a careless abandon,
Palms facing up,
With that natural curl of the fingers.
Allow your toes to release any tension.
Let the belly be softened and relaxed.
Let your entire body be at ease.
Let your mind be at ease.
That beautiful smile that you have right now is just what your mind needs in order to relax.
Allow your awareness to scan your body,
And release any obvious areas of tension.
This is what I call the Zen master's or the yogi's state of mind.
Relaxed,
Yet alert.
For the rest of this meditation's duration,
Your breath will be the anchor,
A sort of base camp for this journey.
Start by maintaining that half smile,
And being aware of your inhale,
And your exhale.
I'm going to leave you on this intimate date with your breath for about a minute.
Remember,
When you're carried away by the train of thoughts,
Which you will be,
Take a pause,
Label the thought,
For example,
As a past event,
Or a future imagination,
Or a to-do,
Etc.
And gently,
With friendliness,
Come back to your base camp of observing your breath.
The success of this meditation,
Is not based on having no thoughts,
But your success is based on your ability to come back to your breath,
And leave the train of thoughts behind.
Every time you disengage your awareness from a thought or a train of thoughts,
And focus back on your breath,
You're taking one step closer to mastering your mind.
So,
Really in this meditation,
All distractions are an opportunity for you to be a better meditator.
This time,
I'm going to leave you with your breath for a couple of minutes.
Remember,
That this process is entirely new to your brain,
So there will be resistances.
Keep labeling your thoughts,
Keep disengaging in a very friendly manner,
And keep coming back to your breath.
And this time,
I'm going to leave you with your breath for the next four minutes.
The act of bringing your awareness,
Back to your breath,
Works on the limbic system of the brain,
Especially little organs in your brain called the amygdala and the hippocampus.
And these areas of the brain are responsible for handling difficult emotions and decision making.
This was really a boot camp for the brain,
For your mind,
To function at its most effective level.
There are innumerable benefits of using this meditation as a daily practice for the next 30 days.
If you wish to,
And I highly recommend you to,
Please continue to focus on the breath and develop that detached relationship with your thoughts.
If not,
After a few moments,
Gently open your eyes with a smile.
I'm going to leave you with the beauty of this process.
Namaste,
My sacred beings.
