The idea is that the body can be seen as the image of your subconscious So by getting in touch with the body we can get in touch with our subconscious and we can get messages from our subconscious Just like we can get,
For example,
Messages from our dreams if we see our dreams as symbolic,
So it's that sort of principle So the first part of the meditation is to simply and naturally and gradually become more present Sometimes the breath is a nice place to start As I breathe in I can feel myself drawing myself into the present moment as I draw breath into the body So as the breath enters the body I can feel like my awareness and attention also enters the body So if this is a technique that works for you to be more present then let's spend a few moments really experiencing that in particular the in-breath And that feeling as we fill the body with air,
We fill the body with our awareness,
Our consciousness And after a while of paying more attention to the in-breath and that feeling of bringing our awareness really into the body,
Really arriving here in this moment with the body,
Bringing the body and our awareness together in this place We can perhaps then just shift our attention slightly a little more to the out-breath As we let go of the breath you maybe feel a release in the body That feeling of the body starting to relax into the present moment Letting go of any fight or flight response and shifting into that relaxation response instead Feeling safe to be completely present Let's spend some time really enjoying that release of the out-breath The release of any stress or anxiety from the body And really consciously giving ourselves permission to relax deeply into this present moment Arriving fully and freely into this moment with the body Okay,
So when you feel like you've spent enough time bringing your awareness into the body,
Allowing yourself to fully relax into the present moment Let's spend a few moments seeing if we can move into an open,
Receptive and welcoming headspace or mental space So there's two main things I like to do to feel that space internally in the mind First is to really give permission for my thoughts to do whatever they want to do To allow them to flow through the mind without making any effort at all to change them in any way It doesn't matter how fast,
Chaotic,
Negative or stressful the thoughts are I'm going to give them complete free reign to just flow through the mind Just as they are,
Actually completely disinterested in the content of our thoughts And the second part to allowing myself to feel that open,
Receptive mental space is to simply be aware of the physical space that's around me right now So noticing the space around my body and the space in the room And being aware of the space above me,
Up into the sky and beyond And all the way around me And with this broad,
Wide,
Expansive and spacious awareness I can just allow those thoughts to continue flowing through the mind And no matter how many thoughts and no matter what the content I've got more than enough space within my awareness to accommodate and still feel open and free So moving away from any feeling of cutting off,
Suppressing or wanting things to be different in the mind But being so open that you can allow anything,
You can allow it effortlessly So let's see if we can bring these two aspects together So we have this fast,
Open awareness of feeling of spaciousness Then let's allow our body and our breath to be full of awareness and presence And our body that is gradually relaxing and releasing and letting go into this present moment Let's hold the body in the centre of our open,
Welcoming and receptive awareness Bringing together the space of the awareness and the presence of the body Okay,
Now for about 10 minutes continuing without commentary Just so we all have that time and space to really explore felt sense of the body within our open awareness And without expectation simply being open to any sort of communication from the body to our conscious mind Any feeling Image,
Words Insights,
Emotions Just a sense of how the body is So the next 10 minutes,
Relaxed present body,
Open,
Receptive awareness A couple more minutes,
Really allow yourself to relax and sink into the present moment Be fully present with your body And keep your awareness light and open And just notice what feelings,
What signals,
What messages your body is transmitting to you in this moment So So So So So One message I'm getting from my body is that it's happy to stay here in quietness and stillness for a lot longer but my mind is saying perhaps it's time to bring the meditation to an end
