Hello,
My name is Stephen Proctor.
During this mindfulness exercise we'll be using a technique to observe how our attention moves to thought and how our awareness of thought affects it.
If you just start out by taking a meditation posture.
Now close your eyes over lightly.
Relax your jaw and place your tongue behind your two top teeth.
Now gently take a deep breath in and as you're breathing out allow yourself to relax.
Now start to be aware of the feeling of your body sitting or lying down.
Start off by noticing that throughout your body there's a feeling of heaviness.
Also allow your awareness to sink down to the place where your body touches the chair or the floor.
Hold this feeling of heaviness in touch in mind continuously and notice every time your attention wanders away from it.
Now gently place one hand in the other touching them lightly together and laying them in your lap.
Bring your awareness to the touch of your hands.
Not squeezing your hands but just holding them lightly.
Start to become aware of the sensations of touch between your hands.
Hold that touch of hands in mind continuously and notice every time your attention wanders away from it.
As your attention wandered off acknowledge it and come back again to the touch of your hands.
Now we're going to set up a barrier from which to observe thinking.
Keep your hands gently in mind and at this point stop thinking.
Don't think.
Relax and see if you can observe the moment that thinking begins.
Now we're going to set up a barrier from which to observe thinking.
Have you wandered off to thought?
If so acknowledge it by silently saying thinking,
Thinking.
Then gently bring your awareness back to the touch of your hands.
Keeping the touch of your hands in mind and at this point stop thinking.
Don't think.
Relax and see if you can observe the moment that thinking begins.
Now we're going to set up a barrier from which to observe thinking.
Keep your hands gently in mind and at this point stop thinking.
Is there thinking present?
If so acknowledge it by silently saying thinking,
Thinking.
And gently bring your awareness back to the touch of your hands.
Now for the next exercise we're going to remember our hands.
And see if you can notice not only the moment that thinking begins,
But can you also notice the moment it ends.
Keeping the touch of your hands in mind and at this point stop thinking.
Don't think.
Relax and observe what happens.
Keep your hands gently in mind and at this point stop thinking.
Is there thinking present in your mind?
If so acknowledge it by silently saying thinking,
Thinking.
Did you notice the moment ended?
What does it feel like now the thinking has dissolved?
Bring your awareness back to the touch of your hands.
And at this point stop thinking.
Don't think.
Relax and observe what happens.
Keep your hands gently in mind and at this point stop thinking.
Is there thinking present in your mind?
Acknowledge it with a silent label thinking,
Thinking and observe the moment it ends.
What's the experience now that there is no longer thought present?
Bring your awareness back to your hands,
The touch.
For this next exercise see if you can notice the moment the thought begins,
But also don't use labels.
Just observe the thought when it's present and see if you can actually notice the moment it ends.
And at this point stop thinking.
Don't think.
Relax and observe what happens.
What's the experience now that there is no longer thought present?
Is there thinking present?
Just observe it.
Now I'd like you to bring your awareness back into your body,
The feeling of heaviness,
Of touch.
Open up your awareness and start to be aware of any sounds around you.
Allow the sounds to come into you.
And when you're ready you can gently open your eyes.
Be aware of seeing.
Be aware of just being in the room.
Take care of yourself and goodbye.
