Hello,
My name is Stephen Proctor.
In today's guided meditation we will be using the technique of labeling to train our attention.
If you just start out by taking a meditation posture,
Either seated or lying down.
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.
Be aware of the feeling of your body just being here.
To focus your awareness on the experience of just sitting or lying down you can use a simple silent mental label.
Silently repeat sitting,
Sitting or laying,
Laying.
Now allow your awareness to sink down to the place where your body is.
Where your body touches the chair or the floor.
Be aware of that experience of touch.
You can focus your awareness on the experience of touch by silently repeating labels such as touching,
Touching.
Widen your awareness throughout the whole of your body.
Focusing all the different sensations within your body.
To focus your awareness on all the sensations within your body using a simple label such as feeling,
Feeling.
Now relax your chest and your belly and allow your breathing to flow freely.
And as you're doing this use the silent label relaxing,
Relaxing.
Now stop being aware of the feeling of your body just being here.
Now stop being aware of the full length of each breath as it comes in and out of your body.
Be aware of it as it comes in through the tip of your nose,
Moves through your chest,
Deep down into your belly and as it goes all the way back out again.
As your breath comes in silently say in,
In.
As your breath goes out silently say out,
Out.
If your attention wanders off to a thought acknowledge it by silently saying thinking,
Thinking.
When the thinking dissolves bring your awareness back to experience through the breath as it comes in and out.
As your breath goes out silently say in,
In.
As your breath goes out silently say out,
Out.
When the thinking dissolves bring your awareness back to experience through the breath as it comes in and out.
Should a thought arise and it keeps repeating itself you can acknowledge it with a simple label such as planning,
Planning or remembering,
Remembering.
Maybe fearing,
Fearing or fantasizing,
Fantasizing.
Acknowledge it and then come back to the breathing again in and out.
This is the dance of clarifying our attention,
Our awareness.
Now bring your awareness back into your body just feeling yourself just sitting or laying down.
Use a simple label to point your attention towards it.
Immerse your awareness within your body.
Now from this grounding of awareness I'd like you to observe your state of mind.
Use a simple label to point your awareness towards it.
Maybe a simple label such as restless,
Restless,
Sleepy,
Sleepy or maybe peaceful,
Peaceful.
Whatever your state of mind is just acknowledge it with a simple label.
Now bring your awareness back into your body into the feeling of just sitting or lying down.
Now from this grounding of awareness I'd like you to observe your state of mind.
Widen your awareness and allow sounds to come to you.
Hear them but don't listen to them.
And when you're ready you can gently open your eyes.
Be aware of seeing.
Be aware of being in the room.
Take care.
Goodbye.
