Hello,
Andrea here.
Welcome.
This is a short meditation that supports in finding a sense of rest or relaxation with the breath.
When we can relax with the breath,
We can more easily find relaxation in the body,
In the mind,
And also in the heart.
So finding a posture that is stable and comfortable.
Again with your eyes either gently closed or you can have the eyes slightly open with a fixed gaze.
And begin to pay attention to your body,
Allowing it to relax and noticing the sensations that are here as you pay attention.
If you notice any obvious areas of tension,
You can soften them.
Letting the eyes and the face be soft,
The shoulders dropping,
The hands resting easily.
Letting the belly be soft and the breath natural.
Let yourself just rest for a moment,
Being aware of what you notice here as you feel your body,
As you rest on the earth.
And as you sit quietly,
You'll notice there are different thoughts and feelings and sounds that arise and pass,
Including these words.
Just let the sounds and thoughts arise and pass easily like waves in the ocean.
Letting your mind and your heart be soft,
Be open,
And at peace.
Letting the attention be kind and relaxed and become aware of the fact that you're breathing.
In the midst of the thoughts,
The sounds,
The feelings that come and go,
You can sense your natural life-giving breath.
Sensing the feeling or the sensation of this rhythm of breath.
It might be coolness in the nose,
Tingling in the back of the throat,
Or you might feel the breath as a movement of the chest or the rise and fall of the belly.
Let the breath have its natural rhythm.
Rest your attention in the breathing.
Focusing on the breath is our beginning.
It's a way of connecting the mind and body and heart together here in the present.
And if it's helpful for you,
You can take one or two deeper breaths and feel what place in the body the breath is most apparent to you.
And even if your breath is quite soft,
Seeing if you can let your attention be quite careful and gentle as you notice the coolness,
The tingling,
The movement or vibration,
The expansion of the belly,
Noticing whatever you can of the breath and resting your attention in it.
As you feel each breath,
Let there be a sense of relaxation.
After several breaths,
You'll probably notice that your mind wanders.
Even a wave of thought or feeling or a sound will come and carry you away.
As soon as you notice this wave,
You can acknowledge it very simply.
There's been thinking or imagining or sound and release it.
Let it go when you notice it coming back gently and directly to feel the breath again.
And after a few breaths,
The waves of thought or sound may again carry you off.
The mind will wander as soon as you notice,
Gently let go and return back to feel the next breath when you can.
No judgment,
No evaluation.
This is a gentle training of learning to come back and be here one breath after another to center yourself in the breathing.
And if you have difficulty feeling the breath,
You can take one hand and place your palm on your belly so that you feel the movement of belly in the flat palm of your hand.
Resting your palm there,
You can feel the natural rhythm as the breath opens and expands,
Letting your hand and belly together become the focus of breathing for this time.
This universal breath can calm us and center us and we can return back to it again and again.
So in a moment,
We're going to be completing this breathing practice.
So taking some deeper breaths,
Noticing again your body sounds,
Thoughts in the mind,
Emotions in the heart,
And coming back to the present moment,
Opening your eyes and moving on with the rest of your day,
Hopefully with more relaxation and ease.
