MBCT-L Body Scan 2

Hi,

My dear mindfulness friends.

This is the second version of body scan.

Compared to the first one,

We bring more mindfulness attitudes into this practice,

Such as no judging,

Patience,

Beginner's mind,

Trust,

No striving,

Acceptance,

Letting go,

Befriending,

Compassion,

Appreciation and gratitude,

And generosity,

Being generous to ourselves,

To our body.

So see if it's okay to let these mindfulness attitudes support your whole practice,

Remembering to be patient and compassionate to yourself and your body,

And no need to strive for any special state,

And no need to criticize yourself,

Especially when you feel sleepy,

When you have a very busy mind.

Just allowing each moment as it is,

A deep sense of allowing.

So whenever you are ready,

Whenever you find a comfortable and wakeful posture,

I am inviting you to pay attention to your whole body,

Feeling the space your body takes up,

Feeling any contact points,

Maybe feet,

Or your back of legs,

Your whole back.

They may touch on the mat or your bed.

And also being aware of your hands,

Where you put your hands on.

So building a sense of connection with these contact points.

And whenever you are ready,

Bring your awareness to your breath,

If it's okay.

Feeling some bodily sensations as you breathe in and breathe out,

Maybe tip of nose,

Nostrils,

Or your chest,

Your abdomen,

Belly.

So really zooming in any detailed sensations.

Moving to the raw materials,

No need to think of your breath.

Only in this moment,

Be with your breath.

And then moving to your feet,

Your both feet.

But you can still allow your breath to be in your background.

So any sensations in your feet,

Maybe your toes,

Soles,

Insteps,

Heels.

Being curious,

Really being interested.

And seeing if you can find any sensations of your feet.

Maybe a sense of tingling,

Numbness.

But it's also okay to register a blank.

No need to create any sensations.

And with your next out breath,

Letting go of this part and moving to your ankles.

And this part of body,

We often take for granted until something goes wrong.

So now it's a time to pay attention.

And then moving to your lower legs,

Calf muscles,

Shingles.

And your mind may start to wander.

You might have a very busy mind,

A lot of thoughts.

It's okay,

It's very natural.

Just acknowledging where does your mind go.

Maybe worries,

Daydreaming,

Memories.

And bring mindfulness attitudes like patience,

Compassion into this mind wandering.

And then very gently but firmly returning to the lower legs we intend to focus on.

And with your next out breath,

Letting go of this part.

And then moving to your knees,

Kneecaps,

Sides of knees and back of knees.

If you notice any sense of discomfort,

See if it's okay to allow this discomfort to be here.

No need to push them away or fight against them.

And bring a sense of acceptance into this discomfort.

This acceptance doesn't mean you like it.

It just means you clearly see them,

You notice them.

And then breathing in,

As you breath out,

Letting go.

And bring your attention to your thighs.

Big muscles,

Heavy bones.

And sensing your thighs and noticing any sensations.

And they might change from moment to moment or they might stay the same.

And then with your next out breath,

Moving to your heaviest area.

Your buttocks,

Hips.

And you may feel a sense of gravity,

Heaviness.

And whenever you are ready,

Breathing in and breathing out.

Really letting go of this part and also maybe let go of your any thoughts.

And bring your awareness to your lower back.

See if it's okay to bring a sense of curiosity into your lower back.

Noticing if any sensations may arise.

And whenever you are ready,

Moving to the front of your body,

Your abdomen,

Belly.

And you may feel some gentle movements.

The rising of each in breath and the falling away of each out breath.

Feeling how your breath can relate to your body sensations.

How they can become the one.

And then moving to your chest.

Softening your chest if you notice any sense of tightness,

Tension.

So if you feel any sense of sleepiness,

Drowsiness.

You can maybe adjust your posture or moving your fingertips,

Your toes.

Or you can open your eyes.

So really respond to the sleepiness.

But always being kind to yourself.

No need to criticize yourself.

It's not a bad thing or it's not wrong to feel sleepy.

And then when you are ready,

Breathing in and breathing out.

Letting go of this part.

And shifting your attention to your upper back.

Shoulder blades and also your shoulders.

Softening any holding sensations.

And you may want to drop down your shoulders.

Releasing it.

And with the next out breath,

Moving your attention to the upper arms.

Your elbows.

And lower arms.

And all the way down to your hands.

Any sensations in your hands.

Maybe fingertips,

Fingers,

Palms,

Wrists.

Letting go of any squeezing sensations.

If you are squeezing your hands.

Really softening it,

Opening it.

Also becoming aware of your emotional state.

For example,

You may feel bored,

Anxious,

Angry,

Worried.

See if it's okay.

Just notice your emotions but not react to them.

Just allowing them to be here.

And then returning to the practice.

Returning to your hands.

So breathing in as you breath out.

Letting go of this part.

Really letting go.

And moving your attention to your neck.

The front,

Sides of your neck and back of your neck.

You may notice some gentle movements as you breath in and breath out.

Your throat.

And with the next out breath,

Releasing.

And moving to the top of your body,

Your head.

We start with our face.

So any facial expressions.

Softening your face.

Softening any tight muscles on your face.

And then moving to your jaw.

Your mouth.

And inside your mouth,

Your teeth and tongue.

And your nose.

Cold air enters into your nostrils and warm air comes out.

Noticing what's changing from moment to moment.

And what's staying the same.

Really being patient.

Being curious.

And bring your beginner's mind into each part of your body.

So now moving to your eyes.

Muscles around your eyes.

Eyelids.

Eyeballs.

And the eyebrows.

And softening your eyes if you feel tight.

And then moving to your forehead.

And whenever you are ready,

Take a deep breath.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Letting go.

And moving to the sides of your head.

Ears that are receiving sounds.

And moving to the back of your head.

The whole skull.

And whenever you are ready,

One more breath.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Letting go.

And bring your awareness to your whole body.

Expand your attention to the whole sensations of your body.

Feeling your whole body is lying here and breathing.

And thoughts may come over and over again.

Just being kind to yourself.

No need to judge.

No need to criticize.

Acknowledge your thoughts.

And then returning to your whole body.

From top of your head,

Out to your fingertips and down to your toes.

The body becomes the one.

You are the one.

You are not separated.

I'm taking your time to open your eyes.

Thank you.