Let us begin by finding a comfortable seat,
Sitting up tall in a quiet place where you can be free from distractions.
Let your energy settle,
Feeling the support beneath you,
Relaxing your shoulders.
And if it feels safe to do so,
Closing your eyes.
Allow your jaw to relax,
Your hands to either sit in your lap or you can intertwine your fingers and let your hands rest down.
Breathe slowly and evenly in and out through your nose.
Begin to anchor your attention to your breath.
Again,
Soften your shoulders,
Your belly,
Your thighs,
And begin to watch your breath with a sense of loving awareness.
Breathe in and breathe out.
Feel the gentle rise and fall of the body.
As the body breathes,
Let yourself drop into a state of being rather than doing.
Right here,
Right now,
Just present with your breath.
And as you watch the breath,
Of course,
Thoughts are going to arise.
The mind is energy and always at play.
But today,
As you notice these thoughts,
Watch as if from a distance.
You are not your thoughts,
But you are a witness of these thoughts.
It can help to visualize your thoughts as if they are clouds or bubbles.
A thought arises,
It floats up and into our awareness,
And then if left alone,
It will also float on by,
Dissipate,
Or even pop.
Stay anchored to your breath as you play with awareness of this process.
You're present with breath,
But aware of thoughts,
Those clouds or bubbles that arise.
Like clouds or bubbles,
Understand that these thoughts are not solid.
They're not fixed.
They're not fixed.
They take shape and they break apart.
They are continuously changing shape.
Blown by the wind,
They come and they go.
We cannot grasp at a cloud or a bubble,
And neither is there any point in grasping to these thoughts,
So let them be.
Remain aware of the breath as the thoughts do their thing.
Avoid chasing,
Following,
Or attaching to any of these thoughts.
Try to avoid stopping the thoughts or pushing them away.
Just remain aware of your breath.
Aware of the state of being and not doing.
Aware of thoughts but not thinking.
The breath moves in,
And the breath moves out.
Practice lovingly allowing your thoughts to shift,
Change,
And flow.
Nothing to fight against,
Nothing to stop.
Just love your thoughts,
And at the same time,
Let them go.
Remain present right here and right now with your breath.
You breathe in,
And you breathe out.
Recall that you are not your thoughts,
But their witness.
And look up at each thought with curiosity or awe.
But again and again,
Anchor back to your breath.
Breath awareness,
Just present with your breath.
We cannot stop our thoughts.
We cannot turn off our mind.
The mind is energy,
And energy is always at play.
But it is up to you to choose which type of energy you'd like to invite in,
And then simply let the rest go.
Just like the clouds and the bubbles.
Breathe in and breathe out.
Identifying with the energy of stability,
This even breath,
This steadiness,
Peacefulness,
And ease.
Bring your awareness to the sounds of the room.
Bring your awareness to the room.
Bring your awareness to you meditating within this room.
Bring your palms together at heart center,
And gently bow your head towards your heart.
Let us take a moment of gratitude for our body,
Our breath,
And the gift of this meditation.
Blessed be.
