Landing Meditation

Hi, everyone. Thanks for joining me today. I'm really happy to be here. And I'd like to start with a really simple grounding meditation. So go ahead and take a seat in whatever way is most comfortable for you. And if you're more comfortable lying down, of course, that's always an option as well. I'm going to start with eyes closed and allow for a couple of breaths just to begin without any real intention other than feeling your breath. And as you inhale, just notice the sensation of that inhale. And as you exhale, go ahead and sigh out your mouth. Let's take a couple of breaths like this. A way just to enter kind of softly or sweetly into more of an intentional practice. Inviting your awareness to dwell within your physical sensations. As you inhale, notice how your inhale begins. Can you feel the moment when breath arrives either through your nose or through your mouth? Notice how the inhale then swells into the throat and your lungs, maybe down into your belly. And same with your exhalations, notice where the exhale begins. Notice how the exhale leaves your body. As you feel these two parts of your breath, the inhale and the exhale, there is nothing to do with them. So if there's any feeling of trying to get a full breath, just invite you to let it go. And I often think of my breath not so much as an inflating or balloon sensation but more like a seeping. If you picture in your mind how water moves through sand in the space where the tide rolls in, and invite your breath to seep into your body and to slowly roll out. As you continue just to notice your inhale and exhale, bring your attention also to wherever you feel contact with the floor. And wherever that contact is, you can invite a sense of yielding. And yielding as a quality or as a sensation is a little bit different than surrender. So it's definitely not merging with the floor. But there's a sense of a readiness to respond. So in the space between your body and the floor, you notice that you could push down a little bit and feel how the contact that your body makes to the ground then feeds back up into your body. And you notice that you can also relax a little bit more and your sense of gravity might shift. And so in yielding there's choice, there's relationship. Above all, just awareness of something outside of your body that's supportive. You might imagine how the earth is rising up to meet your body just as much as your body's weight is resting on the earth. As you feel the earth beneath you and you also feel space around you. Noticing the quality of air where it touches your skin. Seeing all of the space and the potential behind you, in front of you, to the sides, and above. And a similar relationship here, just knowing that at any moment you could reach out, stretch out, explore space around you. That there's this abundance of air, abundance of potential breath, and lots of space for you to inhabit. So we'll start an exploration of breath that's a little bit of an experiment and it's not the only way to breathe and it's not the right way to breathe, it's just a choice. So if it works for you, you can keep it and if it doesn't work, you're definitely free to let it go. But for now let's imagine that the beginning of the inhale starts in the space just above your head. And the length of the inhale draws down through the center of your body, all the way down into the ground from the earth beneath you. And the beginning of the exhale starts somewhere further down into the earth below you. And the length of the exhale travels up through the center of your body and out the crown of your head. So as you inhale, softening through the dome of your skull, you have healing receptivity in the space above, allowing that space to travel through your body all the way down into your base. And as you exhale, feeling the strength, sturdiness, and rootedness below you, the length of your exhale bringing that through your entire body all the way into the top of your crown. And again, inviting gentleness with your breath. There is no need to force your breath. Inhale and imagine the shape of your breath or the movement of your breath, this easily flowing crown to base. As you exhale, easily base to crown. Let's take about three more breaths like this.

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, eight, nine, ten, ten, ten, ten, ten, ten. After your last breath, your third breath, let all of that imagery go. Imagine or feel your body in whatever space it is right now. And imagine or feel everything that's come before you, your path to this moment, which of course has been full of everything that life is full of, all of the ups and downs and all of your relationships, all of your challenges and all of the joy. And in whatever way is meaningful for you, just offer a little nod or an acknowledgement, maybe a thank you. Feel that what has come before is supporting you right now. Then you can imagine and maybe even feel all of the unknown future. And without telling stories of what it will be, just the feeling of maybe what you want to invite in. And can you find some space in your body, in your heart, maybe in your mind that's just open or whatever the future wants to bring, whatever you would like to bring to it. And then letting that go as well, come right back into the sensation of your breath. Here we are in this moment, noticing the support that's here, the strong support of the earth below and the infinite support of the space around. Just this constant rhythm of inhale and exhale that is with us through life. And this might be the beginning of your practice today, it may be the conclusion. But allow yourself to dwell just one more instant, right here and right now. And if there's any intention that you have to bring into this moment, can mark it through your thoughts or through your feeling. And then when you're ready, if it feels good to you, it's a gesture that is meaningful to you, you can bring your hands together, feel the space between your palms and softly allow your mind, all of those thoughts in there to bow towards your heart. And as you inhale, feel the swelling of your heart space. And as you exhale, you can release your hands and allow your eyes to open. Take a minute to just notice what you see around you, see whatever qualities or textures of light. And here you are, right here, right now. Thank you for sharing that practice.