(5min47sec) This simple movement practice can be done standing or sitting. Once you learn the basic meditation, you can practice it for as long or short a time as you like. This is the same concept as Where’s My Center, only simpler, and they can be used interchangeably as basic movement practices.
Note that you are welcome to download and share this audio file as many times as you like, provided you do so in it’s entirety, and it is used for personal or educational uses only (no commercial uses).
As social animals, giving and receiving are a daily part of life. We need each other for mental, emotional and physical support – on a daily basis, and those needs can sometimes be challenging to have and support. Often times we develop habits where one is easier than the other. Many of us are better at giving and others are better at receiving. It’s not so often that we feel equally comfortable with both. And that can change depending on the people we’re with and situations we’re in. Sometimes it just feels easier to do one and not the other.
So, in these crazy times, it feels like a good idea to be able to support ourselves to do both. To be comfortable with giving and receiving.
In August at our monthly online Community Meditation gathering the theme was “Re-membering the Flow of Giving and Receiving,” and this lovely meditation practice evolved from our mutual contributions.
One beautiful soul offered the idea that breath itself is a natural flow of giving and receiving… of air, energy (prana), etc.. And another offered the soothing method of Thich Nhat Hann – breathing in to receive and out to give, à la “Breathing in Peace. Breathing out Calm.”
Guided Meditation Practice: Giving and Receiving (8min)
You’re welcome to listen to, download and share this practice as often as you like only for non-commercial use.
Field of Vision is a practice I was first taught by a dear friend who practices Tibetan Buddhism. I’ve simplified it a bit and turned it into a mindfulness practice.
I adore this practice. If you like eyes open practices, or want to experience one this is a great one to play with. And you’re welcome to do just that, play with it and make it your own.
8 minute version:
This is an 8-minute version which includes a fuller explanation of the practice. Start here if you want to have more guidance or suggestions for how to do it.
5 minute version:
And here is a shorter 5-minute version. Use this one if you prefer less guidance or you simply want a quicker practice.
Right click on the players (the grey bars) and choose download to download them onto your device(s). As always, you’re welcome to download, use and share these as often as you like for non-commercial use.
This meditation is adapted a Will Johnson practice he calls The Breath of the Unfolding Fern. You can listen to the entire Urban Retreat, and enjoy his magnificent teachings here: https://www.embodiment.net/audios. As he says, it is a very “deeply body-oriented approach to sitting meditation.” I love it.
Here are the instructions for the Embodied Breath Practice:
Get into a comfortable position, sitting or standing. You’ll want to be able to move your entire spine and pelvis, so if you’re sitting, I suggest sitting on the front edge of your chair or sitting up versus leaning back.
Close your eyes or lower your eyes with your eyelids mostly closed. Allow your eyes to soften.
Bring your attention to your breath and begin noticing the qualities of your breath. Be a curious. Observe like a friendly scientist seeing something for the first time… Notice the characteristics. You might notice how deep or shallow, how fast or slow your breath is. You might notice the noises that your body makes as you breathe. You might notice the movements of your body as inhale and exhale.
When your mind wanders, and you notice that you’ve wandered away, celebrate that moment. You’ve just become aware of yourself. Wonderful.
Then gently bring your attention back to your breath. Again and again throughout the practice.
As you inhale, your intercostal muscles, the muscles between your ribs expand the space between your ribs, making your chest and lungs expand. Begin to notice that your chest literally expands as you inhale.
You can invite your body to deepen your inhale to exagerate this movement if you wish.
Feel the body expand as you inhale. Feel that you expand and open and allow yourself to float up and out with each inhale.
Notice that as you exhale, your muscles soften, your body relaxes. Notice this softening, this relaxing, and allow yourself to melt.
Let the movement between these two things be like a wave… You’re flowing between opening, expanding, floating and softening, relaxing, melting.
Let that movement, that flow, that wave get stronger and stronger. Exaggerate it if you like. Let your whole spine wave, from pelvis to skull.
When you’re ready move your attention back to simply observing your breath, inviting the body to begin gently slowing down, coming back to physical stillness.
Eventually, end your practice and open your eyes.
Whenever you practice, you can always find this wave, and embody your breath. There’s no need to sit perfectly still like a statue. Even if this movement is subtle from the outside, it is always there. Enjoy letting your body be free and fluid, a living, breathing wave of awareness.
Enjoy, Elena
You’re welcome to download this practice as many times as you like, as well as share it with others, as long as it is for non-commerical use only.
To download it, right click on the black bar above and choose Download Audio.
There are many different wisdom traditions that talk about winter and the New Year. Some honor the changing of the sun and the bringing of light with the Winter Solstice, some are more focused on starting new things and resolutions for the (Gregorian Solar) New Year, while (Indian) Ayurveda says winter is a good time to look inside…
According to Ayurveda, winter is a time of going back to the foundation, back to the roots and the trunk and the bare branches. Of noticing what is here, what is supportive and what is weighting us down.
It’s a time to get quiet and notice what you’ve cultivated over the past year… What of that do you want to keep and nourish? What of that do you want to prune away?
So if you’re “in,” grab your practice, a cup of warm tea and open into your roots.
Begin by getting into position, whatever position works best for your body. This position will become your body-mind’s signal that you are starting a practice. I suggest the following as it uses little muscular energy to stay upright and alert, and allows you to breathe easily :
Sit on a chair (sofa, bed, etc) with your feet flat on the floor.
Rest your hands where ever they are comfortable (neither propping yourself up or pulling yourself forward with your hands).
Feel your sit bones pressing down.
Float the crown of your head up so that it softly lifts your torso.
Tuck your chin in a tiny bit so that the back of your neck is long, making sure it’s also soft.
Soften your jaw.
Close your eyes. Or keep them open, and look down at the floor (or whatever is in front of you) a few feet or meter or so in front of you, keeping your eyes relaxed.
Bring your attention to your breath. Notice how it feels to breathe. (Note that if you always start your meditation practices by focusing on your breath this is also a great way to signal to your body-mind that you’re beginning a practice. Also, at other points during your day, you can focus on 1 or 2 breaths and drop into a calmer, more meditative state.)
Gently shift your attention to what you can hear.
Imagine that you are a rock in the middle of a river. A river of sound.
Notice the whole river of sound as it floats by. Don’t focus on a particular sound, rather soften your hearing and listen to all of the sounds. Listen to the whole river of sound as it flows by.
Keep most of your attention here as much as possible. Let everything else float by in the background. Let thoughts, emotions and physical sensations flow through like an undercurrent.
When your attention has become absorbed in your thoughts (emotions or sensations) to the point that you are no longer noticing the sounds, simply let the thoughts go, and gently and kindly bring your attention back to the river and start a fresh. You can have an infinite number of fresh starts, so you can relax about that.
End the practice when you feel ready or when your timer rings by bringing your attention back to your breath for a few breaths and then gently opening your eyes.
To Download:
Click on the Download button below. If it does not download automatically:
A new window will open with an audio player (like the player above).
Right click on the player and choose “Download File” or “Download Video”
iPhone users will want to first copy the meditation into iTunes (on your computer) and then sync with your iPhone.
Note that you are welcome to download and share this file as many times as you like provided you do so in it’s entirety and used it for personal or educational uses only (no commercial uses).
Begin by getting into position, whatever position works best for your body. This position will become your body-mind’s signal that you are starting a practice. I suggest the following as it uses little muscular energy to stay upright and alert, and allows you to breathe easily :
Sit on a chair (sofa, bed, etc) with your feet flat on the floor.
Rest your hands where ever they are comfortable (neither propping yourself up or pulling yourself forward with your hands).
Feel your sit bones pressing down.
Float the crown of your head up so that it softly lifts your torso.
Tuck your chin in a tiny bit so that the back of your neck is long, making sure it’s also soft.
Soften your jaw.
Close your eyes. Or keep them open, and look down at the floor (or whatever is in front of you) a few feet or meter or so in front of you, keeping your eyes relaxed.
Bring your attention to your breath. Notice how it feels to breathe.
Gently shift your attention to what you can hear.
Imagine that you are a rock in the middle of a river. A river of sound.
Notice the whole river of sound as it floats by. Don’t focus on a particular sound, rather soften your hearing and listen to all of the sounds. Listen to the whole river of sound as it flows by.
Keep most of your attention here as much as possible. Let everything else float by in the background. Let thoughts, emotions and physical sensations flow through like an undercurrent.
When your attention has become absorbed in your thoughts (emotions or sensations) to the point that you are no longer noticing the sounds, simply let the thoughts go, and gently and kindly bring your attention back to the river and start a fresh. You can have an infinite number of fresh starts, so you can relax about that.
End the practice when you feel ready or when your timer rings by bringing your attention back to your breath for a few breaths and then gently opening your eyes.
To Download:
Click on the Download button below. If it does not download automatically:
A new window will open with an audio player (like the player above).
Right click on the player and choose “Download File” or “Download Video”
iPhone users will want to first copy the meditation into iTunes (on your computer) and then sync with your iPhone.
Note that you are welcome to download and share this file as many times as you like provided you do so in it’s entirety and used it for personal or educational uses only (no commercial uses).
Begin by getting into position, whatever position works best for your body. This position will become your body-mind’s signal that you are starting a practice. I suggest the following:
Sit on a chair (sofa, bed, etc) with your feet flat on the floor.
Rest your hands where ever they are comfortable (neither propping yourself up or pulling yourself forward with your hands).
Feel your sit bones pressing down.
Float the crown of your head up so that it softly lifts your torso. This position allows you to breathe easily.
Tuck your chin in a bit so that the back of your neck is soft and long.
Soften your jaw.
Close your eyes.
Bring your attention to your breath. Notice how it feels to breathe.
Gently shift your attention to your feet and feel the sensations in your feet.
As much as you can, keep most of your attention on the sensations in your feet. Let thoughts, emotions and other physical sensations float through the background like passing clouds.
If you find that your attention has become absorbed in your thoughts (emotions or sensations) to the point that you are no longer noticing the sensations in your feet, simply let the thoughts go, and kindly and gently bring your attention back to your feet and start a fresh. You get have an infinite number of fresh starts, so you can relax about that.
Next move your attention to your seat. Feel the sensations of your seat bones pressing down and repeat the same steps as with the feet, gently bringing your attention back if you get absorbed in something else.
Finally, move to your shoulders and repeat the process.
End the practice by bringing your attention back to your breath for a few breaths. When you feel ready or when your timer rings, gently open your eyes.
To Download:
Click on the Download button below.
If it does not download automatically:
A new window will open with an audio player (like the player above).
Right click on the player and choose “Download File” or “Download Video”
iPhone users will want to first copy the meditation into iTunes (on your computer) and then sync with your iPhone.
Note that you are welcome to download and share this files as many times as you like provided you do so in it’s entirety and it is used for personal or educational use only (no commercial uses).
This is a practice I’m sharing in my Mindful Movement classes this winter.
Winter is a time of year to go in… to hibernate a bit, to focus in. A time to evolve, cultivate and fuel your inner fire.
Your inner fire is your inner power, your unique essence, that part of you that burns bright and strong and makes you uniquely you. Taoists refer to it as your Tian Tien, a place just below and behind your navel.
The rest of the year, we more actively take that flame out into the world and share it. Winter, according to Ayurveda, is the time of year to focus on it, to fuel it with what you’ve learned from the past year and to clean and clear away everything you’re ready to let go of…. It’s time to brighten and polish your shining winter star.
1. Reflect
Start by reflecting on what you’ve learned this year that is helping your best self. And also on what you’ve evolved past and are ready to let go of. In short, what’s helping you burn bright and what’s blocking the light at bit.
2. Cultivate
Then sense, imagine or intend to bring those helpful lessons into your body as you inhale. Sense, imagine or intend to fuel your inner fire, deep down in your belly, with this chi or pranna that you’re inhaling. Inhale in and fill yourself with that knowledge, feeling or sensation. Fuel your fire to overflowing and fill your whole body with this knowledge, feeling or sensation.
3. Clean
Then as you exhale, sense, imagine or intend to let go of all of those things that you’re ready to let go of. Sense, imagine or intend that they flow down and out of your body and into the Earth, where she will recycle them.
Do this cycle of breath as many times as you like, inhaling the clean and clear fuel and exhaling (down) all that you don’t need anymore. When you feel complete, be still for a bit and settle into this feeling of being clean and clear, bright and shining – beautifully powered to be you.
Evolve
Now that you’re clear on what you’re currently wanting to cultivate and clean, you can easily do this practice anytime you want to power up your evolution this winter. Part of the evolution is that every time you do it, you take the time to reflect again, realizing that your knowledge and understanding will shift and grow. This will help bring to conscious awareness how you and your knowledge and understanding are transforming over time.
Doing this once a week is a nice amount of time to allow for personal change and to still be able to remember clearly where you were the week before. The evolution that I’m suggesting is less about noticing improvement and more about being aware of where you are this week (relative to last week), and cultivating where ever you are NOW by bringing it more clearly into conscious awareness.
It’s not so important that you think that you’re improving since last week (your conscious mind may not be aware of all that is happening inside of you nor judge accurately what real improvement is anyway), it’s more important that you bring to conscious awareness what powers you today. What helps you burn bright right now. And comparing that to last week is a nice way to notice how you’re changing (vs improving).
Cherish
We are incredibly bright and powerful beings and I notice that more clearly the more I do these kinds of practices that bring it to my attention!
So, take some time to go in this winter. Use the natural urges of the season to focus in, to fuel your fire, to burn brightly, to cherish your light.
…that clears your energetic and lymphatic systems – both of which need an extra boost in winter!
What are moving mindfulness practices? They’re mindfulness practices that are a bit different from the sitting ones in that, instead of sitting to do them, you stand up and move! You can stand, walk, dance, kneel, bend, spin, jump, etc. The whole time, you’re doing your best to stay aware of yourself, just like a sitting practice.
Moving practices are great for those of us who prefer to move versus sit and are really fun to do in groups! I offer a weekly class that you can join to check it out.
Here’s a practice that you can play with at home. Enjoy the video and skip to the middle if you want to skip the intro and dive right into the practice.
If you like it, come and join me at La Fabrique des Embellies in Annecy, France, Tuesdays 12:15-13:15.
