In meditation we practice bringing up what is pertinent, worthy of development, leading inwards. We bring things to mind that generate a locus of meaning, that generate our world. This is where we reclaim potency, value and meaning. Rather than be overwhelmed by a meaningless world we have the potential to generate a meaning world here now.
As we enter the field of practice, we have the opportunity to clear the desktop and deepen into our receptivity. We offer ourselves Dhamma dāna: the gift of time, space, permission and resources to deepen within this very embodied mind. We acknowledge what arises and lay aside what can be laid aside.
This guided meditation helps cultivate the heartspace that can hold our life with tenderness and grace. We begin by using the image and felt sense of a smile in a body scan, and then open to the spacious presence that includes the changing moment to moment flow of experience. The meditation closes with a few minutes of offering loving blessings to our inner life, dear ones in need and all beings.
This guided practice begins with a conscious breath that relaxes the body and mind, and then a body scan to awaken to the aliveness of the present moment. We then open into the natural awareness that includes the changing flow of sounds, feelings and sensations, and practice “relaxing back” when the mind gets lost in thought.
This meditation guides us through a body scan and into a relaxed, open presence. When we realize we are lost in a thought cloud, our practice is to relax open, listening to and feeling the life of the present moment. We are training to become increasingly aware of the gap between thoughts, the space where the light of awareness shines through.