- Mindfulnessexercises.com.
Focused attention.
(bell rings)
(water flowing)
Let's begin by taking a moment to settle the body
by finding a posture that feels relaxed
and alert.
Inviting a sense of ease into the body.
Feeling more grounded as we feel our feet touch the ground
the weight of your body on the chair or cushion
sensing into the breath as you breath in and out.
Dropping your shoulders
wiggling your fingers.
Loosening the jaw and the muscles around the face and eyes.
As you close your eyes gently or look downwards
just to limit visual distractions.
Just relaxing, feeling more grounded and at ease.
Today we're going to practice focused attention
or concentration practice
where we're going to focus on our breathing.
So you can think of this practice as a metaphor
of resting a snow globe or a jar of muddy water
onto a table.
As we let it settle, it becomes more clear and calm.
The mind is very similar.
So we focus attention on the breath
as we settle the mind onto the breath.
The mind and the body both begin to relax
and settle, becoming more clear,
feeling more free.
Taking a full breath in
and a slow, long breath out.
We can observe our breathing,
we can notice the breath flowing in and out
as we allow all the other contents of the mind
to settle and clarify.
So I invite you to take a deep breath in
and a long, slow breath out.
(inhales and exhales)
Trying this a few times breathing in through the nose
(inhales)
and out through the mouth
(exhales)
(inhales and exhales)
Not making any effort to change your breathing too much,
but just simply noticing your body breathing in (inhales)
and out (exhales),
staying with the sensations of breathing.
It's very helpful to notice the rise
and fall of your chest as the air passes in and out.
Some people like putting a hand on their chest
to feel it rise and fall.
Can you notice your chest moving up and down,
in and out as you breath?
When your attention wanders,
which it will because you're human
just come back gently and focus again on your breathing.
Not judging yourself to be good or bad,
right or wrong,
just coming back over and over
to the sensations of breathing.
(inhales and exhales)
Noticing if any thoughts arise,
not holding on to them.
Simply letting the thoughts pass
and bring your attention back to your breathing.
And notice the stages of a complete breath
from the in breath (inhales)
to the subtle pause,
the exhale
(exhales)
and the pause before taking another breath.
See the slight breaks between each breath.
Feeling the air entering through the nose
see it in the mind's eye flowing through the nose
and then down to your lungs.
Feeling your lungs expand as they fill with air
and relax again through the exhale.
And as thoughts arise, simply allow them to pass
and return your attention to your breathing.
Let's finish now with the full, deep breath in (inhales)
and a long, slow breath out.
(exhales)
(bell rings)