- [Narrator] This is a meditation guide
from the New York times.
You're about to listen to a mindfulness meditation
by Tara Brach, psychologist and founder
of the Insight Meditation Community.
It lasts for 10 minutes.
Before you begin your meditation
find a comfortable place to sit,
away from noise and commotion.
Are you there?
Keep your back upright and your eyes closed.
Now listen.
- [Tara] As part of collecting and settling the attention
you might extend the in breath.
Take a nice full in breath.
And then ever slow out breath,
feeling the sensations of the breath as you exhale,
relaxing outward, letting go.
And then again an extended nice full in breath.
Slow out breath, feeling the sensations with the exhale.
Releasing, letting go.
Once more, inhaling deeply.
Exhaling slowly.
Relaxing outward, letting go.
Letting go.
Just letting the breath resume in its natural rhythm.
Very receptive, noticing the quality of the breath
and the quality of your presence.
The sense of hereness, being right here.
You might take some moments to gently scan through the body.
Just notice if there's areas
of habitual contraction, tensing,
places that might want to soften a bit, release.
It's helpful to check and sense the region of the brow,
smoothing the brow, softening the eyes.
Unhinging the jaw.
You might sense a slight smile at the mouth.
Perhaps letting the shoulders fall away from the neck a bit.
Feeling the awareness inside the shoulders.
Just noticing if there's a natural way
of letting whatever's there kind of float in awareness.
Loosen, soften.
Let the hands be soft.
You might sense an openness at the chest.
Loosening down in the belly, let the belly be soft.
Feel this living body from the inside out,
this breathing body.
Again, sensing the quality of presence
that comes with being right here.
Awake.
Embodied.
Let your practice be very simple.
Just noticing when the mind has drifted off.
And gently arriving again right here.
Relaxing back.
Sensing the liveliness of sensation.
For many, choosing to rest with the movement of the breath,
the sensations of the breath.
Just to know that you're here, right here.
(bell chiming)