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Filling the Body With Light

Vidyamala Burch

00:00

00:00

Meditation

4.4

Duration

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Filling the Body With Light

A Body Scan where we consciously imagine the whole body becoming filled with light and ease.

This is going to be a body scan,

filling the body with light.

So I'd recommend doing it

lying down, if you can.

But if this is going to be

uncomfortable for any reason, then

of course, adopting another posture.

And let's allow our awareness

to settle down into the body.

Perhaps taking a deep breath

in, and then on the out-breath

giving the weight up to gravity.

And dropping awareness into the

points of contact between the body

and the surface it's resting upon.

Allowing the breathing to settle

and to find its own natural rhythm.

Sense of swelling on the

in-breath, subsiding on the

out-breath in the whole body.

And now allowing our awareness to flow

down through the body, down through

the legs, all the way into the toes.

Feeling any sensations in the toes.

And if you can't feel anything

for any reason, that's fine.

But just seeing if you can be

aware of the toes, of inhabiting

the toes with awareness.

And imagining that the toes are filled

with light, with spaciousness, with ease.

And allowing the sense to flow down into

the feet, the soles, the tops, the ankles.

So the feet become drenched in

light, drenched and radiance,

drenched in openness, softness.

And allowing the sense to pour up

through the ankles, into the lower legs.

And then as quality of light, of

radiance overflows and pours into

the knees, filling into the shape of

the knees, however, their positioned.

And overflowing to pour up and

saturate the thighs, the big

muscles of the thighs, the bones.

So the thighs are full of

this radiant awareness.

And if you've got any discomfort,

anywhere in the legs or the feet, seeing

if it can be soothed and softened by

this quality of light and radiance.

As we breathe, as we rest here.

And pouring up through

the hips and the buttocks.

Letting the buttocks be soft, whether

we're lying down or whether we're

sitting, full of light, full of radiance.

And allowing this quality now to

pour up and to feel the abdomen,

the belly, deep inside the body.

And feeling the way the abdomen swells

a little bit on the in-breath and

subsides on the out-breath, being

careful not to force or strain.

Letting this be the natural

breath with receptive awareness.

And now allowing this quality of

light, the body filling with light

to pour up into the whole chest

area, the ribs and the lungs.

And the rhythm of breathing.

An opening, expanding phase on

the in-breath and a subsiding

phase on the out-breath.

Broadening to be aware of the whole

front of the torso, the abdomen,

and the chest, full of light.

And allowing awareness to rest

and the rhythm of breathing.

Expanding, subsiding, expanding subsiding.

And now allowing our awareness to flow

all the way down to the buttocks and the

back of the body and allowing us quality

of light to pour up into the lower back.

Can you feel breathing expressing

itself in the lower back in any way?

Perhaps an expanding and a

subsiding, expanding, subsiding.

Maybe the angle or the shape is changing

a little bit with each in- and out-breath.

If there's any discomfort allowing

it to be soothed and softened by

this quality of light, radiance

and the rhythm of breathing.

And allowing this quality now to pour up

through the whole back of the body, the

middle back and the upper back, the length

of the spine, the breadth of the back

and the rhythm of breathing expressing

itself in the whole back of the body.

Opening subsiding, opening, subsiding.

Now expanding to have this

quality of light filling the whole

torso, the front, the back, the

sides, the inside, the surface.

The soothing, gentle light and the

rhythm of breathing in the whole torso.

Soothing any hard edges,

softening any contraction.

Now allowing this quality to pour

through the shoulders all the way

down to the very tips of the fingers.

So the shoulders, the arms, the

hands, the fingers all become

drenched and saturated in light.

Gentle, soothing quality.

Having the hands resting in gravity.

The shoulders falling away

from the midline of the body

as the arms rest in gravity.

And now allowing our awareness to

flow up into the neck and the head.

If you're lying down, checking that

we're giving the weight of the head

up to the pillow or the cushion fully.

If we're sitting, having the head poised

on the top of the neck as best we can.

And let's allow this quality of

light and radiance to completely

saturate the whole head.

Maybe even the brain so the brain can

rest in this quality of brightness.

And the whole face.

Forehead, eyes, cheeks, nose,

lips, jaw, tongue, mouth.

Full of softness, full of light.

And now expanding awareness

to be aware of the whole body.

The legs, the torso, the

arms, neck, head, face.

Resting our awareness very

deeply inside the whole body.

Resting inside this quality of

the whole body being filled with

light, filled with ease or the

possibility of ease and breathing.

Any hard edges, any contractions,

soothed and eased by breath, by light.

By this quality of resting

here, moment by moment.

And as we began to prepare to bring this

meditation to a close, perhaps forming

an intention to take this quality with

you into your day, if you're doing

this during the day or into your sleep,

if you're doing it in the evening.

This quality of rest, ease,

light, brightness, softness.

And when it comes time to move,

moving gently and carefully.

And re-engaging with whatever

you're going to do next.

And thank you so much for

practicing with me today.

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