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How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners

10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation

What is Meditation?

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How to Let Go

Cory Muscara

00:00

00:00

Meditation

4.5

Duration

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How to Let Go

In this meditation, we will practice loosening our mental and emotional grip around the past, and embracing this moment with excitement and ease.

Let's start by finding

a comfortable posture.

This could be sitting down, lying

down or standing up, whatever

feels good for your body.

If it's okay to do so,

you can close your eyes.

And we'll take a deep breath

together to settle in.

Breathing in through the nose.

And slowly out through the mouth.

Inviting your jaw to relax and soften.

The teeth don't need to be clenched.

Allow the shoulders to be at ease.

As well as the hands and the belly.

As the body relaxes, your breath

can come back to its natural rhythm.

You don't need to force it or

breathe in a way that you think

is appropriate for meditation.

It's whatever feels good for you.

And we'll take a few moments to

settle our attention on the breath,

making that our object of awareness.

You can place one hand on your belly if

it helps you feel the breath more vividly.

And as the mind wanders, we just

notice it and bring the attention

right back to the breath over and over.

I'll give you some time to practice.

In this meditation, we're exploring

the idea of letting go and how to

cultivate a mind that can let go.

And although this can feel like a

big endeavor or something difficult

to accomplish, we're actually doing

it in every moment of meditation.

So each time you notice the mind wander

into a thought, you practice letting

it go and coming back to the breath.

It wanders off again, and holds

on tight to a thought pattern

or an idea, and we just practice

letting go and back to the breath.

That is letting go on the most micro

level and helps us cultivate a mind

that can let go in bigger ways.

So let's continue to practice that.

And each time, view returning from the

thoughts as a practice of letting go.

Attachment to things also shows

up as tension in the body.

Chances are, if we're gripping at

something or really wants something to

remain as it is, we'll feel tension.

You can start to work on this by

focusing on the breath with total ease.

And when the mind wanders and gets

caught up in thoughts, as you bring

it back and let go, also practice

completely relaxing the body.

And each time you do notice that you

can let go and you're still okay.

Try it out.

Just this breath, letting

go of everything else.

Any agenda, anything you want to

maintain, relationship you're holding

on to, let it go and right back here.

Relax the body.

Relax the mind.

Let's take one more deep breath together.

In through the nose.

And out through the mouth.

Great job.

See if you can bring

this with you into today.

When you notice yourself

gripping, tightening, relax

the mind, relax the body.

And let yourself see that you

can let go and still be okay.

Thank you for your practice.

Have a great day.

Take care.

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