Welcome to this meditation on developing equanimity. Equanimity means to be non-reactive and at peace with what's happening inside and all around you in your life. When we are reactive to every thought, sensation and event that comes our way, it's a little bit like being a dinghy in high seas. We are tossed around at the mercy of every wave. But with equanimity, we become like a beautiful, streamlined yacht that glides gracefully through the waves.

Our awareness, keeping us grounded and at ease through the ups and downs of life. For today's meditation practice, we'll start to learn more equanimity with body sensations. So now just finding a comfortable position on a cushion or a chair. And lightly closing the eyes. And take a few moments to fine tune the way that you've chosen to sit here.

So can you allow this posture you've chosen to embody a sense of wakefulness. Perhaps lengthening the spine up tall. The crown of the head extends a little bit up towards the ceiling. And placing the hands in a comfortable way. And as a way of gathering your awareness more fully to the here and now, just taking three deep, slow, full breaths.

Seeing if you can follow the flow of the breath all the way in. And all the way out. And then at the end of the next exhale, allowing the breath to return to its own natural rhythm and pace and letting go of any control of the breath. And now shifting your attention from the breath into the physical body and place your focus all the way down into the soles of the feet. And just observing any sensations that are there.

Exploring this part of the body for a few moments. And taking in the whole feet now, the right and the left. And just observing any sensations for a few moments. And then continuing to scan the focus upwards, observing sensations now in the ankles. And the lower legs.

The thighs. And scanning the pelvic area and the sit bones. And the whole torso and the back. And then scanning the shoulders. The arms and hands.

And moving up to the neck. And to the face. And the whole head. And once you've completed a length of your body, begin scanning down once again slowly, from top to bottom. And as you scan, if you don't feel any sensation in a specific area, just wait a few more moments to tune into the sensations before moving on.

You might only feel a very subtle sensation like gentle tingling or pulsing. You might find very pleasant sensations like warmth or the soft touch of fabric against skin. And you might also experience uncomfortable sensations, such as pain or itching. See if you can meet whatever sensations you find with a kindly curiosity. As best you can, just noticing what's here without trying to change or control anything.

Just letting it all be exactly as it is. As you continue scanning the body, just noticing how sensations are changing moment by moment. Perhaps they're not quite as fixed or static as you might've thought they were. And don't be discouraged if you feel no sensation, that's not uncommon. If that's the case, just notice what that blankness or absence of sensation is like.

Or if they are quite strong or uncomfortable sensations, see if you can soften any sense of struggle or frustration with them and just making room for it in your experience as best you can. And if you finished scanning down the length of the body, feeling free to scan upwards again. It's not important what kind of sensations are here. We're not trying to get all pleasant sensations and make the unpleasant ones go away. Instead we're learning to observe sensations as they are moment by moment without automatically reacting to them.

Learning equanimity like that streamlined yacht, we learn to stay steady and grounded in awareness, simply letting what is here to be as it is. So if there's a pleasant sensation, simply notice it. If there's an ache or pain, simply notice it. If there's a cold breeze on the skin, just notice that. If there's a warm touch of a blanket, just notice that.

See if you can be with whatever is happening with a kind and curious awareness, without trying to fix, change or control anything. Just letting it be. Now in this way, we are training ourselves to be with sensations with ease and awareness, rather than reactivity. And seeing if you can notice these sensations without any mental commentary about them. Just feeling what's here to be felt moment by moment by moment.

As you continue to develop equanimity through mindfulness practice, you'll find yourself becoming less reactive to the ups and downs of life too. When difficulty comes your way, you'll be more able to handle the challenges without stress or grief. You'll be more able to take intelligent action without anxiety, and you'll be better equipped to maintain peace of mind in all circumstances. You'll gradually develop a fulfillment that is not dependent on external conditions. So as this practice now comes to a close, just gently wriggling the fingers and the toes.

And then when you're ready, gently blinking open the eyes. And take a moment to notice how are you feeling after practicing mindfulness, meditation. And congratulations on taking this time out to look after your wellbeing. And wishing you a wonderful day.