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Take 5: A Simple Mindfulness Exercise

Cory Muscara

00:00

00:00

Meditation

4.7

Duration

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Take 5: A Simple Mindfulness Exercise

In this meditation, we'll practice cultivating mindfulness by paying attention to various sensory experiences.

Let's begin by finding

a comfortable posture.

This could be sitting,

lying down or standing.

If it's comfortable to do

so, you can close your eyes.

And we'll take a deep breath together.

In through the nose.

And slowly out through the mouth.

Inviting the jaw to relax.

The shoulders can be at ease.

And let the belly and

the hand soften as well.

In this moment, there's no place else

you need to be, nothing else you need

to do, and no problems you need to fix.

See if you can give yourself

the permission to just be here.

Letting the breath settle

into its natural rhythm.

And we'll spend a few moments collecting

our attention at the breath, using

it as an anchor point for our minds.

When the thoughts pull our

attention away, we smile at the

thoughts, say hello thoughts.

Thank you thoughts.

Goodbye thoughts.

And right back to the

breath, moment after moment.

In this meditation, we're just

going to bring our awareness to

different aspects of our experience.

Cultivating a mindful presence that

we can take with us into our day.

We'll start by bringing

our awareness to sound.

Just noticing anything that

you can hear right now.

Sound doesn't need to be

perceived as a distraction.

It's just another sensory experience.

If anything, we get to experience

the gift of what it's like to hear.

And moving to sensations.

Noticing what you feel in your body.

Maybe obvious sensations, like if there

were any pains or more subtle sensations,

like a feeling of ease and peace.

And now turning your

attention to your thoughts.

Just becoming aware of what

the mind is thinking about.

Not redirecting the attention, just

observing, watching the thoughts

like clouds passing through the sky.

And then we'll open our awareness

even broader so that we're resting

in what's called open monitoring.

Just observing and watching

whatever arises in our experience.

It could be a thought,

emotion, sensation, sound.

Just observe it all coming and

going as if you were sitting back

just watching your experience.

So let's take one more

deep breath together.

In through the nose.

Slowly out through the mouth.

And when you're ready, you can

invite your eyes to open again.

Great job.

As you go about your day, practice

bringing this mindful awareness to all

different aspects of your experience.

It will not only help you be more calm,

but also more present for your life.

Thank you for your practice.

And until we talk again, take care.

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