Honoring Our Experience

Greetings to those who wish to honor and name their experiences and the feelings that reside in the body. We will begin by finding a comfortable position and bringing stillness to the body, however that may look like or feel like for you, taking a moment to bow in deep honor of the South Asian ancestors who created and cultivated this practice of meditation so that we can gather and partake in it today. Drawing awareness to your breath, inhaling and exhaling naturally, organically, without the need to shift or change. Simply noticing the breath moving in and out of your nose. Feel the coolness of your breath at the back of the throat, becoming aware of how it fills your lungs, how your lungs expand, and how the air flows out with each contraction. If you feel comfortable, you can flutter your eyes closed or look softly at the ground. Taking a long, juicy, deep breath in. Allow your inhale to pull you to the depth of the seat of your emotions. Allow your exhale to give you permission to soften. As you breathe, going deeper into yourself, notice that you are arriving in the space that we are often taught to hate and fear, our most vulnerable self, the space we often hide and ignore. But it is here in this stillness where we find ourselves. It is here in the being that we learn to lean into the vast infinite that lay within us. In this space, without searching, allow the emotions you are currently feeling to come into your awareness in your mind's eye. Observe your emotions without the need to shift or change, to defend or deny, simply allowing. Take note of what color they may be, what shape, any textures that your emotions may present to you, perhaps noticing if a word or thought arises alongside these emotions. And without giving the emotion charge, simply hold it or them, noticing if more than one emotion arises and either way, allowing more space for whatever may be to simply be. Noticing the sensation or feeling that arises with the emotion and allowing yourself to be with whatever it is that may be coming up. Allow what is arising to be felt, acknowledged, and named. As we have this human experience, let us remember that all of our emotions are valid. They inform us; they need not control us. Give your emotions their time and space. Allow them to speak to you. Slowly bringing your awareness back to your surroundings, giving thanks to what has made its way to the fore of your consciousness, giving thanks to your body for the wisdom that it holds and shares. I bow in deep gratitude for joining me in this practice and bow in deep gratitude to yourself for partaking in this practice. Ashe....