Body Scan Meditation

This practice is called body scan meditation for deeper physical and mental relaxation. During
this process it is best if you can manage to stay awake. Wear loose clothing so that your waist
does not stretch while breathing. Remember not to try to hard to relax. Just accept whatever
happens in you and experience it. Allow yourself to be exactly just the way you are rather then
trying too hard to change things in life as we usually do. Do as best as you can and be aware of
how you feel. Remember there is no right way to feel.

Now lie down on your back on the bed or mattress and allow your eyes to close gently, letting the
arms lie on alongside your body and palms open to ceiling and feet to fall away from each other.
Now just bring your attention to the fact that you are breathing (Pause 10 sec). Not forcing the
breath in any way… just observing the air that goes in and out of your body and directing your
attention particularly to your belly... your abdomen and feeling the sensations in that region as the
breath goes in and your belly expands gently and as the breath goes out of your body, observe
your belly relaxing. Follow the movement of your belly with your in and out-breath (Pause
20sec). On each out-breath, allow yourself to let go to sink a little deeper into the bed with your
in-breath and out-breath… one following the other (Pause 10sec).

Now when you feel ready, shift the focus of your attention to the toes of your left foot. Focus on
each of the toes of your left foot and experiencing any sensations – warmth, tingliness or
whatever, just feel the way they are (Pause 10sec). As you breath in, just imagining that the
breath is entering the lungs and then passing down into the abdomen, into the left leg and out of
the left foot and as you breath out the breath is coming all the way back up through the abdomen,
chest and out from your nose (Pause 10 sec).

Now when you are ready, on an out-breath, just let go of the awareness of the toes completely and
bring the focus on the bottom of the left foot and whatever the feeling is in this region…
breathing in from the bottom of the left foot and as you breath out, letting it go and coming to
focus now on the heel, where the heel is coming in contact with the bed and feeling the sensations
of touch, pressure and breathing into the heel… and again on an out-breath, just letting go of the
heel and now let the feeling spread to your left ankle as well. Let the breath be taken into the
ankle and on an out-breath just letting it go…. And expanding the awareness into the rest of the
foot, top of the foot and right into your bones and joints… (Pause 5 sec). Then directing the
attention into the lower left leg, the calf… shin… knee… and so on (Pause 5 sec). Just accept the
feelings as you feel, breathing with them and then let go of this part and focus now on the
sensations on the lower left leg, the thigh… and the abdomen… just being aware of the sensations
in these parts…. Breathing into them and as you breathe out, just letting go of this part… (Pause
10sec)

Let’s move over the right leg and become aware of the toes… the right lower foot and the right
ankle… breathing with it and letting go as you breathe out with these sensations in these parts
(Pause 20sec). Now become aware of the right knee, right thigh and the whole of the right leg….
Experiencing these sensations and breathing with it and on an out-breath just letting it go and sink
into a deeper state of awareness and stillness (Pause 20sec)
Let’s direct the attention to the lower back… and the upper back… and the whole of the back…
when you become aware of any tension, tightness, fatigue… be aware of these and breathe into
them… and then have a sense of letting it go as you release on the out-breath… (Pause 15 sec)

Now allow the attention to shift to your belly… experiencing it rising and falling as you breathe
in and breathe out (pause 5 sec) and gently shifting the awareness to go to your chest as it
expands with in-breath and contracts with out-breath…(pause 5 sec) and feel the beat of your
heart…. Lungs expanding on both the sides of your heart...nourishing every tissue of your body
and blood returning to the heart and purifying the body with renewed energy with each breath.

Now be aware of the sensations in the tips of your fingers of both hands… your palms… hands
and the wrists… (Pause 5 sec). Whether it is dampness or tingliness... just feeling the pulsations
of the arteries and blood flow to your hands…. Forearms… the elbows… and the upper
arms…the biceps and the shoulders…. (Pause 10 sec). And if you feel any tension just breathe
into it and letting it go or releasing as you breathe out… sinking into the deeper state of relaxation
and stillness.

As you become ready, move your attention to the back of your neck and the entire throat
region…breathe into these sensations you experience and let go as you breathe out and gently
becoming aware of your face… which stores tension over the course of the day (pause 10sec).
Focus on your jaws, chin and experience it as it is right up to the whole of the face… your
cheeks… lips… mouth… and teeth…. Be aware of the nose… the breath moving in and out of
your nostrils (pause 5sec). Just being aware as the breath goes on (pause 20sec). Be aware of your
eyes… the eyebrows… and the space in between your eyebrows… the tension within it and the
temples… let dissolve this tension as you release your breath… (Pause 5 sec). Now the
forehead…let it soften as you breathe in… where there is tension and stress (pause 5 sec). Just
breathe in… nourish your face and feel the whole of your head, the top of your head…. Breathe
out with energy flowing in and out from head to the toe (pause 5 sec)… in to a deep state of
relaxation… feel your body as a whole… and experiencing ourselves just the way we are…
accepting things as they are and experiencing the quality of being able to love and care…(pause
10sec). Just be aware that you feel relaxed and nourished… and gently open your eyes and
congratulate yourself for spending time for your health…