Guided Meditation

Usually, I lead my students into savasana with a brief relaxation technique - picturing something, mentally tracing the outline of their body, special breathing, etc. Last week, I used a guided meditation from the book "Complete Relaxation" by Steven Kravette. It's an older book (1979) and the writing is a combination of poetry and prose. After a great amount of positive feedback, I figured I should post the meditation - maybe you can use it, too!

Lie down on your back on a comfortable mat. Spread your legs slightly apart, and let your hands fall at your sides, palms up.

Breathe a relaxing breath. Close your eyes, and send your awareness down to your feet. Tense your feet by tightly curling your toes. Inhale. And hold. As you exhale, relax your toes and send the tension away.

Tense the backs of your legs by straightening your feet and moving your toes towards your face. Inhale. And hold. As you exhale, relax your legs and let all the tension go.

Tense your thighs by straightening your legs and locking your knees and lifting them about two inches off the floor. Inhale. And hold. As you exhale, drop your legs, and let all the tension drain out of them.

Breath a relaxing breath. And as you exhale, forget your feet and legs and thighs altogether.

Let your awareness drift to your hips and buttocks and internal organs. Tighten your buttocks and lift them. Inhale. And hold. As you exhale, relax your buttocks and let them drop, drained of all tension.

Breathe  a relaxing breath. if you notice any tension from your waist down, as you exhale, send it all away. And notice how completely relaxed you are becoming.

Let your awareness flow into your hands and arms. Stretch your fingers out, raising the center of your palms. Hold for one complete breath.  Inhaling. And exhaling. Then make fists and tense and clench. Straighten your arms and fists about two inches away from your body. Inhale. And hold. Tighten your forearms and upper arms. As you exhale, let your arms drop. And let your hands fall, palms up, like gloves lying on a table, empty and still. Completely relaxed.

Shrug your shoulders and try to push them up to your ears. Inhale. And hold. As you exhale, let your shoulders drop. And feel how relaxed they are.

Allow your awareness to flow into your back. Arch your spine up toward the sky. Inhale. And hold. As you exhale, let your spine melt into your mat. And sense the relaxation flowing through your back.

Tighten your chest and stomach. Draw each muscle in and tense it. Inhale. And hold. As you exhale, let each muscle go loose and limp. And feel the soothing calmness flow in.

Breathe a relaxing breath, and feel how completely relaxed you are from the neck down.

Roll your head gently from side to side. And feel how relaxed your neck is becoming.

Breathe a relaxing breath. And if you can find any tension anywhere in your body, when you exhale send it all away. And forget that you even have a body.

Let your awareness drift into your face. Press your tongue against the roof of your mouth, tighten your jaw muscles and clench your teeth. Inhale. And hold. As you exhale, open your mouth wide and yawn for a moment, then let your mouth be.

Feel how peaceful you are, as your lips separate slightly and your chin relaxes completely.

Now wrinkle your nose, mash your lips against it, tighten your forehead, and make ugly prune faces. Inhale. And hold. As you exhale, enjoy the tingling feeling of dissolving tension all through your face.

Now you are feeling loose and completely relaxed. Lie still. And let your breathing become deeper and deeper. With every inhale, you breathe new life and vitality into your body. With every exhale, you breathe old residual tensions out of your body.

You don't have to do anything but lie where you are.

And feel free.