Body Scan Jack: Mindfulness of the body translates directly into being more mindful in your life. There’s a simple reason why it’s so. Your body is always living in the present moment, right here and right now. When you’re lost in thought, often some virtual reality, you can feel out of touch with what’s actually happening in the present moment. It can become a habit that leaves us with an undercurrent of unease and dissatisfaction. We’re busy remembering some recent interaction, evaluating plans for the future, and not having that tally gratifying sense of being relaxed and settled in our life as it is. I remember, one of the first times I experienced this kind of full presence. It was after being introduced to mindful awareness of the body, and I was walking through the woods. It was early spring. I could smell the fragrance from the fruit trees blossoming. I could feel a gentle breeze on my skin, and my mind was quiet. And then, I realized my body and mind were in the same place at the same time. It’s such a seemingly simple thing, and yet, there was a poignant sense of aliveness. I was a living part of the spring. Researchers have studied what happens to the brains of advanced practitioners as they meditate inside an MRI. They find between self and others decreased substantially. This correlates with reports meditators make of feeling a sense of unification or connection to the whole. And with this comes a deep sense of peace of being at home in life.
It’s expressed in a simple verse by the poet, Li Po, ‘The birds have vanished in the sky, and now the last cloud drains away. We sit together, mountain and I, until only the mountain remains.” Just as your breath can be an anchor for remaining present with your experience, being aware of the sensations throughout the body can also serve as an anchor, a home base for connecting with what’s actually happening in the moment. And like the breath, by sustaining attention on your body's sensations, you can settle a scattered mind. You can bring a sense of clarity, and ease, and wellbeing. In this session of Mindfulness Daily, we’ll continue building mindfulness of the body with a scan, slowly and systematically throughout the entire body. This is a powerful way to quiet your mind, collect your attention, and cultivate an awake and fully embodied presence.
Find a comfortable position, either seated or lying down, and close your eyes. Take a few full breaths and release any tension with each exhale. And now, allow the breath to be natural, relaxing with the in and out. Invite yourself to be right here, at home in your body. With this relaxed, open awareness, start by feeling the sensations at the top of your head. Notice tingling, pulsing, pressure, warmth, cool. And now, gradually let your attention move down and feel the sensations on the back of the head, on either side of the head, to your ears. Notice the sensations through your forehead and eyes, inside the nose, the cheeks, the jaw, and mouth. Take your time. You’re offering a soft receptive attention, not trying to change anything, simply curious about experiencing the life of your body just as it is.
As you continue the scan, you may notice that in certain parts of the body, you feel no noticeable sensations or numbness. Please know this is common. Just let your attention remain in these areas, in a relaxed way, for a few moments. You may find, as your attention deepens, you become aware of more subtle sensations. Now, bring your attention to the area of your neck and throat. Notice without any judgement, whatever sensations are present.
And continue scanning now, being aware of your shoulders from the inside, feeling the aliveness and sensations. And sense the length of volume of your arms and feel the sensations from the inside. Bring your attention to your hands. Feel them in an easy, effortless way, the fingers, the palms, the back of the hands, noticing the tingling, pressure, cool, warm, pulsing, the life of the body.
Now, place your awareness inside your chest. Gently receive the sensations in the heart area, and now, throughout the whole chest. And slowly, allow your awareness to sink down into your stomach. With a soft, receptive awareness, feel the sensations of your abdomen. Now, bring your attention to your upper back. Feel the sensations in the area around your shoulder blades, and slowly move down. Be aware of the mid and lower back, and then the entire spinal column. Continue to let your attention sweep down slowly through the body. Let your awareness feel the pelvic region, receptive to the sensations in the hips, and buttocks, and genitals. And moving down, sense the length and volume of the legs. And bringing awareness, feel them from inside. And let your awareness fill your feet and toes.
