Just Ten Minutes Of Meditation 

(Bringing Awareness To Impermanence)

Before you start your practice, find a relatively quiet place to sit where you will be uninterrupted.

You will also need a timer, set for ten minutes. You can use a timer on your phone, an app or a simple kitchen timer. 

Obviously, you cannot read and meditate at the same time. So briefly read through this document before you begin each session.

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•Once you have sat down and begun your timer, close your eyes.

Take a deep breath, focus on the air filling your lungs. Exhale, and feel all of the air leaving your body.

Inhale, and zero in on the sensation of the air moving across the skin of your nostrils. Exhale, and feel the air passing through your nostrils.

Inhale and lift your shoulders up toward your ears, stretching your spine up to the sky; grow as tall as possible.

Exhale and gently drop your shoulders down and back to open your chest. Your posture should be tall and open, not forced or strained.

Gently rock your body forward and back until you find a spot that is comfortable. Then, gently rock your body side to side to find your spot. Allow your body, not your mind, to tell you how to sit.

Finally, take another big inhale and push your belly outward in an exaggerated fashion, filling it with air, pushing your abdominal muscles to their limit.

Exhale, and allow your belly to relax into a comfortable resting position.

•For this practice you will be using your awareness to directly experience the physical sensations of your body.

Begin by bringing your awareness to the top of your head, do your best to pay attention to the sensations you feel by experiencing them without labeling them. 

Move your awareness from the top of your head to your face; pay attention to your eyes, the area around your eyes, your lips, your jaw, the back of your head and down your neck.

Follow from your neck to your right shoulder, using your awareness to travel all the way down your arm to your hand. Can you feel the palm of your hand, even your fingers, even your fingertips?  

Travel from your right hand to your left hand, pay attention to the sensations in your fingers, up into your palm and the back of your hand, your wrist, up your forearm, inside your elbow, all the way up to your left shoulder.

Now move down the front of your body to your chest, the area in front of your heart, the front of your rib cage and finally to your belly. Be open to the experience of the sensations as they present themselves.

Bring your awareness back to your shoulders and your upper back, all around your shoulder blades and in between them.

Instead of labeling a sensation as “painful,” “hot” or “itchy,” let yourself experience what the sensation actually feels like without naming or describing it. No filters between you and your experience of the present moment.

Keep observing your back. Move down to your low back and then to your hips, feeling the pressure on them from sitting. 

Follow down your right leg, from hip to thigh to knee to calf to ankle to foot to toes, paying attention to all of the sensations. Can you feel the top of your foot, the sole of your foot, your toes?  Move from your right foot to the left and travel up this leg: ankle, calf, knee, thigh and back to your hips.

When you have scanned through your entire body, head to toes, take a deep inhale and then a full exhale.

•Begin again at the top of your head. This time, as you experience your sensations, take note if anything has changed from the last time you scanned a particular area of your body.

•Everything you feel does and will change.

It is okay if you cannot remember what a particular area of your body felt like last time, it is okay if you cannot recall exactly what has changed. You are simply practicing noticing if there has been a change.

Continue to watch your sensations for the rest of the meditation period. 

Move through each area of your body at your own pace. Receiving less guidance will help you to sharpen your focus. 

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•If you become distracted by a thought, release it. 

Take a deep breath and notice how it feels. Exhale and pay attention to the sensation of your breath leaving your body.

Becoming distracted is normal, this reminder is here to help you.

Now, return to the area of your body that you last remember scanning and continue, noticing if any changes have occurred between this time and the last time you were paying attention to this particular area of your body.

If you finish scanning your entire body before your timer runs out, reset your focus with a big inhale and a big exhale and start over at the top of your head.

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•When the timer runs out, take a deep breath and wiggle your fingers and toes. With your eyes still closed, cast your gaze downward. Slowly exhale and gently open your eyes.