Be still, and know yourself better. In a world of constant bustle, hustle, and grind, there is still opportunity to cultivate balance and influence our experience of the world in a positive and meaningful way. This is a practice for mental health, and spiritual wellbeing - a gift for both mind and body. Stillness can be challenging, but that is why this is a practice. Join me, practice dropping in, and welcome clarity and peace now.
This meditation session is a beautiful way to start or end your day. It is also excellent post active workout or when you may have a turbulent mind and could use a break, a breath of fresh air.
This gentle mindfulness practice is a gift and it’s here for you. You are invited to slow down, experience peace, and just be.
Please share with someone who you think may benefit from this peaceful practice, and let’s create a ripple from stillness together. Let me know how this practice experience goes for you in the comments!
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Yoga With Adriene, LLC recommends that you consult your physician regarding the applicability of any recommendations and follow all safety instructions before beginning any exercise program. When participating in any exercise or exercise program, there is the possibility of physical injury. If you engage in this exercise or exercise program, you agree that you do so at your own risk, are voluntarily participating in these activities, and assume all risk of injury to yourself.
Hello everyone and welcome to Yoga With Adriene.
I'm Adriene and this is sweet Benji.
And today we have a beautiful
Dropping Into Stillness practice for you.
So whilst I know we're all trying to get the most
out of our valuable time and make the most
out of our valuable energy,
what if it were so valuable for us to pause
and learn how to drop into stillness
in this fast paced world?
So this could be really great after an active workout
or active yoga practice.
This would also be a beautiful way to start the day
or if you were feeling a little turbulence in your mind say,
this could be a good thing to do midday,
but also it's gonna be a surefire way
to wind down for bedtime.
So it's pretty great, hop into something comfy,
grab something to sit up on if you have it
and let's get started.
Alright my sweet friends,
go ahead and find a nice comfortable seat
or you may do this practice on your back.
Maybe come to lay down.
Find a comfortable position and right away
we're going to soften the gaze
or you can close your eyes if you feel comfortable.
And really it may not be easy,
but the invite is to see how fast
you can surrender to stillness.
Thank you for joining me and Benji for this practice.
Again, the invitation is to see how fast
you can surrender to stillness.
So whether you chose to lie down
or to find a comfortable upright position,
settle in and begin to just notice your breath.
Dropping into stillness is a process
that with practice, like anything,
it can be finessed.
It can become more familiar,
perhaps more readily available,
powerful tool in this day and age.
Allow your hands to rest gently
in a comfortable position of your choice.
And if there's any area of your body
that might be gripping or holding,
perhaps in the limbs or in the shoulders or the hips
or in the jaw or even in the skin of the forehead,
see if you can soften it a bit here.
And just noticing, again,
the natural ebb and flow of your breath.
You don't have to force anything or do anything
besides bring your awareness to it.
Again, seeing dropping into stillness
as a process, an action.
And it doesn't necessarily happen immediately,
but it will happen if you continue
to focus your awareness on simply noticing,
just observing your breath, observing how you feel.
Maybe you're particularly fidgety today
and you think maybe this wasn't the right practice to select.
Well, trust that you're here for a reason.
And you might begin to gently deepen your breath
just naturally by bringing your focus and awareness to it.
But if it doesn't happen kind of naturally
and it doesn't feel good,
you don't have to force it today.
Just seeing every natural inhale
as an opportunity to check in
and maybe cultivating a sense of peace
or calm, relaxation
with every breath out.
So essentially with every breath in,
you're just accepting your beautiful self,
who you are and where you are today.
And with every exhale, you're willing and open
to inviting in a sense of calm,
of peace and of relaxation.
Stay present with your breath here.
And when you're ready,
we'll scan the body starting with the toes
and the soles of the feet.
Just bringing your attention to that part of the body.
Softening anything that's gripping or holding,
but otherwise you don't have to do anything
or make anything of it.
Just sending your awareness to the toes,
to the soles of the feet and the heels.
Scanning the tops of the feet and the ankles.
And as you continue to gently breathe with awareness,
send your attention to the lower part of your legs,
the shins, the calves.
And then up through the knees,
in front of the knee, the sides, the back of the knee.
Through the upper parts of your legs and the thighs,
the top of the thigh, the back of the thighs,
the outer edges and the inner thigh.
And scan all the way up to the hips,
the hip creases, the bowl of the pelvis,
the outer hip and the glutes.
And just nice, easy inhalations here.
Observing nice, easy exhalations
that welcome in a sense of peace.
Now travel up through the waist,
the lower back, the tailbone and sacrum.
With love, wrap around the low belly,
the front body, your center, your core, side bodies.
Travel up the spine and send attention,
awareness to the back, the low back,
mid back, around to your ribs
and all the way up through your heart space,
the chest, the upper back.
Relax your shoulders as you draw awareness to your arms,
fingers soft, hands heavy.
The lower part of your arms, the elbows,
the upper arm bones, shoulders again, relax.
And the collarbones, the trapezius muscles,
your neck, the back of the head,
the jawline and travel all the way up through the skull.
Relaxing the skin of the face, the brow
and bringing your awareness all the way up
to the crown of your head, the tippy tip top of your head.
And then let the skin go
and notice what it feels like to be still today.
Notice all that you can experience while you are still.
Relax your tongue and your mouth.
We'll just take a few more breaths here.
Stillness practice in a world
where we are constantly rushing,
looking to speed things up.
Fill in every space, every gap.
Take one more moment here to embody exquisite stillness
and just be.
Now one last time here together.
We'll gently deepen the breath.
And this time let a big inhale and a long exhale
activate some movement in your fingers.
Maybe you bat the eyelashes gently open,
but keep your gaze down, soft.
And we'll bring the palms together
and all the way up to your heart space
and you just might even press your thumbs
against your chest here.
Feel the warmth between your two palms
or the potential warmth between your two palms
or the potential warmth of your thumbs on your chest.
You might even feel your heartbeat here.
And I'd like to just give thanks
and I invite you to join me if you feel pulled
to just have a moment of gratitude for slowing down,
for welcoming in a sense of inner peace.
And I do believe that when we take the time to be still,
we are taking the time to know
and understand ourselves better.
So thank you for sharing this practice with me
to more stillness practices
in our modern day world.
If you don't have time for this full video,
just know you can always plant your feet
or just take a moment anytime, anywhere to pause,
notice your breath and find stillness.
Thank you so much.
Take good care.
Namaste.
