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Posted on Sun, Jan 23, 2011 : 6 a.m.

A guided meditation: find your edge and go deeper

By Susan Scott Morales, MSW

In keeping with the idea from last week’s blog, I propose that you prepare for a deep meditation: do a workout first, set aside a longer period of time than usual or plan on meditating with other people. Set an intention to have the most beneficial meditation of your life.

Click here for the findyouredge.mp3 version. Thanks to Laz Slomovitz for the accompanying music, "Gratefulness" and "Tenderness."

Now that you’ve prepared, sit in your most comfortable meditation posture and close your eyes. Put one hand over your chest and the other over your belly. As you breathe normally, notice where your muscles contract to begin the breath. Is it in the upper chest, the middle of your belly? If it’s in your chest, put both hands there side by side. If in your belly, put both hands there. Now get an even closer sense of where your breath originates. Continue to breathe normally and without any judgment, simply observe. In your mind draw a line that represents the start line. This is your edge.

Breathing normally, sense your edge. You can drop your hands if you wish. There’s no need to change your breathing; simply be with your inhalation and exhalation. As you relax more, notice what happens to your edge. Stay in the observer mode. Let go and allow yourself to go deeper. At some point if you lose awareness of your breathing, that’s fine. Just let go. If thoughts come in and disrupt your meditation, go back to noticing the rhythm of your breathing. Focus inward, relax and breathe.

Allow your edge to dissolve, to drop deeper. Feel your muscles soften and your breath deepen. Meditate on this expanded feeling.

As a mental health professional, an owner of a fitness studio, a writer and a wife, mother and grandmother, I have found meditation to be helpful in every aspect of my life. To find out about “Be Who You Love” meditation workshop on Feb. 5 or my newly published novel, “A Barroom View of Love”, contact me at susanmmorales@yahoo.com or check out my websites: susanscottmorales.com and bodiesinbalancefitness.com.

Comments

Linda Chapman

Sun, Feb 6, 2011 : 5:57 p.m.

I'm looking forward to experimenting with this concept of "the edge." While there is an initial sense of it, the awareness comes that it's like looking for the edge of the universe... a journey that takes us to deep, new places.