Grounding Meditation
Preparation: Sit in a comfortable position. If you are sitting on the floor, I always recommend sitting up on a folded blanket—ideally, you want your knees to be just below your hips. This will help you sit for longer periods without extra stress in your back. Ok, when you’re in a comfortable seated position, place your hands in any comfortable position.
Ok, when you feel steady, close your eyes and settle into a relaxed posture. Find your breath moving through your nostrils and keep watching it. Just keep your attention on your breath, let your mind’s content just move through without giving it much attention. Relinquish your mind’s thoughts and images as they arise. Come back to your breath with an alert, yet relaxed, awareness. Just watch your breath for at least five minutes until your mind starts to settle.
When your mind has settled a little, move your awareness down to where your buttocks and back of the legs touch the floor. Notice your connection to the floor. Feel the support from the floor. Now, imagine dropping a line, like a sink line used in fishing, from the base of your spine down into the earth, deep into the earth. Hold that image for a number of breaths.
After a number of breaths and the sense of feeling rooted to the earth via the sink line from the base of the spine, draw your attention to your lower belly. Now, as you breathe in, focus your attention on this point and say to yourself, “Hummmmm”, and as you breathe out, say to yourself, “Saaaaaaaa”.
Do this for a few minutes.
Next, move your attention to your upper belly area. As you breathe in, focus your attention on this point and say to yourself, “Hummmmm”, and as you breathe out, say to yourself, “Saaaaaaaa”.
Do this for a few minutes.
After some time, when you feel ready to move on, begin to visualize a gentle smiling face in your minds eye. Once you have the image, send the smiling face down to the area of your belly. Give thanks to the belly by allowing in the smiling face to spread out and permeate the entire belly area.
To complete this mediation, bring your attention back to your breath at your nostrils. Let go of all other practices. Watch your breath until you feel calm and relaxed. Then, when ready, open your eyes gently and release your posture.