Body awareness meditations are often underestimated. When we are under a lot of stress, we can feel disembodied and lost in “head space,” disconnected from ourselves and our surroundings. Full Body Awareness meditation offers a simple way to ground ourselves in the world.
The body also has its own inner “knowing,” like when it “knows” you are uncomfortable in a certain position. By becoming familiar with this kinesthetic sense, we can stay more connected to how our body naturally likes to move and act in the world.
Some inquiry practices use this sense of knowing to let the body reveal how it feels about a specific issue or question (Adyashanti describes how he discovered meditative self-inquiry in the linked article). Full body awareness is much simpler. All we do is move our attention through the body and notice how each part feels.
As you practice, you might not treat it as a detached, dispassionate analysis. It can help to approach it from a place of caring, the way a mother might check on her child rather than the way a doctor might examine a patient.
How to Practice Full Body Awareness
The worksheet above describes this practice, which can be done at any time of day and in just a handful of minutes:
- Settle into a comfortable seated or lying position, soften the shoulders, and close your eyes when you are ready.
- Take three deep breaths, then draw your attention to the crown of your head and scan downward. Note any tension, tightness, or discomfort, especially in places that often hold stress: the forehead, jaw, shoulders, chest, belly, hands, and hips.
- Notice the flow of the breath. Is it shallow and tense, or deep and relaxed?
- If you find an area of tension, you might hold your awareness there and invite the breath to soften it, staying with each area as long as feels right.
- When the scan reaches your toes, hold your whole body in awareness for a full minute, simply noticing how it sits or rests.
- You might draw your hands to your heart and offer yourself a silent word of thanks for tending to your body, then slowly open your eyes.
Giving your body attention may also help with emotions that are held in the body, and over time many people notice their body feeling more relaxed and free. Breathing into tension can help soften some held stress, but this practice is not a substitute for professional care and therapeutic support where it is needed.
