Session One - The Foundation

This is your foundation session. Breathwork and sound healing you can come back to again and again when you need a bit of calm, restoration, space. Meant to be experienced lying down. Best experienced with an eye cover. 

Transcript

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SPEAKER_01 0:01

Hi, I'm Cassie. Welcome to Cedar Sessions. I thought for this first session we would make it a bit of a practice round. Rather than joining live, rather than coming into communion right after we experience this for the first time, I thought I'd create a session that was your foundation. One that you can come back to again and again. Because the thing is, this breath work is meant to work with your body. It is meant to work with the wisdom that's deep within your own body, your own soul. And your body knows exactly what it needs at any given moment. And so you can come back to this tomorrow. Same music, same voice, same guidance, and your experience will be different. Because your body will need something different. And so maybe take this one as an offering for building your foundation, for practicing, for having a place just for you. The breath that we'll use during the active portion of this is a three-part breath all through the mouth, in through the belly, then the chest. Exhale. And it goes in a circle, it keeps going. So it might feel a little funny at first. You're likely not used to breathing through your mouth. But this breath is what hyper-oxygenates our brain a bit to kind of turn off that thinking brain. The brain that when you sit down to maybe meditate or be still has a hard time being quiet. The one that keeps you from going in. This breath helps to just dial it back a little. You might feel some tinkling, that's your energy moving, that's great. But at any point, if you feel like it's too much, just start breathing through your nose and you'll settle back in. This practice is done lying down, so if you can't do that now, please come back to us later. But it's done lying down with maybe a covering over your eyes and a blanket so that you're nice and comfortable. We'll begin in a moment with a brief settling meditation before we go into the active breath. I'll guide you through the whole thing. And then we end with a delicious restorative sound bath with crystal singing bowls. Just let it all integrate. Okay. Without further ado, we'll begin. So go ahead and lie down. Find yourself still. Take a deep breath in through your nose. And a clearing exhale, let it go. Another deep breath in through your nose. Exhale, let it go. With this next inhale, see if you can tighten your whole body. Squeeze your toes, your legs, your hips. Squeeze your belly, your hands, squeeze your face, squeeze everything. Squeeze, squeeze, squeeze. Sip in a little bit more air. And exhale, let it go. Begin to bring your attention just above your head. Imagining a beautiful warm golden light. Hovering above you. Beginning to move towards you. You feel the warmth as it hovers above your body and begins to pour in through the crown of your head. And as it moves down your body with each breath, notice the softening. The softening as it fills every cell in your body, every muscle, every organ, every bone, every part of your body filled with this beautiful, peaceful, infinite golden light. It moves down your face, softening your jaw, your neck, your shoulders, and your chest. It moves down the back of your spine, creating softness everywhere it moves. In your belly, in your hips, in your legs, all the way down to your feet. As it begins to flow in your body. And it moves back up to your heart space. Where it begins to overflow. Surrounding you in this beautiful golden light. A light of infinite possibility. A light of love. And allow yourself right here to begin to open. Take another deep breath in through your nose. Exhale through your mouth. And let's begin. Begin by breathing in through your mouth. So open your mouth, in through the belly, chest. Exhale. Good. Right back to it. Belly, chest. Exhale. Move your breath. Move your body. The breath moves through your body, in through the belly, up into your chest, expanding, filling your body. Exhale, you come right back to it. Right away, your brain might begin to protest. That's okay. Just allow it and keep breathing. Keep moving through it. There is nothing you need to do other than move your breath. Deepen it into the belly. Feel your belly expanding. Feel your heart expanding. Exhale, let it go. Beautiful. Find here your intention. Be purposeful with your breath, with your body with each moment. Good. Deepen your breath, deepen it in your belly. Belly, chest, exhale. Belly, chest, exhale. Allow your breath to create space in your body. Allow it to move your energy so that what is waiting for you, what is meant for you, can come in. Good. Keep moving it. Yes. Can you deepen it a tiny bit? Good. This beginning part is the hardest part. It's where we have to acknowledge that we can allow ourselves the space to listen. Listen to our body and what it wants us to hear. What we already know, but we've been quieting. Good, deep in your breath. Good. Can you find somewhere here where you haven't yet sent your breath? Somewhere where resistance is building or it's holding. Maybe it's in your shoulder blades. Maybe it's in your benign. Find that space of tension and send your breath there. Allow your body to do its work. Allow your breath to create a clearing, to create movement, to allow things to flow. Good. If you begin to feel vibrations, acknowledge the power of your energy. Acknowledge what you are capable of and keep your breath moving. Allow your breath to show you what it is that's meant to come up. Good. Deepen your breath. Beautiful. Good. See if you can pick it up here. Both deepen it and pick up the pace. Beautiful. You get from this what you put into it, what you allow. So can you allow yourself to go deeper? Allow yourself to move in without judgment. We live our life in judgment, in judgment of others, in judgment of ourselves, in judgment of all the things around us. Can you just go in without consequence? Good. Deepen your breath. If something wants to come up, try not to resist it. Try to invite in whatever your body wants to show you. Deepen your breath, belly, chest, exhale. Belly, chest, exhale. Yes. Beautiful. Good. The deeper you take your breath, the more you increase the pace, the more you get the energy moving. The more your body will show you. Good. Your body knows exactly what it needs right now. It will only give you what you are capable of. So listen. Listen while you breathe. Yes, go deeper. Beautiful. Find what you're afraid of. What's holding you back right now? There is something holding you back, something taking you from going deeper. On the other side of fear is your life. And so choose right now you. Choose your life. Choose to say yes. Yes to creating space for what wants to flow in. Good. There is a beautiful light that is right here right now. And there is a beautiful light that is waiting for you. If something feels hard, it's because you're resisting. Find where you're resisting. And choose to let it flow. Let your breath move it. Let it go. Beautiful. Let your energy move. When we choose to allow to move with the flow rather than resist, we begin to open. And the world opens with us and for us. Good. Take it in. You have one more song of active breath before we get into some deep restoration after this. So deepen your breath. Likely something will come up. Something wants to move. So can you allow that? If a sound needs to help you, let it. If you need to yell, if you need to laugh, if you need to cry, allow it. Let it do it. Be it. Be you. Experience your whole life right now. Keep your breath moving. Let's go. Deepen it here. You're about to find out who you are. When we let go of judgment. When we let go of fear, when we let go of blame. When we are just ourselves. When we take away the pressure of becoming something that somebody else has told us to be, an image we've created because of those in our lives. When we are just exactly who we are. Take your breath in. Belly, chest, exhale. Belly, chest, exhale. Don't give up now. Keep moving your breath. This is where the magic begins to happen, where things begin to open. Where we feel our body expand into the continuous energy field around us. The energy of those around us. The energy of the space we're in right now, the energy of our body. It is all connected, and what we put out, we received back. So what do you want to receive? When we stay stagnant in our fear, when we stay stagnant in our grief, when we don't move it, it roots into our body. And so more of it finds us. But it's just energy. And so if we move it, if we move it, it can go out, it can move through our body. And the joy and the love can pour in. When we mute our grief, we mute our joy and love. Because we don't just choose the feelings we mute. They're all together because they're all energy. So to know love, you know grief. To know joy, you know sorrow. They exist together. That is the beautiful human experience of our life. And know that when we mute one, we mute the other. So choose now to experience all of it. All of the depth so that the life that is waiting for you can come in. Choose you. Good. Good. You have just a little bit longer with this breath. Stay with it. Choose you. Let it move. Let it flow. Belly, heart expands. Exhale. Belly, heart expands, exhale. Feel the expansion in your body. Feel your energy moving. Keep your breath moving a few more seconds. Beautiful. Good. Take one long inhale through your mouth. Hold it just slightly at the top. And exhale, let it go. Another long inhale through your mouth. And exhale, let it go. Regardless of animal, the river flows in its intended direction, moving through visual obstacles, knowing it is all part of its journey.

SPEAKER_00 24:23

See if you can find an insight, an insight from your body, an insight from your soul, just for you, right here, right now. Feel the inhale move through your body, and feel the exhale with ease.

SPEAKER_01 27:27

Maybe you notice somewhere in your body that feels lighter. Maybe you notice somewhere in your body that feels more joyful. Just notice your body with this next inhale. Can you breathe in gratitude for your life for your body? And exhale a deeper sense of love, a deeper sense of life. Bring small movements into your feet or your fingers. And when you're ready, you can open your eyes and welcome back. Thanks for spending this time with me today for yourself. See you next time in the session.