Feel heaviness in each part of the body. Start at the feet or the head and feel it being very heavy. Totally surrender to gravity, and release any tension that would prevent that part from succumbing to the natural downward pull. Remain with that part until it is thoroughly relaxed. Proceed to every other part of the body, one at a time. During this meditation, we simply feel the actual heaviness of the part, or we exaggerate that weight by imagining that it is many tons. Even though the part can be allowed to sink naturally under the influence of gravity, we can also test this state of relaxation by pressing that part firmly toward the floor, and then relax the part. A variation of this exercise is to feel lightness rather than heaviness. Experience your body becoming so serene and light that it can float into the sky.

Count from ten to one, very slowly, feeling yourself relax more with each number. Before doing this, tell yourself that each successive number will take you to a deeper state of rest. We can simply think these numbers, or we can associate them with a visualization such as a stairway in which each downward step is numbered 10, 9, 8, 7, and so on.

Feel a warm energy radiating from the heart into every other area of the body. We can simply feel this energy, or we can visualize it, perhaps as a colored light. A variation is to feel the energy emanating from the solarplexes, the body's center of energy, about two inches below the navel, in the middle of the body.

As you focus on each part individually, tighten the muscles as much as possible, and hold this contracted position for three seconds. Relax, and notice the contrast between the previous tension and the current state. Do this for every part of the body.

Breathe deeply but easily, and feel or visualize the stress leaving with each exhalation. In addition to, or instead of, working with the exhalation, we can use our inhalation to imagine a soothing energy coming into us. Whichever method we use, we can see these activities affecting the entire body simultaneously, or separate parts individually. We would draw the tension from the right foot, and then breathe it out.

Notice any tense areas. As our general stress level drops, we will notice particular areas that remain tight. In some types of bodywork, these tensions are considered to be the locations where emotional traumas have been embedded in the body. By contacting these parts of us, and allowing them to tell us their story, we can start to release both the psychological distress and the corresponding physical discomfort. However, when we encounter these stories, we can re-experience the original emotional anguish, so we must be prepared to meet them with love and an intention to resolve them. Focus your attention on one of these areas, with acceptance and a gentle curiosity. Allow any information to come to you from this part of your body. The message can be in the form of a memory, perhaps of a childhood accident that injured this part, or a visual image, perhaps in dream like symbolism, or a literal picture of a parent who repeatedly scolded you harshly, or a still, small voice, as though that part is speaking to you, or simply an intuitive knowingness. Try to sense the appropriate statement to say in response to each tense area: we can need to say, "That was in the past, and we are all right now" or "I love you and accept you" or a similar comforting phrase. Send a warm, loving energy to that part, and feel the part relaxing in response to your kindness. Feel the relief and relaxation that occur. As you go through your day, notice any occasions when you are embedding new tensions in your body. We can use these tensions as feedback on how well we are managing the situations of our life, both the external challenges and any internal conflicts. As you say the comforting phrase, notice any feelings or thoughts that would contradict that statement. As you highlight your legs, you can realize that you think that your legs are too fat, or that another part is shameful, disgusting, inadequate, weak, or bothersome. We can have implanted hateful judgments into many parts of our body. Even an evaluation of approval is stifling to the body. If we think that our hair is beautiful according to any standard, we are approaching the body through the viewpoint of analysis and judgment, rather than experiencing it in its own right with our nourishing love, affection, and acceptance. The problem is not that judgmentalness is wrong but rather that it is a state in which we aren't seeing the part for what it is, and we are not interacting with it dynamically and permitting our living energy to flow to it.

Meditate on your body as a process and a flow rather than as a physical object. Feel the movement of air in the lungs, and the blood in the veins and arteries, and the energy from one point to another. Sense the body as a system in which everything is changing, everything is alive, everything is active within the overall energy dynamics, everything is related to all of the other parts.

Give gentle instructions to relax. While attending to each part of the body, mentally whisper a word such as relax or soften or another phrase that is effective for you.

Imagine the tension melting like ice on a warm day. As this ice melts, it turns into water and then it flows out of your hands or your feet.

Leisure is the best of all possessions.

Socrates