Find a comfortable place to lie down, on the bed or on the floor, remembering that your intention is to foster kindness and wakefulness and not to fall asleep. If you fall asleep, then it may be that you are tired and need rest – so pay attention to your body and what it needs. Try not to come to the practice when you are fighting off tiredness. If you like, you can do the exercise sitting upright. Ensure that you will not be disturbed while you do this practice and that you will be warm enough; cover yourself with a blanket if necessary.
Close your eyes and focus for a while on the rising and falling of the diaphragm as you breathe, and then become aware of the movement of the breath throughout the body. Feel the sense of release and letting go as each out-breath leaves the body. Then, take a few moments to become aware of your body as a whole: the outline of your skin, the weight of your body, and the sense of gravity bearing down upon it. Notice the points where your body is in contact with the surfaces it rests upon. Now place your hand on your heart as a reminder to be kind to yourself. take three deep, relaxing breaths and then place your arms by your sides.
Imagine that your attention is infused with a warm glow of kindness and then bring your attention to the big toes of both of your feet, exploring the sensations that you find here. You are not trying to make anything happen – you are just feeling what you are feeling. Gradually broaden your awareness to include your other toes, the soles of your feet, and the other parts of your feet. Simply feel the sensations as they are and soften around them. Bring a sense of gratitude to your feet: they work so hard for us yet we pay them so little attention. Then imagine that you are breathing into both your feet on the in-breath, and breathing out from this part of the body into the space surrounding it on the out-breath.
Gradually move the warm glow of your attention up your body to your ankles, calves, knees, and thighs, simply experiencing the sensations you encounter; always being sure that your attention is tender and saturated with gratitude and respect for each part of your body. Now let the soft glow of your attention move up to your buttocks and notice if you are holding any tension in this part of the body; if so, soften around it with your awareness. Then imagine that you are breathing into this part of the body on the in-breath, and breathing out from this part of the body into the space surrounding it on the out-breath. As you breathe in, imagine that you are holding the entirety of the lower part of your body within your awareness and as you breathe out, imagine that you release this part of your body within your awareness.
When you notice that your mind has drifted off into thinking or dreaming or planning, as it will do very often, simply notice this and return to the sensations in your body – no judgment, no sense of getting it wrong, as this is just what the mind does. And then gradually move your soft attention to your abdomen, lower and upper back, shoulders, rib cage, and chest. Every now and again, pause and bring a sense of gratitude and tenderness to the part of the body you are holding in awareness, reflecting on what it does for you and how, so often, you may take it for granted.
Now bring kind awareness to your spine, gently curving through your body, and the point at which it meets the skull. Have a sense of the solid frame of your body. Then bring your awareness down your arms and into your hands, fingers, and fingertips. Notice the warmth and energy that is stored in the palms of your hands. Notice what the hands feel like at rest. And then once again imagine that you are breathing into your torso on the in-breath and breathing out from this part of the body into the space surrounding it on the out-breath.
Then gradually bring the soft glow of awareness to your head, neck, throat, and face, noting any tension held in the muscles around the forehead, around the eyes, the jaw, and the mouth. Notice how sensitive your face feels to the temperature of the air in the room. Allow your face to soften.
Now sweep your attention from your head back down to your feet again, but more quickly this time, and then bring your attention back to your breathing. Pay attention to the movement of the breath in your body as a whole – as if your whole body is breathing and is held in the warm glow of your awareness. When you are about to finish the practice, place your hand on your heart again as a final gesture of kindness, and slowly start moving your body, rolling over onto one side, and then gradually getting up. This will help get the body moving again and reduce stiffness. Make sure not to jar yourself back into ordinary awareness too quickly.
— Choden , Paul Gilbert in Mindful Compassion