The Unmasking

We carry the day in the face and shoulders without noticing. This working shakes it loose with a few movements that look a little silly and feel very good, then lets you lie down and listen to what has changed. Do it somewhere nobody will ask you what you’re doing.

The working

1. Sit or lie down. For two or three minutes, make faces: open your mouth wide, move your jaw from side to side, open your eyes wide and look up, down and around.
2. Hum low in your throat for a minute or two, mmmm or om. Then chatter with your tongue, da da da, ba ba ba, for another minute.
3. Lift your shoulders up toward your ears and hold them there until they start to tire. Then drop them as low as they’ll go. Do this three times.
4. Turn your head slowly from side to side, only as far as is comfortable, for a minute or two.
5. Now lie on your back and feel the whole body for about ten minutes. Notice every sensation you can, without trying to change any of it.
6. To finish, sit in any comfortable position. Check that your eyelids are resting rather than squeezed, your jaw is loose and your forehead is smooth, then rest your attention on the breath or a single word for a few minutes.

Closing

Get up slowly. If anything surprising came up while you lay there, a memory or a feeling, let it be. It was only being let out.