Body Scan Meditation Script
The words below are for a person to read; the timer does not narrate them. Print the script for a group, or read the route once before practicing solo. If you skip a body area, leave the pause quiet or move to a comfortable contact point.
This fifteen-minute practice moves through the body without asking it to feel a particular way. Read at an easy pace, about 90–110 words per minute. The pauses are part of the practice; leave extra silence before the closing if needed. Bracketed directions are for the reader, not spoken instructions.
You can sit or lie down. For positioning help, see meditation posture. If attention inside the body feels uncomfortable, keep your eyes open and attend to the room, or stop.
The script
Arriving
Choose a position that gives your body enough support. Let your hands rest wherever they can be comfortable. Your eyes may close, or stay open. Feel the surface beneath you. Notice where your weight meets the chair, cushion, or floor. There is no special state you need to reach.
Allow your breathing to continue by itself. You do not need to deepen it. During this practice, we will visit different parts of the body. You might feel warmth, movement, pressure, or very little. All of those are things you can notice.
[Pause for 60 seconds.]
Feet and legs
Bring attention to your feet. Perhaps you can feel fabric around the toes or pressure beneath the heels. Let one small sensation be enough. If the feet are difficult to feel, simply know where they are. You do not need to invent a sensation.
[Pause for 60 seconds.]
Move upward to the lower legs, then the knees and thighs. Notice the places that are supported and the places that are not. There may be different sensations on each side. Let those differences exist without trying to make the two sides match.
[Pause for 90 seconds.]
The middle of the body
Notice the hips and their contact with the surface beneath you. Include the lower back. If a position needs changing, change it gently. Paying attention does not require staying with pain. Once you have adjusted, notice the new points of contact.
[Pause for 60 seconds.]
Now notice the belly and chest. Clothing may shift a little as you breathe. You can follow that movement, or stay with the steadier feeling of your back against its support. Choose the place that feels easiest to attend to today.
[Pause for 90 seconds.]
Hands, shoulders, and face
Bring attention to your hands. Notice how the fingers rest, perhaps touching one another. Follow the arms toward the shoulders. There is no need to lower your shoulders on command. Notice their position first, then make a small adjustment if you would like one.
[Pause for 90 seconds.]
Include the neck, jaw, cheeks, and forehead. Feel the air touching any uncovered skin. Let the eyes rest. When a thought carries you away, begin again at the part of the body you remember. There is no missing piece you must go back and recover.
[Pause for 60 seconds.]
Returning to the room
Let attention include the whole body, supported here. Stay with the general feeling of being in this position. There is no need to review each area or decide whether the scan went well. Then begin to notice sounds in the room. Move your fingers or feet. Open your eyes if they were closed, and take your time before standing.
[Leave any remaining time in silence before the bell.]
Use the script your way
For a shorter session, visit fewer areas rather than racing through every paragraph. The body scan method explains how to practice without reading. Find a different focus in the script library.