Christian Body Scan Meditation

In Genesis 1, after God created the heavens and the earth and the living creatures, we come to the pinnacle of his creation: man and woman. The human body created in the image of God.

“So God created man in his own image,

in the image of God he created him;

male and female he created them.”

Genesis 1:27

Immediately after, we read: “And God blessed them” (Genesis 1:28).

He then marvels at his creation: “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31).

According to one commentator,

“It had been said of each day’s work, except the second, that it was good, but now, of every thing, that it was very good. For man, the master-piece of God’s works, and his visible image and deputy here on earth, was now formed and constituted the head and governor of the whole.”

Benson’s Commentary of the OT

Here, in the very first chapter of the Bible, we learn that our bodies are not just good — but very good — from the perspective of our Father. Our Christian tradition has been accused of degrading the body, seeing it as a sinful thing to be conquered. Our bodies have been touched by the Fall, yes, but they are, in their truest state, very good, beautiful, and pleasing to our Heavenly Father. In fact, we were created in his very image.

As faithful Christians, we are not called to escape from our bodies, or to shame them. Rather, we are called to live in harmony with our bodies and give thanks for this temporary place where our souls may dwell here on earth.

May the following Christian body scan assist you in connecting with your beautiful and wise body. During this practice, remember that there is no particular state you need to achieve. Use this practice to simply deeper your awareness of each part of your body, and your body as a whole.

(If you’re looking for other practices, you may also enjoy this short breath practice and my guided meditation for shame).

Body Scan

Begin by settling in fully where you are. Try to let go of the mode of doing, evaluating, rehashing the past, or planning for the future and into a mode of simply being.

Become aware of the sensations of the breath as it enters and leaves the body. Notice the way the breath feels as it moves into your abdomen… noticing the slight expansion with each in-breath, and the gentle release with each outbreath.

Simply allow the breath to enter and leave the body of its own accord without trying to change it or control it in any way… just ride the waves of your own breathing for a moment.

During this practice, when you notice your mind has wandered into thoughts, memories, or stories, gently congratulate yourself for being aware of what has happened. Make room for any thoughts as they come, and graciously escort your attention back to your body and breath.

Begin to move your attention all the way down to your toes and notice what is felt here… Is there any tingling…vibration…or a sense of aliveness you feel here?

From the toes, now become aware of the entire foot, including the tops of the feet…bottom of the feet…balls of the feet… arches…and the heels. Notice any sensations alive here. Move your attention into your ankles… including the outer bony part of the angle, and the inner side. 

From the ankles notice the shins and the calves… perhaps feeling the boniness of the shin, and any sensations of the muscles within the calves…

Now become aware of the knees, noticing  any sensations of aliveness or achiness…

Now move your awareness up into the thighs… along muscles of the upper thighs, and even into the thigh bones resting inside the muscles… and notice here the place where the legs join the torso at the hips.

And from the hips, move into the pelvis and the buttocks… Allow the breath to fill into the pelvis on the inhale… and release on the exhale… Feel into the lower back and the tailbone… noticing all the muscles in the lower back… observing any achiness, pain, dullness, or tightness…

 Now, move your attention along the spine into the middle of the back… noticing the rib cage… draw your attention up even more towards the upper back… noticing the shoulder blades and the muscles surrounding them.

Now, move your awareness around to the front of the body into the abdomen… Notice the lower abdomen and the place around the belly button… Move towards the upper abdomen… noticing again the sensations of breath, including any sensations of digestion or tightness… just letting it be. 

Here, you might even place a hand over the stomach, and offer a word of kindness and care for your body. Some of us might sense feelings of shame when focusing on certain areas of the body. Notice this, if it is here, and gently remind yourself that this body you are in is very, very good.

No matter what you’ve done to it, or what someone else has done to you in it, your body is very, very good. Imagine the Father speaking over you: “I see you… your body is very, very good to me.”

Now, move your awareness into the chest region… noticing the rising and falling here with each breath… Notice the area of the heart… being present for whatever you find here, bringing a friendly and curious attentiveness to any sensations.

Move your awareness out to the joints in the shoulders… into the armpits… and allow your attention to move down into the upper arms… both the right and the left arms… Notice the biceps and the triceps… the bones of the upper arms… and then into the elbows… noticing the pointy part on the outside and the soft part on the inside… Notice the lower arms… and then the wrists.

Bring your attention into your hands… the palms of your hands… the backs of the hands…  each of the fingers and thumbs… noticing any tingling, vibration, warmth, coolness… just be present for whatever is here.

Now, move your attention back up your arms and into the neck area… into the front of the neck and the throat… and into the back of the neck… Notice any tightness or tension here, and use your breath to gently massage any areas that need special attention.

Move into the jaw… noticing how the jaw is being held… and slowly release the jaw and just let it be… Feel the skin of the cheeks… the cheekbones… the mouth and the muscles surrounding the mouth… and the lips… 

Notice the nose… the bridge of the nose… the sides of the nose… the sinus area… and then all around the eyes. Feel the eyebrows… the eye sockets… the muscles around the eyes…the lids touching one another.

Bring awareness to the forehead… noticing any furrowing or creasing in the forehead… and just inviting the forehead to be at ease… And then from the face, move your attention around to the ears… now to the sides of the head, including the temples, and the back of the head. Notice the top of the head… becoming aware of the scalp or hair follicles… Notice the back of the head and the contact with whatever you’re resting on.

Now, bring to your awareness your body as a whole… As you breathe in, imagine breath entering through your feet, and moving through your whole body… up through the legs, pelvis, torso area, arms, shoulders, neck and face, and leaving through the top of your head…

Imagine each breath filling your body with fresh energy, and nurturing each region with kindness and care. Remembering here, that our bodies are not meant to be shamed or perfected, but to be cherished, respected, and offered up as vessels for love.

Take a few more moments to notice what is coming up for you… and to offer any words to your body here… Be kind to yourself and whatever you are noticing here.

 And when you’re ready, open your eyes.

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Father, teach us how to live in harmony with our bodies. Thank you for giving us these physical dwelling places to live, move, and have our being in you. May we not forget that what you have made is very, very good.