Hello,
And welcome to this loving-kindness meditation.
In this guided practice,
We are going to bring kindness and compassion to ourselves and others.
By using a mantra,
We can wish health and happiness to ourselves and others in the world around us.
In this loving-kindness or meta practice,
You can modify or adjust the mantra to fit to whatever it is that you feel.
You can find numerous variations online.
Now I invite you to get into a comfortable posture.
You may use your meditation posture,
Or you can even do this while you are doing some routine activity,
Such as taking a walk.
Let's begin by wishing ourselves well.
Very often,
We care for others,
And we sacrifice time that we so desperately need for our own self-care.
Or we care for ourselves,
But feel selfish in doing so.
This practice is not simply for others,
But for ourselves as well.
Now let's begin with a meta practice towards ourselves,
And repeat each line after me.
May I be safe.
May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May I live with ease.
Now think of a loved one and bring them to mind.
It may be a spouse or significant other,
A parent,
A child,
Or sibling,
And with that person in mind,
Repeat these lines.
May you be safe.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you live with ease.
Let's turn our attention and compassion back to ourselves once again to refill our cup of kindness.
May I be safe.
May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May I live with ease.
Now we will think of a friend or acquaintance,
Someone just outside that circle of close family members and loved ones.
Now with that person in our minds,
Let's repeat the following phrases.
May you be safe.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you live with ease.
And again,
Let's turn our attention and compassion back to ourselves.
May I be safe.
May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May I live with ease.
Now this next one can be hard,
But try to think of someone you dislike.
On a scale of 1 to 10,
Someone that you would rank as a 2 or 3.
And now we will offer them the same thoughts of compassion.
May you be safe.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you live with ease.
And again,
To refill our own cup of loving kindness and compassion towards ourself.
Let's turn this mantra back towards ourself once again.
May I be safe.
May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May I live with ease.
Now on this last session of mantras of loving kindness,
Let's try to bring in ourselves along with all sentient beings everywhere.
And repeat the following lines.
May everyone be safe.
May everyone be happy.
May everyone be healthy.
May everyone live with ease.
It is said that compassion is exponential and we have an infinite amount of compassion to give to others.
But I have felt compassion fatigue.
We may feel good when we are kind and helpful to others.
But we need to be sure not to deplete ourselves in doing so.
Even when you are on an airplane,
For example,
They tell you in case of an emergency to put your own oxygen mask on prior to helping those around you.
Think of this practice,
This way of offering yourself kindness and compassion,
As a way of taking in a breath of fresh oxygen.
And in doing so,
You have the strength and energy to continue to help those around you.
Thank you and be well.
