Greetings.
Hi friends.
My name is Joyce.
Thank you for joining me today.
I wanted to offer a metta meditation or a loving kindness meditation.
This is a Buddhist practice for cultivating compassion and really concentrating on being mindful and more loving toward the self,
Toward others.
So through this,
We connect with our breath,
We connect with the mind,
And we really connect with the heart space.
And by doing this,
We start to develop feelings of ease and love and kindness start to come to us a lot more naturally.
You can do this practice anywhere,
Standing,
Walking,
Sitting.
Just allow yourself to be comfortable and make sure you allow for enough time,
Maybe 10 to 15 minutes to just sit with your thoughts or be with your thoughts.
So find a comfortable place to sit.
Now allow your body to feel at ease and supported.
If you're standing,
Flex out the feet and just kind of really stand but find a gentle bend in the knee so you don't lock out.
As you're ready,
Begin to connect to your breath,
Focusing on the inhale and the exhale until your breath finds a natural flow.
As you continue to breathe,
Maybe you close the eyes if you haven't already the attention to the heart.
You might bring one hand to rest gently on top of the heart and connect.
Feel that energy and warmth between your hand and your chest.
Leave your hands comfortably on the knees.
But as you continue to breathe,
Begin to offer loving kindness towards yourself.
Start to repeat these phrases.
May I be healthy.
May I be happy.
May I be peaceful.
May I be healthy.
May I be happy.
May I be peaceful.
Next picture in your mind someone you care deeply about.
It's gonna be a family member,
A pet,
Friend,
Someone who's helpful or encouraging.
As you picture them in your mind,
Begin to offer them the same phrases of love and kindness.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you be peaceful.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you be peaceful.
You feel the mind beginning to get distracted.
Return to the rhythm of your breath,
Feeling the gentle lift as you inhale,
The settling as you exhale.
Begin to picture a person in your mind,
Someone you consider more difficult,
Someone you might have had a disagreement with or find any sort of difficulty.
Take your time.
If this feels a little difficult or painful at first,
Maybe you start by sending yourself some loving kindness that you might need.
Imagine this person in your mind.
As you're ready,
Allow your heart to soften toward them.
Start to repeat the phrases again.
May all beings be happy.
May they be healthy.
May they be peaceful.
May they be happy.
May they be healthy.
May they be peaceful.
As you continue to find the breath,
Find comfort and support in whatever's beneath you.
Start to feel light as you breathe in.
Notice the lift of the heart.
As you breathe out,
Feel softness,
Maybe some warmth.
Accept every sensation that's coming to you externally or internally.
Accept it all as it is.
Continue to connect with your breath.
Finding full breaths in through your nose.
Part your lips.
Sigh the breath out through the mouth.
A few more breaths just like this.
Inhale.
Exhale,
Soft sigh.
If you haven't already,
Begin to flutter your eyes open gently,
Starting to welcome yourself back to the space.
Re-engaging with your environment.
Finding a natural flow of breath.
Know that at any point throughout your day,
You can return to these feelings and repeat these phrases to yourself,
To others.
Offer this kindness,
These loving,
Genuine feelings of goodwill.
Really begin to spread that energy.
May yourself and all beings be happy.
May the self and all beings be healthy.
May the self and all beings be peaceful.
Thank you for sharing your practice with me.
