Hello,
This is Kayla of Kayla Estenson Wellness and this is the fifth and final installment of the loving kindness series.
The first four went through the main four components of loving kindness and this one will bring them all together for a longer and more full practice of that loving kindness.
You are totally welcome to sit with either of the first four if that feels more like where you're at in the moment and if you're ever looking for that full practice this can be a nice one to bring it all together.
Here we will go through loving kindness for the self,
For a loved one,
For an acquaintance,
As well as for someone that we have a difficult relationship with and we'll imagine each of these individuals while we are bringing in affirmations either affirmations for the self or for that other person and we'll go through three rounds for each of that.
I will offer up a few affirmations and you are welcome to change them to anything else that feels more fitting for that individual.
They can be different for each person and allow it to be your own however that needs to be.
To start off I invite you to find a comfortable position.
Maybe you're finding a comfortable seat.
Maybe you're laying down on the floor or on your bed.
Really take your time to settle in here to bring in any supports or props that help you feel even a little bit more comfortable.
Imagine for the eyes to close if that feels safe for you or your gaze can just gently drift.
You can begin to deepen the breath,
Allowing yourself to settle in,
To arrive in this moment,
In this practice.
I think that this one will be a little bit of a longer practice and if your mind wanders that's totally normal.
That's expected in any kind of mindful meditation practice.
I just invite you to be curious whenever you notice your mind wandering.
Notice where it goes.
Then you can bring that aspect of loving kindness as you gently bring your awareness back to the next breath,
The next affirmation,
The next moment.
We are going to start with loving kindness for the self.
So here really bring to mind an image of yourself,
Visualizing you as you speak these loving affirmations to yourself.
I will state each affirmation out loud and you can internally repeat the affirmation each round.
May I be safe.
May I be grounded.
May I be connected.
Taking a moment before these next two rounds to check in if those affirmations feel fitting for you or if you want to switch them up to anything else.
Some other options might be,
May I be supported,
May I be protected,
May I be loved or anything else that resonates that comes up for you.
Feel free to change that if you need.
And we'll go to our second round.
May I be safe.
May I be grounded.
May I be connected.
Take a couple deep breaths.
And for this third and final round for the self,
Allowing as much as feels comfortable for these affirmations to sink in,
To really feel them.
May I be safe.
May I be grounded.
May I be connected.
Taking a moment to notice what's coming up for you as we complete that loving kindness for the self.
Letting go of any judgment or expectation.
Just being curious,
Just noticing.
Allowing this to be a practice,
Not necessarily something that needs to have a specific outcome.
Can you treat yourself with loving kindness as you are practicing loving kindness?
And now we will transition to loving kindness for a loved one.
So here picking someone in which you currently have some ease,
Some care,
Some compassion for.
Choosing someone close to you.
And I recommend choosing someone with which there isn't a lot of difficulty or tension with in this moment.
Sometimes we have difficulty in relationships with loved ones,
That's normal,
That's natural.
And if that feels challenging to bring loving kindness for,
You can totally switch to someone with which it feels a little bit easier or it's a little more available to bring that loving kindness for.
And bring to mind the image of that person,
Really solidifying it.
And we'll begin our first round.
May you be safe.
May you be grounded.
May you be connected.
Working in with how those affirmations are hitting,
The option to change any of them up if that feels right.
May you be safe.
May you be grounded.
May you be connected.
Really bring that loved one,
That image of that loved one to mind.
Really allowing as much as feels comfortable for these affirmations to sink in,
To settle in for this third and final round.
May you be safe.
May you be grounded.
May you be connected.
Taking a moment to just notice what comes up here,
Bringing curiosity and loving kindness as you observe your experience and the loving kindness for a loved one.
And gently transitioning to the loving kindness for an acquaintance,
A stranger,
Someone that we don't know super well,
Maybe someone that we run into in our community,
We very briefly know.
You might be bringing to mind a specific person,
Or maybe imagining a person that you'd be likely to see.
We'll begin our first round.
May you be safe.
May you be grounded.
May you be connected.
Again checking in,
Seeing how those feel,
Adjusting any of the affirmations as needed.
May you be safe.
May you be grounded.
May you be connected.
For this third and final round,
Really bringing that person to mind,
Allowing these affirmations to really sink in as much as feels comfortable.
May you be safe.
May you be grounded.
May you be connected.
Understanding what comes up for you here.
Taking a moment to breathe into that.
And we'll gently shift over to the loving kindness towards someone we have a difficult relationship with.
This might be someone with which we often have tension with.
This might be someone who is a loved one,
Someone we care deeply for,
And there's currently some tension or difficulty.
This might even be someone that we don't know,
But maybe a public figure or someone out in the community with which we share different perspectives or opinions.
I know that this can sometimes be a difficult section for the loving kindness.
If you need to switch up the person throughout the practice,
That's totally okay.
You might choose someone with which there's just a little bit of difficulty if this feels more challenging.
Again,
Knowing that this is a practice,
Not something with which you can do well or are expected to do well or expected for it to be easy.
It's okay for it to feel challenging and it's okay to take a little step back as you need.
Bringing to mind that person that you choose for this as we begin the first round.
May you be safe.
May you be grounded.
May you be connected.
Checking in here,
If you need to switch up any of the affirmations,
You might even choose something a little more neutral if you need to,
As well as knowing that you can change the person if that first round felt a little too much in this moment.
May you be safe.
May you be grounded.
May you be connected.
For this third and final round,
Allowing these to settle,
To sink in as much as feels comfortable.
May you be safe.
May you be grounded.
May you be connected.
Bringing in that loving curiosity as you notice what's coming up for you in this moment.
Bringing some gentleness to it.
And to seal the practice of loving kindness,
Shift awareness to your current physical space.
Bringing awareness to the sensation of your body.
And imagine really feeling that loving kindness filling your experience.
This does not mean that you have achieved this easy compassion for the self,
But more so that you are connecting to this intention of loving kindness and compassion,
Allowing that intention to fill you.
As you inhale,
Feel that experience expand and grow.
And as you exhale,
Imagine sending that intention outwards.
Inhale,
Feel that loving kindness expand within you.
Exhale,
Sending it out into your neighborhood,
Your community.
Inhale expanding it within.
Exhale sending it out into the world.
Using this practice,
Each inhale expanding that experience within.
Each exhale sending out this loving kindness,
This compassion out to all beings.
This feeling here that we are all deserving of love,
Grounding,
Safety and connection.
The more that we can give that to ourselves,
The more that we can authentically send this out to others,
To those that we love and care for,
To those that we maybe don't know very closely,
Maybe people that are strangers or others in our community,
As well as to those we feel tension with,
Have differences to,
Have difficulties with.
You can slowly let go of that breathing practice,
Just letting the breath return to normal.
You allow your mind to just settle in this moment.
And fully knowing that this is very much a practice.
The practice of loving kindness is something that we can continue to grow in throughout our entire lives.
It is not something that is ever achieved.
The very purpose of it is the intention.
The intention to practice loving kindness for ourselves,
For others,
It is the practice.
As we practice,
We may notice some days that it's very easy to practice or we feel really connected to the practice.
And there will be others that feel really challenging.
Neither of those are successes or failures,
But more so just aspects of the practice.
So I invite you,
Whenever you are continuing any element of loving kindness,
Whether it is a seated and recorded practice,
Or whether it's sending out intentions throughout your day,
I invite you to practice loving kindness with yourself as you are in the practice.
Working to let go of expectations and bringing in acceptance of however the practice shows up for you.
Now you can take a few final breaths here.
As we're wrapping up this practice,
You can bring in a little movement in the body if that would feel good.
Maybe wiggling fingers and toes.
Maybe rolling out wrists and ankles.
Maybe rocking your head from side to side.
Bringing in any movements or stretches that help you exit the practice.
And in your timing,
You can gently reopen the eyes if they're closed.
And I thank you for practicing with me here today,
And I hope that you can bring this practice with you throughout your day and know that you can always come back to this in a moment when you need it.
Namaste.
