Loving-kindness meditation.
Find a comfortable seat or lie down.
Somewhere you won't be disturbed.
Close your eyes.
Take a deep breath.
A gentle breath in through your nose.
And a long slow exhale.
Out through your mouth.
Let your body begin to soften and settle.
Take another deep breath in through the nose.
And this time out through the nose.
And feel your breath anchoring you Feel steady and natural.
Always present.
Take another deep breath in.
And as you breathe out this time,
Let go of any tension in the body.
Release the shoulders and clench the jaw.
Soften the belly.
Let yourself arrive fully here in this moment.
Bring your awareness to the space around you.
The room you are in right now.
See if you can hold a sense of warmth for this space.
The walls.
Object.
The air itself.
Imagine the room filling with the gentle golden light of loving kindness.
Continue to breathe deeply from the lower belly.
No need to strain or force.
A nice deep lower belly breath.
That you continue in and out.
While you imagine the room filling with this gentle golden light of loving-kindness.
Silently repeating to the space around you.
May this place be filled with peace.
May this place be filled with ease.
May this place be filled with loving kindness.
Pause and feel that intention ripple out softly filling the room.
Again,
Not straining,
Just gently breathing.
And feeling that intention ripple out.
And feel the breeze.
And now allow this feeling to expand beyond the room.
Picture it flowing out through the walls into the building.
Breathing softly and deeply.
Breathing out this loving kindness.
Into the building and then into the street,
The neighborhood,
Like gentle waves of light and love.
Let it reach your community,
Your town,
Your country,
And further still.
The entire earth and all sentient beings.
You might like to imagine at this point.
That you're sitting above the earth in space looking down at the earth shining and glowing.
With this loving kindness.
Offer silently.
May all beings be safe.
May all beings be healthy.
May all beings live with ease.
May all beings know love.
Take your time here,
Swirling in this loving kindness.
Imagine the oceans,
The forests,
The cities,
The animals,
The humans,
All life touched by this loving kindness,
No one left out,
Nothing left out.
We're all soaking in this loving kindness.
Continue to breathe deeply.
In and out from the belly.
Relax.
The whole body relaxed.
And just taking in this loving kindness.
Now gently bring your awareness back closer.
One person or a few people you would like to send loving-kindness to.
It might be someone you love dearly.
Someone who is struggling.
Or even someone with whom you'd like to soften a relationship.
Hold their image in your mind.
See them surrounded by light.
Breathe in deeply.
And as you breathe out.
Good luck.
And happy.
Send loving-kindness their way.
Breathe in again.
And as you breathe out gently send loving-kindness their way.
Repeat silently.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy May you live with ease.
May you live with loving kindness.
Imagine your words wrapping around them like a soft blanket,
A healing embrace.
Stay here for a few breaths.
Really feeling the intention of your heart flowing outward.
Not forcing but relaxing.
Holding their image in your mind,
Seeing them surrounded by light.
And sending them loving kindness.
And now gently let go of the image of that person and bring your awareness back to yourself.
You sitting or lying here,
Breathing.
Alive and present.
Allow yourself.
To receive this loving-kindness.
Feel the waves of the loving-kindness coming back to you.
The law of give and receive.
And silently say,
May I be happy,
May I be safe.
May I be healthy.
May I live with ease.
May I live with loving kindness.
Breathe those words into your heart.
Feel those words wrapping around you like a soft blanket,
A healing embrace.
Let them land,
Let them fill you.
And rest here for a few more moments feeling the love you've sent out now circling back like a gentle tide returning to shore.
You are both the giver and the receiver.
The flow of loving-kindness moves through you out into the world.
And back again.
Take some more deep breaths in and out through the nose,
Anchoring this practice.
Feeling the loving-kindness And when you are ready,
Gently open your eyes and notice how you feel soft,
Connected.
Alive.
Carrying loving-kindness within you ready to ripple out.
Into your day.
