Hello and welcome to this loving kindness meditation.
My name is Alicia.
A loving kindness meditation or meta meditation is really one of the ultimate forms of love and generosity we can express to ourselves and to others.
As we cultivate a loving and compassionate heart and a calm mind,
The experiences that we have will flow more easily and the challenges we encounter may feel less troublesome.
Allow yourself to become relaxed in a comfortable seat or lying down.
Draw your awareness inward to your breath and just notice the qualities of your natural breath.
As you feel support from the ground below you,
Allow your body and your mind to become even more relaxed now.
Let your chest be open and your heart soft.
It is said that compassion that does not include yourself is incomplete.
So this meditation will begin with you.
Picture yourself as you are now and allow yourself to start to cultivate feeling of love and compassion for yourself.
Sometimes this can be difficult as an adult to do.
If you're finding that this is the case for you,
Sometimes it can be helpful to picture yourself as a small child.
Begin to say these phrases to yourself.
May I be filled with loving kindness.
May I be well in body and in mind.
May I have strength to accept and to forgive.
May I be safe at ease and happy.
May I be filled with loving kindness.
May I be well in body and in mind.
May I have strength to accept and to forgive.
May I be safe at ease and happy.
May I be filled with loving kindness.
May I be well in body and in mind.
May I have strength to accept and to forgive.
May I be safe at ease and happy.
May I be filled with loving kindness.
May I be well in body and in mind.
May I have strength to accept and to forgive.
May I be safe at ease and happy.
As you start to feel love and compassion come into your body,
Calming your mind,
See if you can now expand that compassion and love outwards.
Picture the person closest to you,
The person that you love the most,
Where the relationship is the easiest,
Where you feel the most like yourself when you're with that person.
Picture their face.
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be well in body and in mind.
May you have strength to accept and to forgive.
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be well in body and in mind.
May you have strength to accept and to forgive.
May you be safe at ease and happy.
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be well in body and in mind.
May you have strength to accept and to forgive.
May you be safe at ease and happy.
Sometimes the mind wants to wander away to memories of the past or anticipation of the future.
If that starts to happen,
That's okay.
Just gently encourage your attention back to the breath in and the breath out,
Cultivating again that feeling of love and compassion in your heart.
Start to now allow that sphere of compassion to grow beyond yourself and beyond your most loved.
Bring into your mind someone that you care about deeply,
But maybe the relationship isn't easy or there is conflict.
Picture their face in your mind as you say to them,
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be well in body and in mind.
May you have strength to accept and to forgive.
May you be safe at ease and happy.
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be well in body and in mind.
May you have strength to accept and to forgive.
May you be safe at ease and happy.
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be well in body and in mind.
May you have strength to accept and to forgive.
May you be safe at ease and happy.
Continue to stay here in the present moment.
If difficult emotions arise,
Try to acknowledge them and let them pass.
Allow the breath to deepen,
Bringing more relaxation and softness in the body.
Can you now begin to expand this feeling of compassion and kindness further still?
Can you allow this idea to include people that maybe you don't like very much?
Maybe there's someone that you're struggling with at work or in a social circle.
Can you picture their face with softness in your heart?
And can you say to them,
May you be filled with loving kindness?
May you be well in body and in mind.
May you have strength to accept and to forgive.
May you be safe at ease and happy.
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be well in body and in mind.
May you have strength to accept and to forgive.
May you be safe at ease and happy.
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be well in body and in mind.
May you have strength to accept and to forgive.
May you be safe at ease and happy.
Sometimes expressing loving kindness to those closest to us can feel easy.
And where the relationship is tough,
We might feel resistance.
But like anything,
Practicing loving kindness takes practice.
So be patient with yourself.
Allow your body to soften and bring into your mind everyone that you pictured in this meditation.
Maybe you envision them sitting in a circle together,
Picturing each of their faces.
May all of us be filled with loving kindness.
May we all be well in body and in mind.
May we have strength to accept and to forgive.
May we all be safe at ease and happy.
Gently start to bring your awareness back in your body,
Wiggling your fingers,
Wiggling your toes,
Circling the ankles and the wrists,
Or maybe even taking a deep stretch with the arms overhead.
Allow yourself to gently blink your eyes open.
As you begin to practice this meditation more regularly,
You may find that you will feel a wonderful connection with other people that maybe wasn't quite there before.
You may also find a calm mind and be more connected to yourself and to your own heart.
Thank you so much for joining me with loving kindness.
Namaste.
