This loving kindness meditation was recorded by MBSR teacher Adele Stewart at the Mount Kira Scout Camp retreat February 2020.
Finding yourself a comfortable lying or sitting position for loving kindness meditation.
In this practice,
The invitation is to consciously and deliberately explore cultivating kindness,
Friendliness and warmth to ourselves and others.
Perhaps seeing the practice as planting seeds of intention.
And this meditation can be very different for different people on different days in different moods.
So the kindness is as much towards ourselves,
Noticing reactions and perhaps very contrary feelings.
Perhaps parts feel drawn to some parts of the meditation and there'll be parts of us that have a real resistance to part of the meditation.
Noticing these as best we can.
As always,
The mind will wander.
Not a problem.
Whenever you notice the mind has wandered.
Ever so gently bringing it back to the practice.
So beginning by resting attention in the centre of the chest.
Sort of metaphorical heart area.
Opening to any sensations that might be present there.
Perhaps breathing tenderly in and out of the heart area.
Bit like the waves lapping at the beach.
In and out.
Noticing any initial reactions to this practice.
And know that you can continue to do just this practice,
Ignoring further instructions.
Although there may be people or days where going back to a simple breath meditation feels right.
Continuing to breathe tenderly in and out of the heart area.
Perhaps bringing to mind someone really easy to feel kind and loving towards.
Maybe a child or a pet.
Not someone too complicated.
Bring them to your mind's eye or just feel their presence.
And if they do generate a feeling of love,
Appreciation,
Care or kindness.
Notice if it's felt in the body.
Particularly looking in that heart area.
Is there any warmth or tingling or subtle vibration?
If so,
Breathing it in and when you're breathing out,
See if it's possible to fill the whole body with these sensations.
And if you haven't really touched on any sensations in the heart area,
But you have some maybe in the palms of your hands or your belly or somewhere else.
Feel free to use those instead.
Breathing into the heart,
Breathing out,
Filling the body with sensations.
Associated with kindness,
Friendliness.
And if you're noticing a rejection or not connecting to this practice,
Either staying with the feeling of that.
Or perhaps going back to a simple breath practice.
And at any point during this practice,
If putting a hand over the heart area feels supportive or helpful,
Then please do so.
And once again,
Only if this works for you,
Perhaps sending some wishes to this being that's easy to love.
May you be safe and protected.
May you know peace and ease in your body,
Heart and mind.
May you know kindness,
Joy,
Contentment.
And letting this being go.
Bringing the attention back to the breath.
Possibly a few deeper breaths.
And notice what's present in the body,
Heart and mind.
And if there's difficult or unpleasant thoughts or emotions,
Can you extend warmth and kindness to those?
They're there for a reason.
If there's a harsh self-critic present,
Again,
No need to block them out.
See how it is to envelope those self-critics in warmth and kindness.
And ask them to step back a little.
So now seeing how it is to extend those feelings of warmth and kindness and friendliness to yourself.
Notice the reactions when I say that.
No need to force this.
But seeing how it is to breathe into the heart area and breathe out that warmth,
Kindness,
Friendliness to yourself.
Perhaps filling your body with those pleasant sensations.
Perhaps a hand on the heart to support the practice.
Perhaps allowing your heart to open to the possibility of making peace with yourself,
Even in turbulent times.
And knowing that you can always go back to the breath or stay kindly and gently with the resistance.
Perhaps you could send some well wishes to yourself.
May I be safe and protected.
May I know peace and ease in my body,
Heart and mind.
May I know kindness,
Friendliness,
Contentment,
Joy.
And taking a few breaths and letting that part of the practice go.
Noticing what's present in the body,
Heart and mind.
And now bringing to mind someone or someones who are reasonably neutral in your life.
Maybe people in the room or people you see in the shops or work colleagues.
Bringing them into your heart.
Continuing to breathe in and out of the heart.
Warmth,
Friendliness and kindness.
Remember they too are human and have their limitations and they too suffer,
Just like us.
And maybe you might like to offer them some wishes as well.
May you be safe and protected.
May you know peace and ease in your body,
Heart and mind.
May you know kindness,
Friendliness,
Joy,
Contentment.
And letting this part of the practice go.
Taking a few breaths,
Noticing what's present in the body,
Heart and mind.
And now perhaps bringing someone to mind who you're having some conflict with or have in the past.
No need to strain here or do something that feels difficult.
Perhaps not choosing the most difficult person for you in the world.
And also knowing that you don't have to bring them right into your heart.
They can be whatever distance seems right.
And seeing how it is to breathe in and out of the heart for them.
Warmth,
Kindness,
Friendliness.
Remembering this is not condoning any bad behaviour.
It's not suggesting that we be doormats.
You can almost see it more for yourself than for the other person.
So only if it feels right,
Breathing in and out of the heart to this difficult person or persons.
Knowing that they are too human.
They have their own reactivity,
Their own suffering.
And perhaps sending them some well wishes.
Perhaps even a wish that they realise the error of their ways.
Or perhaps that they're safe and protected.
That they know peace and ease in their body,
Heart and mind.
That they know kindness,
Friendliness and warmth.
Taking a few deeper breaths,
Letting this person go.
And now if it feels okay,
Continuing to breathe in and out of the heart and mind.
And seeing if you can extend this warmth,
Kindness and friendliness to all beings everywhere.
Perhaps if you're someone who's tapped into these pleasant sensations in the chest area or elsewhere.
You can actually imagine them being charged with loving kindness and sending them out in all directions.
To all beings.
All through the world.
Perhaps including animals,
Birds,
Sea creatures,
Insects,
Perhaps plants and trees.
Perhaps you might even have a sense that this whole earth is alive.
You can send loving kindness to the whole earth.
Noticing if this doesn't connect or there's a resistance and perhaps choosing to gently stay with the resistance.
Or going back to the breath.
Knowing that this is a practice that can be different on different days,
Different moods.
There's nothing to be gained by straining and striving.
And spending the last couple of minutes either just with the breath or continuing the breath in and out of the heart.
And on the breath out,
Sending loving kindness in all directions.
Imagine if at any one time everybody in the world who was capable of it right then was sending that out.
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