Hello,
I'm Adam,
And welcome to this guided meditation on happiness.
If you are listening to this because you are in search of happiness and fulfilment,
Then may I suggest that it is the very search that is getting in your way.
As the Sufi poet Rumi once wrote,
You wander from room to room hunting for the diamond necklace that is already around your neck.
Happiness and joy aren't things that you buy,
Get or win.
They're not rewards for being liked by many or for having many things.
They're the fruits of labour when you work to unveil the layers of protection that you've wrapped around your heart.
The truth is that they are always there and available to us.
They always have been and they always will be.
Here you have a choice.
It takes practice,
But you can choose to be happy.
In this practice we will use your imagination as we all have the power to visualise,
To create in our minds what we cannot yet see with our eyes.
Often the problem is that we use this power to visualise what we'd rather not see.
We conjure up all sorts of images about bad,
Painful things that could happen.
Maybe it's time to use the potent creative power of visualisation to create happiness we would like to see in our lives.
So first take the time to find a comfortable seat,
Maybe on a chair or sitting cross-legged on a cushion.
Make sure that you can sit upright,
Your hips roll forwards easily and you feel the natural curve of your lower back.
Take a long,
Slow,
Deep breath in.
Then hold for a brief moment and let go on a long,
Slow,
Deep breath out.
Continue breathing deeply a couple more times and as you do allow your shoulders to drop,
The muscles of your face endure to relax.
When you are ready return to normal breathing.
Grounding down through your sitting bones,
Develop an awareness of your connection to the earth and all the support and vitality that it provides.
Use your breath out to enhance this connection.
Every exhale,
A little bit of a deeper connection,
Allowing your roots to reach deep.
And as you take an inhale drawing your breath in,
Notice what the breath does to your body,
Taking in the energetic life force from the world outside.
Develop awareness of expansion and space within you.
Every cell in your body becomes an eye through which you sense the pervading life force spread.
The whole body alive with vitality.
You are abundant in this way.
You can tap in the energetic vitality any time that you want to.
Just bring your attention to it and feel the breath as it flows seamlessly in and out of the body.
A never-ending dance of lifting and grounding,
Revitalising and cleansing.
Focus now on the momentary gap between inhale and exhale.
Draw your attention to the stillness within the gap.
Any time the chatter in your mind takes you away from this gap,
Gently bring it back.
Crescendo.
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I'm noticing this gap.
Draw your awareness and let your awareness rest within the space just to the right of your beating heart.
The spiritual heart's entered,
The area where we call Hidaya.
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Let your awareness rest in this space.
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At the same time be aware of any sensations or emotions that rise within.
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Be aware of the breath flowing through the spiritual heart center of Hidaya.
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What would you like to see happen in your life?
Begin to create a mental picture.
Make this picture as vivid as possible.
The more real you make it,
The better it will be.
Picture the place you are and the people you're with.
And see yourself in the picture.
Try to involve all of your senses.
Visualize yourself touching,
Hearing,
Speaking,
Smelling and feeling.
Charge your picture with as much emotional energy as you can.
And see yourself doing all the things you'd like to do but above all take the time to see yourself being happy.
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Now we introduce our mantra.
Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu A Sanskrit mantra that means may all beings everywhere be happy and free.
And may the thoughts,
Words and actions of my own life contribute in some way to that happiness and to that freedom for all.
In a moment I will begin to speak the mantra slowly.
As I do,
Allow my words to become your words and if you wish,
Repeat them to yourself silently.
As you do,
Allow your awareness to drift freely.
My voice will drift into silence but I want you to keep on repeating the mantra over and over.
Allowing this mantra of love for the world to radiate around you.
Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Lokasamastah Sukanobhantu Namaste.
Thank you.
