The poet Rumi wrote that when we practice loving kindness and compassion,
We are the first ones to profit.
Hi,
It's Pen here.
Thank you for joining me for this loving kindness meditation.
In this practice,
You'll tap into the infinite pool of love and compassion that lives in you,
As you and through you.
You will allow feelings of loving kindness to infuse your own being and will gradually share them with all beings.
Part of the loving kindness practice is to silently and sincerely repeat compassionate phrases.
The phrases you'll use today are may you be free from suffering,
May you be loved,
May you be happy.
I'll remind you of them as we practice.
During this practice,
It's important that you don't force a particular feeling or get rid of unpleasant or undesirable ones.
Allow whatever you feel or don't to be just as it is,
Without judgment or labels or conclusion.
Maintain a beginner's mind.
If your mind wanders,
And it probably will,
Notice what has captured your attention and then gently return to the practice.
Sit comfortably.
Your eyes can be open,
Half closed or closed.
Relax your body.
Be still,
But move as you need to if you need to find comfort.
You may rest your hands on your lap or on your knees.
Remember to let go of expectations and be kind to yourself as you practice.
Let's begin with some slow deep breaths,
Breathing in and out through the nose.
Visualise expanding your body in 360 degrees as you inhale.
Exhale slowly through your nose and notice your body soften and relax.
Match the length of the inhale and exhale without force.
Do this for a few more breaths.
Allow your breath to be natural again.
Throughout the practice you'll let your breath take care of itself.
You don't need to control it or have any expectations of it.
Your breath may slow down,
Speed up,
Get deeper or shallower or stop for a moment.
Feel it and let it be as it is.
With your eyes closed you might notice that you're more aware of the sounds in the environment,
Near and far.
Let's welcome every sound we hear.
Sound is rarely a barrier to meditation.
We'll begin with a body relaxation practice.
As I call your attention to an area of the body,
Tune into the sensations and without judgement relax any tension you find.
First notice the sensation in your scalp and forehead.
Soften your eyes,
Your entire face.
Tune into the sensations.
Let go of any need of facial expression.
Soften the muscles around your mouth,
Tongue,
Chin and jaw.
Tuck your chin in slightly,
Allowing the back of your neck to lengthen a little.
Soften your throat.
Let your shoulders move down and away from your ears.
Let your arms hang comfortably,
Resting your hands on your lap.
Notice your hands and fingers.
Notice your hips and your pelvis.
Let them soften with gravity as you are being supported by the chair or floor.
Feel your spine reaching from the tailbone to the base of your skull.
Soften your upper back,
Middle back and lower back.
Relax your chest and diaphragm and your belly.
Notice the sensations in your left leg from your left hip all the way down to your toes.
Notice the sensations in your right leg all the way from your right hip down to your toes.
Now bring your awareness to the movement of your breath.
Notice the expansion and contraction of each natural inhale and exhale.
Feel the sensations as your breath enters and leaves your body.
Notice the cool air on the inhale and the warmer air on the exhale.
Bring your attention to the rise and fall of your chest.
Imagine looking inward towards your heart.
We'll practice a heart-centred breath.
If you like,
You can imagine your breath is moving into and out of your heart centre as if it were a doorway to your breath,
In and out of the centre of your chest.
You may wish to place a hand over the centre of your chest on your breastbone to help keep your attention focused there.
Now bring to your heart or mind someone who has or had a deep love for you.
It may be a family member,
A friend,
A spiritual being or even a pet.
Feel what being loved feels like.
Now let the awareness of that being fade and bring to your heart or mind someone you truly care about.
A child,
A parent,
A partner or any being you feel love for.
Get a feel for their presence.
Visualise them or silently say their name.
Silently,
With sincerity,
Offer them loving kindness.
May you be free from suffering.
May you be loved.
May you be happy.
You can imagine that the loved one is benefiting from this blessing.
Read the phrases silently and feel whatever emotions arise.
Love,
Bliss,
Gratitude,
Sadness and so on.
There's no need to force a feeling or make anything up.
Be aware and present with whatever experience is happening,
Even if it feels like nothing at all.
Now refocus your attention on your heart.
With the same sincerity,
Offer the same phrases of compassion to yourself.
May I be free from suffering.
May I be loved.
May I be happy.
Feel whatever comes up here,
Positive or negative emotions.
Perhaps you're not too sure what you feel,
That's fine too.
Whatever you feel is perfect,
Just as it is.
If physical sensations,
Such as lightness,
Numbness or even physical pain arise,
Simply acknowledge their presence.
Don't ignore them or cover them up or change it.
Bear witness to the actual experience.
May I be free from suffering.
Now identify a neutral person,
Maybe someone you know by sight,
A neighbour,
Or someone you just met this week.
They may have served you in a shop or restaurant,
Delivered a package to your home or workplace or passed you on the street.
Even without knowing this person,
Get a sense of them,
Imagine their face or what they were doing when you encountered them.
Offer them the same phrase of compassion as you offered towards your loved one and yourself.
May you be free from suffering.
May you be loved.
May you be happy.
Bear witness here to what you feel.
Now identify someone you're having difficulty with.
You may know them personally or be aware of them through the media.
Imagine them,
Get a feeling for their presence.
Offer them the same phrases of compassion.
May you be free from suffering.
May you be loved.
May you be happy.
Even if they have hurt you or others,
You can't fully know this person.
You don't know of their pain,
Of their suffering.
Keep your attention in the present with your intention to wish the person well.
This may be challenging but remember this is a practice.
Notice what you are feeling here,
Whether it's pleasant,
Unpleasant or neutral.
Take your time,
Imagine them receiving this blessing and it lightening their load.
Now identify someone or something you believe is suffering or in need.
This can be an individual,
A group,
An animal or animals or even our entire beautiful planet.
Silently repeat.
May you be free from suffering.
May you be loved.
May you know peace.
Don't get caught up in a story,
Simply keep them in your awareness and imagine them benefiting from your care and concern.
Now return your attention to the love at your heart centre and expand your awareness to include all beings in your immediate environment.
They may be human,
They may be animals.
Now extend your blessings to those in your home and the neighbours on your street.
Extend it to all beings in your village,
Town or city,
Your country,
Your continent,
Then on earth.
Offer all of them this loving kindness.
May you be free from suffering.
May you be loved.
May you be happy.
Now bring your attention back to yourself.
Just as you wish all beings to be free from suffering,
To be loved and to be happy.
Repeat.
May I also be happy.
May I also be free from suffering.
May I also be loved.
In a couple of minutes I'll ring a bell to invite your attention back to this space.
When you hear it keep your eyes closed and allow yourself some deeper breaths.
Very well.
Bring your awareness to your body and sense the space around you.
Rest here for a moment longer in this awareness.
When you're ready you can open your eyes or lift your gaze.
I hope you have a lovely rest of your day.
Namaste.
