Welcome,
Sweet one.
I'm really excited that you're here.
This is one of my all-time favorite practices and one that I engage in daily as a start of my morning routine.
And I like to call this practice love in all directions or we could also,
Or it could also be titled goodness in all directions.
So really in this practice,
It's quite simple in what we're doing,
Which is allowing wholesome states of being such as love,
Kindness,
Joy,
Care,
Compassion,
Abundance,
Peace,
Ease,
Whatever adjective,
Word,
Or emotion you want to put on it to flow freely through us and outward,
Touching all beings in all directions.
This is a very powerful practice in nurturing beautiful qualities of mind and heart that tend to uplift our mind and heart and also heal our bodies,
Our hearts,
Our minds.
So let's begin.
I personally do this practice walking in a formal sense in a room that's an L-shaped that I walk in all directions that I can face,
But you're welcome to do this sitting or lying down.
It really doesn't matter the physical posture that you're in.
What matters is that there's an intention to align your being with all that's nurturing and wholesome and good.
So as you settle into awareness,
Softly arriving here in the present moment,
Arriving in your body,
Arriving in the state of being aware and awakened to the activity of mind and heart,
Taking still the next few moments this opportunity to orientate to this feeling of aliveness,
This visceral experience of being alive.
This is really where the activity of mindfulness is being nurtured.
It's an embodied presence.
So feeling either the contact points of your body or those subtle vibration sensations that represent that alive,
Awakened energy.
Maybe they're coming to you in the form of sounds,
Those audible impressions or vibration.
You might also notice how the breath is such a powerful vehicle for awareness and for this sense of aliveness.
And with this activity of awareness at the forefront,
Taking a few moments to acknowledge all the beings that exist in front of you that are living and breathing and going about their lives in the direction that's in front of you,
That entire feel.
And then feeling that movement of goodness flowing through you in whatever form it comes in.
Maybe there's a word like love,
Kindness,
Joy,
Abundance that emerges as you incline your mind and heart towards these nourishing qualities.
And then visualize the sense of sending it out.
This is really more of a boomerang practice because as you're sending it out,
It eventually comes back and moves through you to be sent out again.
Like a Ferris wheel comes around,
Back and around,
Up and down,
And maybe gain a sense of that.
If there's other phrases that come to mind that just spontaneously appear in relation to images of people you know,
Of beings you know,
Or maybe those that you don't know,
But you just feel like some offering,
A natural well-wishing of your mind and heart to care for others' happiness and well-being.
And now shifting to all those beings to the right of you in that direction as far as you can go.
Being a conduit of goodness for all those beings that are going about their days and doing the best they can to make it through another day,
Another moment.
And imagining that this energy of goodness is reaching them and moving through and then coming back through you.
And that beautiful feedback loop.
And really allowing yourself to experience it physically.
So noticing any sensations that are being generated and stirred up in your own inner landscape,
Or even how does the mind feel,
And the heart,
It might feel open and spacious and luminous.
And of course,
Not judging it if it feels otherwise.
Can hold that with a gentle heart.
So all the beings to the right of you,
Now included in this beautiful feedback loop.
And then directing it to all the beings behind you.
Imagining all those beings taking a moment.
And again,
You might be visited by random images,
People,
Things that you can hold as your aim,
As your target of this goodness.
And then try to stretch beyond that.
This is where we really exercise our mind and heart.
Can we include those that are unseen that we don't even know,
But we know are existing in this world.
We definitely know we aren't alone.
And wishing for their happiness and well-being and their abundance.
Sending them love and care.
And then all the beings to the left of you,
Taking a moment to sense that space.
Feeling it with those good vibrations.
Sending it out and then feeling it come back to you,
Moving through you.
It's really the essence of generosity.
Like the spirit of generosity is alive in this practice.
No need to cling to anything,
Hold on to anything,
Or push anything away.
Because it's coming from this place of purity,
Of wholesomeness,
Purity of heart and mind.
So feeling it,
Embodying it,
Sensing it.
When the mind is taken over by thoughts of other things,
We simply are aware,
All thinking,
Thinking.
And with that awareness,
We return to our intention to generate goodness,
To send it out,
To exercise our heart's capacity to be generous and free in its love and well-wishes.
And let's take a moment to acknowledge all the beings above us,
All those beings above.
Sending goodness in that direction and receiving it back.
Feeling a sense of connectedness to all the beings above,
Sky being.
In this practice,
No one's left untouched.
And then all the beings below,
Taking a moment to acknowledge those being,
Wishing them well.
Again,
Feeling this experience of being connected to all that's seen and unseen.
Through this activity of awareness.
And for the final few minutes of this practice,
There's this opportunity here to simply abide in this really beautiful space that we can exist in,
Which is one of love,
One of unwavering friendliness,
One of abundance,
This deep knowing that there's enough for everyone.
One of care,
This genuine care for the health and well-being of everyone and everything that we are blessed to experience this wild journey we call life.
So sit,
My dear friend,
With the sweetness of your breathing body and the soothing vibrations that are occurring from the soundscape being created by life itself.
And sitting with a smile,
Being this conduit of goodness as it moves in all directions,
As far as it can go.
May all beings be touched by this wholesome qualities that soothe,
Heal,
Uplift,
Energize,
Connect,
And awaken our hearts and minds.
May we all become conduits of goodness,
Taking care of one another as we continue on our journey.
Thank you,
My friend,
For your practice and your presence.
It matters.
