Compassion During The Coronavirus Pandemic - Guided Tonglen Practice

As we face the COVID-19 pandemic, we need compassion more than ever. The practice of tonglen popularised in Tibet, is the practice of giving and taking. It is a heart practice that focuses compassion on yourself and all those who are suffering. First, we start with our own situation then gradually extend it to everyone suffering through the pandemic. I hope this practice can be helpful.

Transcript

So today we'll be doing the practice of tonglen, Which is Tibetan for giving and taking, And is a compassion cultivation practice. So the first thing I want to do is something called flashing bodhichitta, And that just means just take a couple of breaths and allow your mind to steady. Allow it to be open while also being still. Just go directly into that peaceful place without any effort. Breathe in a sense of clarity, And breathe out spaciousness. Anchor in the tilted Let go of anything that you need to do after this or didn't do before this. And allow yourself to abide in this moment. Let go of anything that you need to do after this. Let go of anything that you need to do after this. Let go of anything that you need to do after this. Let go of anything that you need to do after this. Let go of anything that you need to do after this. Let go of anything that you need to do after this. So when you breath in, Try to breath in dark. Try to breathe in dark, Sludge, Heavy, Viscous. Try to breathe in and on the exhale, Breathe out light. A much mint fresh quality. Really allow yourself to experience that directly, Breathing in dark, Heavy, Viscous, Sludge. Breathing out light, Mint, Clearness. Almost in the inhale, You might feel a sense of contraction and that's okay. On the exhale, You'll feel the release of that contraction. So dark, Heavy, Sludge. On the exhale, Light, Mint, Bright. Continue to do that. Continue to do that until your in-breaths feel equal to your out-breaths. So breathing in the heavy sludge and feeling the release when you breathe out light, Bright, Mint. If it feels a bit overwhelming, At the top of the inhale, You can pause a little longer and then transition into the exhale. Take a few more breaths, Doing the same thing and make it as real as possible, Breathing in dark, Viscous, Heavy. Breathing out bright, Light, Fresh. Next I want you to bring up your own situation. Might be some pain that you're going through or some tension that you have in a relationship. Whatever it is, Bring your situation in and make sure it feels really alive for you. And then when you breathe in, You are going to breathe in the pain. Maybe it's that you're feeling not worthy and so you can breathe in that feeling of unworthiness. Then when you breathe out, You want to breathe out the positive attributes of that, Which is breathing out confidence, Adequacy, Worthiness. Try that breathing in your personal situation, The feelings associated with that, The texture of those feelings in that situation and breathing out positive attributes. Noticing the texture of that feeling. Noticing the texture of your situation as a viscous, Tight, Constrained, Hot. Breathing that in. Breathing out proportionally the positive, The light, The bright, Whether that's confidence or relief or courage. When you're breathing in, Don't just breathe in for your situation. Now extend it to everyone else that is in this similar situation as you. You don't need to know them, But just knowing that there are many people in the same boat. So breathing in not only your situation, But the other situation. And when you breathe out, Give yourself and everyone in the boat the same positive qualities. Breathing in a little deeper to cover everyone that's in the same boat. Breathing out a little longer. Do that until you feel it sink with the in breath and out breath, Proportionally bringing in, Taking in the dark, Negative parts, Pain, And giving yourself and others the positives. Do that for a few more breaths. Now if you're filling up to it, Let's extend this breathing in to everyone who's facing, Who's suffering right now in this pandemic. Those who are grieving the loss of their loved ones. Those who are fearful of losing their jobs or being able to take care of their children. Those who feel anxious about the uncertainty. So this is going to take much more on the inhale and much more on the outhale, But we want to include everyone from our neighbors, People in the rest of California, All the other states in New York and all the other countries, Africa, China, Russia, All the other countries, Anyone affected by this, Let's breathe in really deeply, Taking on their pain, Their suffering, And breathing out light and peace, Giving them equanimity, Relief, Joy, Whatever it is you want to give them. So let's do this for a few breaths. Take really deep breaths, Dig really deep. Just as if you are borrowing their suffering in order to give them some moments of lift. Breathing out light goodness. And as you breathe in for those people, Imagine yourself amongst those people. Breathing in your pain and your suffering as well. And sending out love and light to yourself and others as well. Breathing in their pain, Sending out relief. Take a few more deep breaths, Doing all you can do. Opening your heart. You can even begin to smile on the exhale if that works for you, Sending joy. Slowly bring yourself back into the room, Taking a few breaths just to center yourself. If your eyes are closed, You can gently, Slowly open them. Breathing in and out.

Reviews

I really like the guided meditation from Christian. They are very deep and focusing. This is my favorite

Exactly what I needed.🤗🙏🤗🙏🤗🙏