This is a 15 minute guided loving kindness meditation.
If possible,
Finding a place and time where you can practice without being interrupted.
You can choose to sit in a chair or on a cushion or stool on the floor.
Inviting a straight,
Dignified and yet relaxed posture.
A posture that signals to ourselves that we are about to affirm our commitment to our health and wellbeing.
Allowing the eyes to close,
If that feels comfortable,
Or simply relaxing your gaze.
Throughout this practice,
My words are just guidance.
Please only do what is right for you in each moment during the practice.
Taking a moment now to become aware of your body as a whole sitting here.
Aware of the space around you,
Above and below,
Left and right,
Front and back of you.
Then,
As best you can,
Taking a few moments to become aware of your breath.
There is no need to change the way you are breathing,
Simply sensing into the next couple of in-breaths and out-breaths.
Arriving here.
Settling here.
Loving kindness,
Also known as Metta Meditation practice,
Can help you cultivate positive feelings towards yourself and others.
In Metta Meditation,
We direct loving kindness towards ourselves,
And then we extend feelings of loving kindness towards somebody we appreciate already,
To somebody we are neutral towards,
To somebody we have difficulty with,
And ultimately,
Toward all beings everywhere,
To the world at large.
I will now offer four phrases which you are welcome to repeat silently or out loud,
But also welcome to substitute with your own phrasing if preferred.
May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May I ride the waves of my life.
May I live in peace,
No matter what I am given.
And now,
Bringing to mind someone you appreciate or love,
Extending those well wishes to them.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you ride the waves of your life.
May you live in peace,
No matter what you are given.
And now,
Bringing to mind someone you recognize but feel neutral about,
Such as the local shop assistant or bus driver,
And extending those well wishes to them.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you ride the waves of your life.
May you live in peace,
No matter what you are given.
And now,
If you wish,
Bringing to mind someone you find perhaps somewhat difficult,
Past or present,
And as best you can,
Extending well wishes to them.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you ride the waves of your life.
May you live in peace,
No matter what you are given.
May you be happy.
And finally,
Extending your well wishes to the world at large,
From the people in our neighborhood to the office,
The whole city,
The whole country,
Other countries,
The whole world,
Including as best we can all beings,
Including of course ourselves.
May we all be happy.
May we all be healthy.
May we all ride the waves of our lives.
May we all be healthy.
May we all live in peace,
No matter what we are given.
May we all be healthy.
And as this practice comes to an end,
Once again becoming aware of your whole body,
Body sitting on the chair,
Feet on the ground,
And then gently opening the eyes if they were closed.
May we all be healthy.
