Tonglen For Pain

Tonglen is a meditative practice from the Buddhist tradition. This is a powerful guided meditation for pain relief, whether the pain is physical or emotional. It helps us develop compassion for self and others as we face our own pain and the suffering of others.

Composer: Jordan Jessep

Transcript

Tonglen guided meditation for pain and compassion.

Tonglen is a meditative practice from the Buddhist tradition.

This is a powerful guided meditation for pain relief,

Whether the pain is physical or emotional.

Tonglen meditation expands your identity beyond the individual self.

It helps you develop compassion for yourself and others by breaking down the ego's resistance.

When you drop resistance,

Suffering decreases.

The more you practice Tonglen meditation,

The easier and more effective it becomes.

Eventually you will find yourself automatically dropping resistance in the face of pain and suffering,

And responding instead with love and compassion.

Imagine how this would change your life.

Let's start by closing our eyes and focusing on the breath.

As you relax and observe the breath,

Notice how it naturally deepens.

Notice the muscles of your face and neck.

Allow these muscles to soften and relax.

Notice the muscles of your shoulders and arms.

Let go of any tension and allow your shoulders to relax and droop downward.

You may feel your hands growing warm and tingly with the increased flow of energy.

Notice the muscles of your chest and your belly.

Breathe down deeper into your body.

Feel your legs growing heavy as you ground yourself with the energy of the earth.

Now as you continue to breathe in a natural and relaxed way,

Think of something in your life that is causing you pain.

It could be physical pain,

Illness,

Or the emotional pain of grief,

Anger,

Fear,

Or shame.

As you think about this pain,

Notice the sensations in your body.

Where in your body do you feel the pain?

What does it feel like?

What is the worst thing about this pain?

Allow the pain to be there without trying to get rid of it.

Just observe the feeling of pain in your body.

Now relax and breathe into your heart.

As you breathe in and out,

Say these words in your mind,

Breathing in pain,

Breathing out compassion.

Observe how your body reacts as you breathe in the pain.

Do you feel any tension or resistance?

If so,

Relax your body on the in-breath and allow the pain to be okay.

There's nothing you need to do right now except allow it.

Breathing in pain,

Breathing out compassion.

Whatever you need at this time,

Offer it to yourself on the out-breath.

It might be love,

Peace,

Or healing.

Breathing in pain,

Breathing out love and peace.

Breathing in pain,

Breathing out healing.

Let's practice this silently for one minute.

Now I'd like you to think of someone in your life who is suffering in some way.

Imagine this person sitting in front of you.

See their face in your mind's eye.

You might imagine their pain as a dark cloud.

As you breathe into your heart,

Take in this dark cloud of pain and feel it in your body as if it was your own pain.

Breathing in pain,

Breathing out compassion.

Expand your heart until it is spacious enough to hold all the pain and all the compassion.

Transform the dark cloud into light as you breathe into your heart.

Feel the vulnerability of the other person as it resonates with your own vulnerability.

Breathing in pain,

Breathing out compassion.

Notice if there is any tension or resistance in your body.

If you're feeling any restriction in the throat or chest area,

Deepen the breath all the way down into your legs.

Breathe with your whole body.

It feels like you're breathing through all the pores of your skin.

As you breathe in,

Connect with the other person's suffering.

Then breathe out whatever you have to offer them.

It may be comfort,

Peace,

Or healing energy.

Let's practice this silently for one minute.

Let's practice this silently for one minute.

Now we will take the Tonglen meditation one step further.

Think of all the people on earth who are suffering in some way.

You might imagine this collective pain as a dark cloud.

Expand your heart to be as vast and limitless as the sky.

This vast expanse is able to hold all the pain and all the compassion.

Let go of resistance and breathe into this vastness.

Watch as it absorbs the dark cloud and transforms it into light.

Allow your heart to expand with compassion for the suffering of all people.

You don't have to do anything to create this compassion.

It is already present.

All you have to do is let go of resistance and let it flow naturally.

Your heart is a conduit that universal love flows through.

Relax and let your heart open.

Breathing in pain,

Breathing out compassion,

Breathing in suffering,

Breathing out love and peace.

Let's practice this for one minute.

Now bring your awareness back to your body and the boundaries of your individual self.

Let go of the Tonglen exercise.

Relax and allow yourself to enjoy this peaceful time just sitting and breathing naturally without any intention.

Let's sit like this for one minute.

Relax and let go of the resistance.

Let go of the resistance.

Let go of the resistance.

Now it's time to come back from the meditation.

Bring your awareness to the room you are sitting in.

Slowly open your eyes.

Stretch and come back to the present moment.

Reviews

My first experience with tonglen, and I couldn't have asked for a smoother or gentler introduction. My results were profound... this truly helped me feel less alone, more connected, and empowered. Also i felt like my own pain diminished, as i saw it in perspective. Trauma likes to distort our perceptions, make our problems seem massive and overwhelming. This meditation was the perfect antidote to that. Thank you SO much. 🙏

Very nice! This helped me deal not only with my own back pain, but that of the others in spiritual, emotional, and physical turmoil that I am currently surrounded by. I entered into this meditation feeling pretty lousy both physically and emotionally; and left it feeling lighter, healthier, and equanimous. Thank you! I'll definitely bookmark this one.

What a powerful mediation, with beautiful voice and pace, thank you!

That’s was beautiful 🙏

Very lovely thank you 🙏

I had an amazing meditative experience, thank you Diane for this empowering gift.🙏🏻

powerful. thank you 🙏🏼

Makes a complicated concept simpler.

Calming and powerful meditation to accept pain and suffering.

Thank you so much for this! I realized that the worst part about the pain I am currently feeling (in my knee) is the story I am telling myself about it. And the pain dissipated quite a bit throughout the practice. And I feel more open and loving. This was beautiful in every way.

Thank you for your sharing. This meditation is very powerful and practical. I think it truly could build our relations with others with an equal and truthful heart. I could feel with myself and others more as it helps me to find a way to encounter with anger, shame and fear in myself and others. Your instructions and procedures are excellent, which make every step easy to follow. Thank you !

Such a lovely practice. Thank you 💙🙏💙

Thank you for sharing your insight. Beautiful music, calming voice, and gentle guidance. Movíng the focus of individual pain to a collective, global healing. Namaste.💜

Nicely guided, background music softly pulsating, lovely and peaceful. Thank you for sharing! 😊

Thank you 🙏 I will be coming back to this practice again. The visualizations were very helpful. 🙏

Thank you so much for this peaceful medication ... it was really effective and I will definitely be using it again ...

Thank you for sharing this intimate, caring, and global meditation...

Soothing and effective. Thank you for sharing this with me and the world. I see the light in you. 🤲❤️🤲

Thank you for this clear, effective explanation of Tonglen, and for your gentle, reassuring voice.