For this period of loving-kindness,
We meditate on someone else.
This person could be our friend,
Benefactor,
A family member,
A stranger,
Or a difficult person.
Select one person that you would like to send loving-kindness to.
Before we do that,
It's necessary to prime the body and mind for this practice.
Relaxing the body,
Section by section.
From the crown of the head down to the feet.
Body upright.
Feeling the sensations at the crown.
Allow that sensation to trickle down to the space between our eyebrows.
Raise your eyebrows up and let them drop.
Do this a few times.
While you do it,
Feel the sense of release of tension.
Relaxing the skin,
Relaxing the flesh.
Allow that sense of release to extend to your eyeballs.
Relaxing your eyeballs like relaxing muscles.
Make sure this whole region of your facial muscles is relaxed,
Free of tension.
And then extending down to the rest of the face.
Concluding with a gentle smile.
And allow the smile to register for a couple of seconds.
Feeling the smile.
Soaking in the comfortable sensation,
The pleasant sensation,
Feeling of contentment,
Joy.
Allow that to relax the rest of the body.
From the scalp,
The whole crown of the head flowing down the back of the cranium,
The neck,
Down to the shoulders.
Raise your shoulders up towards your ears.
Hold.
Inhale.
Exhale and release.
Let the shoulders down.
Do this a few times.
And feel the skin,
The flesh,
The body relaxing.
Feel the sense of release trickling down the two arms.
Upper arms,
Elbows,
And the lower arms.
All the way down through your wrists to the warmth of your palms,
To your fingertips.
Every section relaxed.
Experiencing the tactile sensation of relaxation.
And then the main torso,
Front,
From the chest,
Relaxing down to the abdomen.
Utilize your exhalations.
Breathing into the muscles.
Relaxing.
Exhaling.
Feeling the subtle rise and fall of the stomach,
Abdomen.
Following the rhythm of your breath.
And then the upper back,
Mid back,
And lower back.
Section by section.
Feeling the skin,
The muscles,
The tendons.
Relaxing.
But the body is sitting upright.
And then sway your body from left to right,
Front and back.
Find the center point of gravity.
Allow the body to come to a stop at that point.
And relax into it.
Making sure your body is upright,
But effortlessly.
All the vertebrae stacked,
One on top of the other,
Perfectly.
Relaxed.
Allow the bodily weight to sink down to your seat.
And down to the earth.
Through your hips,
Thighs,
Knees,
Calves,
And feet.
All the way to the ground.
Bodily weight downwards.
Feeling stable.
Grounded.
Connected to earth.
Place your hands in the meditation posture.
Having primed the body for practice.
Now we prime the mind,
The heart.
To do that,
We generate through the body,
Through experiencing the body,
Being relaxed.
And singling out how we actually feel in the moment,
When that is pleasant.
Content and joy.
Singling out these three feelings,
Allow that to saturate the presence of your mind.
Preparing the mind for loving kindness.
With this mindset,
We bring forth the person we wish to send loving kindness to.
See this person clearly with your mind's eye.
Or you can simply feel this person.
Simply knowing that you wish to send loving kindness to this person.
That's sufficient.
You can also allow your loving kind intentions to take the form of warm,
Gentle,
White light.
Permeating throughout your body,
Yourself becoming a being of light.
Luminous.
Loving.
And allow this light to embrace this person.
To give a parameter of our concentration,
We say the four following lines silently.
Once you have this person clearly in the presence of your loving kindness,
You say,
May you be safe,
Feel the intent behind these words.
May you be safe always.
May you be healthy and strong.
May you be healthy and strong.
May you be joyful and happy.
May you be joyful.
May you be at peace.
May you be at peace.
You may have different memories,
Emotions arising within you,
Which is natural.
Allow them to be included.
Rain them in,
Bring them back to your intention of loving kindness.
Again,
May you be safe always.
May you be healthy,
Strong.
May you be joyful.
Happy.
May you be at peace.
With the remaining time,
We meditate by ourselves,
Phrasing these four lines as they are or adapting,
Modifying them to the situation.
Make sure that ourselves are relaxed,
Comfortable,
So that our attitude,
Our mind is pleasant,
Content,
Joyful.
With a gentle smile,
And we meditate on the person.
With a gentle smile,
And we meditate on the person.
With a gentle smile,
And we meditate on the person.
With a gentle smile,
And we meditate on the person.
With a gentle smile,
And we meditate on the person.
With a gentle smile,
And we meditate on the person.
With a gentle smile,
And we meditate on the person.
With a gentle smile,
And we meditate on the person.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
When the mind strays off the method,
Very gently bring it back to loving kindness to the person.
When the mind strays off the method,
Very gently bring it back to loving kindness to the person.
When the mind strays off the method,
Very gently bring it back to loving kindness to the person.
When the mind strays off the method,
Very gently bring it back to loving kindness to the person.
When the mind strays off the method,
Very gently bring it back to loving kindness to the person.
