My name is Jason Stevenson and welcome to this guided meditation that will help you to wisely let go of any anger you might be experiencing before sleep.
When held onto,
Anger can inhibit us from feeling into our innate sense of peace and our capacity for compassion and so by becoming mindful of this emotion and addressing it thoughtfully,
We can loosen its grip and uncover a new way forward.
So to begin this bedtime meditation,
Take your time to get settled in for the night,
Ensure that your spine is long and straight and your neck becoming an extension of it,
And then allow your limbs to relax and fall however they are comfortable.
Close your eyes as you turn your attention inwards,
And then note what it feels like to be held by the surface beneath you.
What does it feel like to be tethered by the weight of gravity?
What does the mattress or other surface beneath you feel like against your skin?
Without judging your experience,
See if you can simply become more intimate with the physical space you rest in.
And once you feel grounded and completely connected to the physical world,
I invite you to shift your attention to the air around you.
You might notice the sensation of it against your cheeks,
Or you might observe the way it slowly enters and exits the body as your breath.
As each breath fills you,
You're provided with life-supporting oxygen offered to us by the plant kingdom.
And with each breath out,
We return this gift to the plant life in the form of carbon dioxide.
Spend a few moments with your breath now,
Noting how effortless this exchange,
This flow is.
See if you can allow the chest,
The shoulders,
And the belly to soften,
Facilitating the flow of the breath and perhaps inviting it a little bit deeper.
Now,
As we dive into this process of releasing the energy of anger,
It is worthwhile to begin by softening our judgments of this emotion.
In and of itself,
Anger is neither good nor bad.
It is simply a reaction we experience to various circumstances or events in our life.
What we do with our anger is another thing.
When left to fester inside,
Or when released mindlessly upon those around us,
Anger can hurt more than it heals.
However,
We can also choose to use anger as a signpost for what we value,
For the direction we wish to move in our lives.
Only when we begin by softening our judgment and opening to this experience with more care and curiosity,
Do we enable ourselves to discover a new way forward.
So right now,
I invite you to take a moment to draw your attention to your heart space,
The center of your chest.
And as you breathe,
Envision the heart expanding energetically with each breath in,
And softening its toughest barriers with each breath out.
And with each breath that moves through the heart,
Imagine your judgments of this emotion relaxing as you create more space for it to unravel in a healing and a cleansing way.
If stories about rightness or wrongness come to mind,
Simply note these as they appear and then release with an out-breath.
For example,
If we notice ourselves feeling righteous or holding on to the wrongdoings of another,
We might invite these to soften,
If only just for a moment.
And this does not mean you will not be called to take certain wise action in daily life,
But for now,
Harboring the energy of this anger is likely of little benefit.
So continue to come back to the breath again and again as needed,
Expanding as you inhale,
And softening or releasing as you exhale.
And before we move into the visualization that will help us to cleanse any held anger for the coming night,
I invite you to mindfully inquire into the energy that lives beneath your anger,
The energy that this anger arises from.
Sometimes our anger comes from the mind as a yearning to be right,
Or as a defensive reaction.
Other times it arises from our values,
From care and concern about someone or something.
And even sometimes it's a mix of these two things,
A blend of mental and intuitive responses to the world around us.
So I invite you to take a few moments to compassionately,
Curiously and non-judgmentally inquire into the energies beneath or behind the raw experience of anger.
And just hold yourself gently as you explore this,
Noting to what extent you might be reacting in defense,
And to what extent this emotion may be rising out of love.
When you awaken into another day,
You can use this self-knowledge to help you navigate your anger in a way that is conducive of deep healing on an individual and collective level.
But for now,
Let's take some time to just let it all go,
To reaffirm that in this moment,
We are well,
That in this moment,
We can best serve ourselves by inviting our anger to dissolve.
So take a moment now to come back to your breath for a few cycles.
Use the breath or the body as an anchor for your attention.
Anytime you find your mind wandering,
That does not serve you in this moment,
Just bring it back,
Focusing back on your breathing.
And once you feel centered,
I invite you to bring your attention to the creative capacity of your mind.
And in this space,
Begin to visualize that you are in the midst of an autumn forest,
Surrounded by trees with leaves turning amber,
Mahogany,
Gold,
And crimson.
The forest floor beneath your feet is a path of densely packed earth.
A thin layer of early autumn leaves lays sparse,
Signifying that the turn of seasons is upon you.
The air is cool,
But you are dressed warmly for the evening.
The sky is still a pale blue,
But you can tell by the glimmer in the trees that the sun will be setting soon.
Before making your way along the path that leads you through the woods,
You take a moment to plant your feet into the earth.
Reaching the top of your head towards the sky above,
Your heart opens,
Your shoulders relax,
You take a few long,
Slow,
Deep breaths to ground yourself into this calm and soothing forest.
You allow your forehead to soften,
Your jaw to unclench,
Your belly to relax,
And all unnecessary tension to soften.
And following your next breath out,
You decide to move forward,
To venture deeper into the transitioning woods you have arrived in.
Step by step,
You move along the pathway that guides you through the colorful,
Enchanting landscape.
The air is crisp and earthy,
Cleansing you with each breath that moves through you.
Small forest critters scurry across the earth and birds chirp from their cozy nests snuggled in the trees.
As you admire the harmony of life here in the woods,
You feel yourself surrendering to it,
Opening up to this moment exactly as it is.
Any weight you've been carrying upon your shoulders begins to lighten,
Guided by the energy of the falling leaves.
Any judgments,
Frustrations,
Concerns,
Or worries that you've been harboring also find their place in the forest,
Dissolving from within your body as you harmonize with the environment around you.
The woods are at peace,
Inviting you to find that tranquil space within yourself.
As well,
Though the forest is not immune to the challenges of life,
But now it embraces the harmonious transition from day into night.
You carry on just a short while before the forest begins to thin,
And as it does,
Your jaw drops at the radiant beauty that emerges,
Glimmering back into your eyes.
A silent,
Still,
Pristine lake surrounded by the vibrant foliage of the forest comes into view.
Treading lightly towards the water's edge,
You find a sandy stretch of shoreline and allow yourself to take a seat.
From where you rest,
You admire the reflection of the trees in the still surface of the lake.
The perfect mirror image softens your heart,
Calling you deeper into the mystery of the world.
The reflection reminds you that we are all mirrors to one another,
That everything we face has something to show us about ourselves or about the nature of the world.
See if you can feel your mind softening as you reflect upon this,
Sinking into the silence that holds it all.
And now,
As you sit here by the lake,
You hold yourself and the world in a full embrace.
Without desiring to change anything about this simple moment,
See if you can open yourself completely to what is.
The frustrations,
The judgments,
And anger that you've experienced as being a part of the world,
Now begin to feel distant.
Here,
Amidst the autumn trees and silent lake,
You are granted with the time and space required for you to process all of those inner energies.
You trust that as you process them,
New possibilities for more wise and loving steps to take in days to come will present themselves to you.
As you gaze out across the water,
You realize there is nothing that needs to be done in this moment,
But to continue allowing yourself to surrender.
And so you lean back,
Allowing your full body to nestle into the sandy shore beneath you.
Feel yourself fully supported here on this small beach by the lake,
As the sun seeps behind the tree line.
The orange-pink glow of the night radiates throughout the cosmos,
Bringing a warmth to your being.
And as you rest here,
You take a moment to inquire with your body about any areas of tension or residual anger that may be longing for your attention.
Drawing your awareness to the crown of your head to begin,
You slowly scan the body downwards,
Consciously relaxing or inviting a loving breath into each area you pass.
When you have finished tending to the entire body,
Come back to your breath,
Filling yourself with cleansing,
Crisp air of the surrounding woods that hold you.
And your inner eye is still open to the night sky.
You watch as the colors deepen,
Soon transitioning into a dark and deep purple.
The crescent moon appears,
As do thousands upon thousands of shimmering stars.
With your entire body relaxed,
Breathe mindfully through the heart space,
Inviting the universal energy of love to fill you on your next breath in,
And offering your inner love back to the universe on your next breath out.
And as you gaze up to the night sky,
Take a moment to offer a few silent loving words to yourself.
Grant yourself permission to feel as you feel,
While bathing yourself in words of love and patience and care and kindness.
Now I invite you to repeat the same for someone or something that may have stirred anger within you in recent days.
And note that this doesn't mean that you need to make right the actions of another.
It is simply an invitation to,
Where possible,
Send love and care and patience to that person or something.
Which sparks anger within us.
When you are finished,
Come back to your breath,
Noting how it causes your body to rise and fall as you rest in the silence of this night.
Let all thoughts and all images within the mind dissolve now.
There is nothing else that needs to be done.
Slowly your eyes begin to close to the cosmos above you and the lake before you.
Your mind's eye becomes clear and you feel your body once again tethered to the physical reality you rest in.
You take three long,
Slow,
Deep breaths,
Releasing with a sigh as you exhale.
And when you are finished with those three breaths,
Just allow your breath to return to its natural rhythm.
And as you move deeper into the night,
You let yourself go completely,
Forgetting the past and releasing the future.
All that matters now is this present moment.
As well as the energies of love and care,
Curiosity and tenderness.
And so you allow yourself to be here.
To be bathed in these soothing energies as you drift into the restful slumber that awaits.
Good night,
My friend.
