Welcome to this loving kindness meditation to nourish your nervous system.
I invite you to close your eyes and find some comfort.
This loving kindness meditation involves a set of phrases that you repeat silently or quietly to yourself,
For self,
For a loving person,
And for a difficult person.
Although these are phrases that we silently repeat,
The heart of this practice lives in the felt sense of loving kindness within our body.
The warmth and tenderness felt within.
So before we begin,
Let's connect to our inner felt sense,
That inner primal language of sensation,
Color,
Images,
Or words.
However it arises for you in your body.
And we can begin by just welcoming a breath into what is alive inside you in this moment.
Connecting to your breath and that felt sense alive within you.
And I invite you to bring to your felt sense awareness the feeling of a warm smile.
Thich Nhat Hanh calls this smile yoga.
And there actually is a rich science behind this practice,
That the image and felt sense of a smile actually retunes one's nervous system,
Relaxes the fight-flight reaction.
This felt sense of a smile activates the ventral vagal social engagement system of our parasympathetic nervous system,
Which allows us to connect,
Rest,
Heal,
And grow.
This meditation has the power to return us to that sense of ease and benevolence.
So I invite you to just imagine a warm smile spreading throughout your body,
Your inner beingness.
And as you imagine this smile,
Can you allow yourself to receive this smile,
This warmth and tenderness?
Almost like opening the pores of your skin to receive this smile.
Like your body is drinking it in,
Absorbing the tenderness.
And your in-breath brings this feeling deeper into your body.
And your out-breath anchors this feeling within and around you.
Now I invite you to explore this loving kindness practice beginning with self.
Explore how you feel as you say to yourself,
May I be well.
May I be kind to myself.
May I be safe from harm.
May I be peaceful and at ease.
As you silently say these words to yourself,
Notice how you feel in your body.
As long as this practice feels nourishing to you,
Repeat these phrases a few more times,
Allowing the positive feeling of warmth to grow.
May I be well.
May I be kind to myself.
May I be safe from harm.
May I be peaceful and at ease.
If for any reason you feel grief,
Shame,
Hurt,
Or self-criticism during the practice,
Know that you are not doing anything wrong.
See if you can simply offer compassion towards these difficult feelings,
Recognizing that they are a cue that you need warmth and kindness.
If you are unable to return to a feeling of loving kindness for yourself,
Take a break from this part of the practice.
You might explore practicing loving kindness for another and then returning to practicing for yourself.
Now I invite you to explore this loving kindness practice for another.
Bring to mind a person or being who has been a source of warmth,
Care,
And connection for you.
As you imagine this person or being in your mind's eye,
Notice how you feel in your body.
You might visualize them sitting next to you or in front of you.
Wish them well by repeating these words quietly or silently.
May you be well.
May you be kind to yourself.
May you be safe from harm.
May you be peaceful and at ease.
Now I invite you to explore this loving kindness practice for someone who you may have difficulties with.
If you would like,
I invite you to imagine someone who has been a source of difficulty for you.
As you imagine this person or being in your mind's eye,
Notice how you feel in your body.
What sensations and emotions arise for you.
If difficult feelings arise within you at this time,
You might return to practicing loving kindness for yourself to help you develop compassion for your pain.
But if you would like to continue,
Begin to visualize this person in your mind's eye.
As you imagine them,
Can you choose how close or far away you would like them to be?
What boundary you might need for your own safety and well-being.
From now you might explore how it feels to offer loving kindness to this person who has been a source of difficulty for you by repeating these words quietly or silently.
May you be well.
May you be kind to yourself.
May you be safe from harm.
May you be peaceful and at ease.
To complete this practice,
Allow the image of that person to fade away.
As you come back to the felt sense of that warm and tender smile.
You will grow increasingly focused on the felt sense of a warm smile within you and around you.
And allowing yourself to receive this smile,
Receive this warmth.
And this warmth extends into the sights and sounds of the space around you.
As you slowly begin to open your eyes.
Take a moment to recognize that you engaged in a challenging yet skillful practice.
Appreciate your courage.
And from my heart to yours.
May you be well.
May you be kind to yourself.
May you be safe from harm.
May you be peaceful and at ease.
Have a beautiful rest of your day.
