Receiving Loving Kindness (Metta) Practice

In this loving kindness practice you will begin by practicing receiving kindness and then shift to offering.

Transcript

We can begin just by taking a few deeper breaths. And in particular, Bringing our attention to the chest, Our chest, Your heart center. And you might even feel as if you're breathing into your heart, Into the chest. And exhaling through the heart, And as you do that, Just softening. So we can begin with this very visceral, Direct connecting with our heart center. Feeling what's here, Noticing if there's feelings of contraction or numbness. So with the inhale, We connect with what's here. Explore. And with the exhale, Inviting some softening. And with the exhale, Inviting some softening, Really the very physical chest, Muscles around our ribs, Around the heart. And see if there's any emotions present just now, Just bringing our attention here. And then can bring to mind someone or maybe something, An animal, Some being who you have felt loved by. And we'll keep it very simple. So you can actually just think about moments in your life. This doesn't have to be a perfect being. So just some moments in your life when you felt really loved and appreciated, Connected. So it could be a person, A grandparent, A teacher, Partner, Or a pet, Maybe your dog. It can also be a place, Maybe for you it's a place where you really connected to a place in nature, The care of the natural world, The care of the earth. Because this is very real and continuous and unconditioned. Just the complete care of the earth and everything that it provides for us. So bringing to mind this person, Being, Place, Maybe for you it's just felt like a place. Maybe for you it's just felt a sense of the earth, Natural place. And we all imagine differently. So for some of us it might be a vivid image in your mind of this being. But also calling forth the felt sense of this person or being. What does it feel like? What did that moment feel like? What did it feel like to be in this being's presence? So you have the image of them, You have the felt sense. This is where we bring our attention back. This is our anchor. Image, The felt sense of being loved, Being cared for. And then you might imagine just breathing in the care. Imagining taking on the perspective of this being. You might imagine seeing yourself through their eyes. How much they love you. All of the beautiful qualities they see in you. How they just want you to be happy. How they want you to be safe. How they want you to be healthy. This simple kind-hearted care for you, Love, Appreciation. So inhaling and receiving from this being. And on your exhale you might just soften and imagine letting that care soak into your body. So you're inhaling and receiving and exhaling and letting it soak in. This being who is so kind to you just as you are. Who cares about you, Who delights in being with you and seeing you. Who wants you to be happy. And so you can stay with this being or see if another person or being comes to mind in another situation when you felt really cared about, Attended to, Attuned to, Experienced generosity, Care, Kindness. Maybe even just from a stranger in some situation. Having the image, The felt sense and then breathing in, Receiving that kindness. Letting it soak in. Awaken the pathways of kindness in your own heart. Receiving. And now again you can stay with this being or one more time bringing to mind a person, A being, A situation, Kindness in your life. Someone who offered you something, Their attention, Their appreciation, Their love. Someone who really saw you and mirrored back your goodness just as you are. Nothing you have to change. Keeping the image in your mind, The felt sense of this experience as being. Inhaling, Receiving. Exhaling, Softening, Letting the care sink in. The kindness, Generosity. And just for a few more minutes you can explore what arises. You can even maybe put all of these beings, You can imagine them like a circle around you, Wishing you well. Using the image, The felt sense, Reflecting on the kindness, Reflecting on how these beings see you. All of the goodness that they see in you, Very spontaneously, Very naturally. They love you. Breathing it in, Exhaling, Receiving, Softening. And just knowing we would not be alive without the kindness of so many beings. We would not have survived without care. In some way. And so just a few more breaths, Inhaling and receiving. The attention, Attunement, Well wishes of these beings. And then shifting your attention and offering your appreciation back to this being, Could be one of these beings. Thank you for being so kind. I love you. Thank you for being so kind. Thank you for caring. May you be happy. May you experience care, Well-being, Joy. May you be happy, Just as you are. Thank you for being so kind. And so we have the image of this being, The felt sense. And now the breathing can be on the exhale, Offering. Offering this, Just a very simple appreciation. I would like for you to be happy. It's a very simple, Basic, Natural wish for this being to experience ease, Well-being, Joy, Health. For this being to be well. It's a very simple, Natural inclination of our heart. May you be happy. And then you can allow your attention, Your awareness, To connect with this being. Your awareness to connect into here, This room, Space, All of these people who are here, Practicing together. And so each one of us wanting to be happy. Each one of us experiencing struggle, Difficulties in our lives. Each one of us having these exquisitely vulnerable bodies and minds, Hearts, Uncontrollable. And just inclining your mind towards wishing well to the person to your right. May you be happy. May you be peaceful. May you be safe. May you experience joy and ease. Very simple. I would like you to be happy. I would like for you to be healthy, To experience ease. And then we can turn our attention to the person on the other side, To our left. You could just have a felt sense, Maybe an image of them. Just knowing here we are, Working with these crazy, Wild minds and hearts. May you be happy. May you be at ease. May you experience well-being and joy. May you be healthy and strong, A body. Then wishing for all of the beings here. Very simple, Very basic, Very natural. May you be happy. May you experience ease, Body and mind. May you be healthy. May you live with joy on this earth. And then allow your attention to settle back into your own body. And just reflecting for a moment that there for some minutes people on either side of you were wishing you happiness. And it was pretty simple, It was pretty easy for them to wish that for you. Receiving that and seeing if you can offer yourself this very simple wish to be happy. May I be at ease in my mind and body. May I experience joy. May I be peaceful. May I be easy on myself. May I love myself, Just as I am. May I be happy. May I take care of myself. May I live with joy and ease. Just as I am. May I be happy. May I be gentle with myself, Forgiving, Kind. And then you can allow the phrases, The kind of technique to drop and just allowing your attention to rest in your body. Feeling whatever is here, What's happening. Taking some breaths into your heart center. And then you can allow the phrases, The kind of technique to drop and just allowing your attention to rest in your body. Cules Thank you for your practice. So for some of us we'll go straight to our interviews. So if you haven't checked it out, Make sure you've seen if you're in an interview today. For others we'll move to walking meditation before dinner. And you can bring the loving kindness into walking. So you can have that same kind attitude with your walking or you can use the phrases. Just with each step, May I be happy, May I be safe, Or happy, Safe. That's one way if you're just with each step kind of repeating the phrases or if you go outside it looks like it's getting better. You can maybe you walk and then when you stop and turn you can stop and just offer some well wishing to birds, Trees, Whatever's there and then walking. So you can let this be part of your anchoring and your walking. So enjoy. Thank you.

Reviews

Beautiful! Thanks so much for this Jess. Only issue is the meditation ends but then the recording continues for another 90 ish seconds.

Great practice thank you

Thank you for being such a generous teacher/person .. and point of light

Loved the receiving start to the Metta practice and enjoyed the session! Thanks for the guidance 🙏

As a recovering survivor of Childhood PTSD, it’s not surprising that I can and do dedicate my life to extending loving kindness to others - even if it’s not in my own best interest. So working on self-compassion has been a real challenge for me. As was pointed out at the start of this talk/meditation practice, I know there are many others like me - which is where traditional Metta techniques of focusing more time on expanding loving kindness toward others has not been all that helpful.

If that’s been your experience, I highly recommend giving this meditation a go. I found it very, very helpful taking a deep dive on focusing on what it feels like to be loved and build on that. I found it so helpful, that I plan to incorporate this meditation into my regular practice. It was direct, concrete and iterative, which I found extremely helpful. At first, I found it a bit dis-regulating but I’m glad I stuck with it. Namaste.