All right,
So take the time to make yourself comfortable in your position of choice.
If you are seated,
Make sure you're very supported and comfortable.
And if you're laying down,
Also make sure you're comfortable,
Not overly cozy,
So you give yourself the best chance to stay alert through the practice.
If you're seated,
You can rest your hands to your lap,
However it feels comfortable right now.
If you're laying down,
Arms by your sides or hands resting to the front of your body.
Beautiful,
And then all together,
Just gently close your eyes.
And take a deep breath in through your nose.
Through your mouth,
Let it go.
Again like that,
Big breath in.
Let it go.
One more time,
Deep inhale.
Sigh it out.
And then seal your lips and simply allow your breath to move on its own.
And bring your awareness now to your ears,
To your sense of hearing.
Taking the time to really open up your hearing and welcome in the whole soundscape that is around you right now.
Perhaps even taking a moment to acknowledge how every one of the sounds that you hear has the nature of impermanence.
It comes and goes.
And then having acknowledged and welcomed all of those sounds.
Allow those sounds now to simply drift off into the background and bring your focused awareness to your breathing,
Either at your nostrils or at your belly,
A one-pointed focus on the movement and sensation of your breath.
Always remembering that this one pointed focus on breathing at the beginning of your practice is all about checking in.
Making the effort for everything else to fall away.
And also accepting the state of your mind as it is.
Perhaps it's more busy,
Perhaps it's more calm.
And either way.
You're here for practice.
So find the effort that you need.
From that very focused awareness on breath.
Expand your awareness now to take in your whole body.
Sense your whole body in this moment.
And as you check in with your body,
If you notice any points of tension.
You can take a.
.
.
A moment to allow those areas to soften any amount.
And now gather your awareness to the center of your chest.
Your energetic heart center.
Notice how it feels here.
You might like to use words to describe it.
You may discover your heart feels heavy or light.
Receptive or protected.
There may be other sensations that you can notice and name.
And try to be with these sensations in your chest just as they are.
And now as you continue to hold awareness at your heart center,
Call to mind some act of kindness or generosity that you have done in the last week or so.
Might be holding the door open for someone.
Smiling at a stranger.
Could be making.
A comforting beverage for a loved one.
And if ever it's difficult to recall an act of generosity,
You can simply work with the wholesome desire to be happy and to feel at ease.
And as you reflect on this act of kindness or this wholesome desire to be happy.
Notice how your chest feels and if anything shifts around your heart center.
And now continuing to hold awareness around your heart.
We'll work with some phrases that help cultivate a sense of meta,
Of kindness and friendliness.
You can repeat the phrases verbatim in your head.
You can alter the phrases slightly so they work just right for you.
Or you can also work with the sense of the phrase after I've spoken it.
May I be peaceful.
May I hold myself patiently with kindness and care.
May I experience calm and ease as I move through my day.
May I be safe from harm.
May I delight in the joy of others,
Free of envy.
May I be happy.
And I recognize that my happiness depends on my actions.
And not simply wishes.
And in this moment,
I choose to wish for my own happiness.
My own ease.
And now call to mind a benefactor in your life.
Some being who has contributed to where you are.
And holding this benefactor in your awareness.
May you be peaceful.
May you hold yourself patiently with kindness and care.
May you experience calm and ease as you move through your day.
May you be safe from harm.
May you delight in the joy of others,
Free of envy.
May you be happy.
And in cultivating genuine wishes for your happiness,
I recognize that your happiness depends on your actions.
Now if other benefactors come to mind,
Welcome them in.
Allow this sharing of meta to expand.
And now call to mind a loved one.
Being who you care deeply about.
And if more than one loved one comes to mind.
Hold one in your awareness to begin with,
Knowing that you can welcome the others.
May you be peaceful.
May you hold yourself patiently with kindness and care.
May you experience ease and calm as you move through your day.
May you be safe from harm.
May you delight in the joy of others,
Free of envy.
May you be happy.
And if other loved ones come to mind,
Welcome them in.
Expanding this web of meta.
Of friendliness and kindness.
And in genuinely wishing.
For your loved one's happiness.
We remain aware that each individual's happiness depends on their actions.
And now call to mind a neutral being.
Someone who you don't necessarily have any feelings towards either way.
Could be a neighbor you don't know well.
Could be someone you pass in the street regularly.
And holding this neutral being in your awareness in just the same manner.
We wish kindness.
May you too be peaceful.
May you hold yourself patiently with kindness and care.
May you experience calm and ease as you move through your day.
May you be safe from harm.
May you delight in the joy of others,
Free of envy.
May you be happy.
And as always,
If other neutral beings come to mind,
Welcome them in.
There is no limit to the kindness that you can cultivate.
And share.
And now bring to mind.
A challenging being.
I recommend someone who sits on the 3 to 4 out of 10 scale at the moment.
And holding this challenging being in your awareness.
With the very same energy.
May you too be peaceful.
May you hold yourself patiently with kindness and care.
May you experience calm and ease as you move through your day.
May you delight in the joy of others,
Free of envy.
May you be safe from harm.
And may you too be happy.
And just like with loved ones and benefactors,
I recognize that your happiness depends on your actions.
In this moment,
I choose to cultivate a genuine wish.
For your happiness,
For your ease in this life.
Free of attachment to the outcome.
And now I'll call to mind everyone in this room today.
Just gently holding each other in your awareness.
As a little nod to practicing together.
May we be peaceful.
May we hold ourselves and each other patiently,
With kindness and care.
May we be safe from harm.
May we delight in each other's joys,
Free of envy.
And may we be happy.
I'm beginning to expand this ever-extending web of meta.
Call to mind now a group of beings.
Can be any group of humans or non-humans.
Maybe a group you feel particular solidarity with or a group who has been on your mind.
And holding this group of beings in your awareness.
May we be peaceful.
May we all be peaceful.
May we all experience calm and ease as we move through our days.
May we delight in each other's joys,
Free of envy.
May we be happy.
And in the recognition that all beings share the same desire.
To feel at ease,
To be free from suffering.
And begin to expand this web of matter to take in all beings.
Expanding and welcoming all beings into your awareness.
Around the globe.
And out wherever there may be life.
May all beings be peaceful.
May all beings hold themselves and each other patiently with kindness and care.
May all beings be safe from harm.
May all beings delight in each other's joys,
Free of envy.
And may all beings be happy.
And as always,
We practice this sense of balance in that we genuinely wish for the happiness of all beings.
Free of attachment to the outcome.
And now allow this sense of metta,
This sharing of kindness.
To expand from your heart out in all directions.
In front of you,
Behind,
To both sides.
In between those points.
Above and below.
All the ten directions.
Let this sense of meta be boundless,
Without measure.
And now letting that go,
Bring your awareness back to your heart center.
Aware once again of any sensations around the center of your chest.
And very gently begin to bring your awareness back to this space.
Perhaps welcoming the ambient sounds or imagining the room around you.
And when you feel ready,
You can gently blink open your eyes and move around however you need.
