This meditation is called Compassionate Friend.
With this meditation,
You'll be using your imagination and it's kind of like going on an imaginary voyage.
So find a comfortable place to relax,
A place either sitting or lying down,
Where you feel comfortable,
Where you feel like you can relax.
And allowing your eyes to close,
Begin by taking a few deep inhalations and just allow your shoulders to relax away from your ears.
With each exhale,
Letting go a little bit more,
Allowing your body to relax a little bit more.
If you're lying down,
Allowing your body to sink into the floor a little bit more and allowing the floor to support you.
Now turning your attention towards your breath and just feel your body breathing in and out.
Out.
Using your breath as you're breathing in and as you're breathing out,
Feel of your breath,
The movement of your breath.
Take a few moments to allow yourself to imagine a place that you feel safe,
Comfortable and relaxed.
This can be a real or an imagined place,
But a place that allows you to breathe comfortably and let go of any worry.
Perhaps this place is in nature,
A beach,
A place in the woods near a brook.
Maybe it's a corner of your bedroom or the comfort of a good friend's house.
Imagine this place in as much detail as you can,
The sounds,
The smells,
And most of all,
What you feel like in this place.
What are your sensations?
How do you feel in this place?
Now soon you'll receive a visitor,
A warm and kind friend.
This is someone who loves you completely and accepts you exactly for who you are.
This can be a real person like a friend of yours,
A beloved grandparent,
Or a favorite teacher,
Or it can be a character from a book you've read,
A pet,
Or even a hero or heroine from a comic book or a movie.
Imagine this being in as much detail as possible and especially how it feels to be in his or her presence.
Your compassionate friend cares deeply about you and just wants you to be happy.
You have a choice.
You can either go out from your safe place to meet your friend or you can invite them in.
So imagine that you're doing that now.
Allow yourself to sit with the person at just the right distance.
Being completely comfortable and safe,
Completely accepted and loved just for who you are.
Take a moment to enjoy how you feel in the presence of your compassionate friend.
This being is here with you now and can understand exactly what it's like to be you,
Exactly where you are in your life right now,
And understands precisely what you struggle with.
And this person or being accepts and understands you completely for who you are,
Perhaps in a way that no one else does.
Now this person or being has something important to say to you,
Something which is just what you need to hear right now.
See if you can listen closely for the words they want to share or perhaps you just hear it in your own mind.
These words that are comforting and supportive.
And if no words come,
That's okay too.
Just enjoy being in the presence of your compassionate friend.
And now maybe you have something to say to this friend.
This friend is a very good listener and completely understands you.
Is there anything you'd like to say?
Now enjoy your friend's good company for a few last moments and then bid your friend farewell knowing that you can invite them back whenever you need to.
You're now alone in your safe place again.
Let yourself savor what just happened,
Perhaps reflecting on the words that you heard.
And before this meditation ends,
Please remember that this compassionate friend is a part of you.
The presence you felt and the words you heard are a deep part of yourself.
The comfort and safety that you felt is there within you at all times.
Know that you can return to this safe place and to this compassionate friend whenever you need to.
Bringing your attention back to your breath,
Gently open your eyes.
This was the Compassionate Friend Meditation.
