Hi,
My name is Karen.
I would like to thank you so very much for coming and joining me today on this sit.
Today I want to speak about radical acceptance and lead you through what I hope will be a helpful meditation.
Radical acceptance is a dialectical behavioral therapy.
It involves fully embracing the reality of whatever is.
Letting go judgment or resistance to reduce suffering from painful situations or emotions that are beyond your control.
It means accepting situations for their current truth,
Not approving of them,
Not condoning,
And using the energy previously spent fighting reality to address those things which you can change in an effort to make life more manageable.
Radical acceptance means full acceptance of reality with your mind,
Body,
And spirit.
It accepts the reality as is and embraces the unfolding of it.
Radical acceptance involves recognizing and accepting the facts of a situation,
Whether physical or emotional,
Even when it's difficult or painful.
Sitting in a place of non-judgment,
Observing your thoughts and feelings without judging them,
Criticizing them,
Or judging yourself for having thoughts.
Non-attachment,
Letting go any fixation or bitterness about how you wish things actually were.
Instead of embracing the present moment,
This creates greater suffering.
And fully accepting,
Coming to terms with what cannot be changed.
What radical acceptance is not.
It doesn't mean that you like the situation,
Or condone it,
Or believe it is good.
It simply means acknowledging the existence of what is.
Passivity.
It's not giving up or being apathetic.
You will make a conscious choice to stop fighting what is real.
It is not giving up on change.
It is about first accepting the current state before you can effectively plan and make changes for the better.
It reduces suffering.
By stopping the struggle against what is real,
You now free up mental and emotional energy that can be redirected to a more constructive path or action.
Accepting a situation helps you to let go of resentment that can keep you stuck and amplify the pain you feel.
And it creates possibilities.
By acknowledging reality,
We can open up new possibilities for managing difficult situations and improving our life.
Acceptance is a gentle strength of saying yes.
This is what is,
Right now,
In this moment.
And so if you'd like to join me,
Please arrange yourself to be comfortable,
Whether you're laying down or seated.
And if you'd like,
You might want to close your eyes.
But if that doesn't feel available today,
Just turn your gaze slightly downward and soften your focus.
Let's begin by taking a few cleansing breaths,
Both in and emptying as we exhale.
Breathing in as deeply as you can through your nose.
And then empty your breath through your open mouth.
Breathe in again deeply.
And as you exhale again through the mouth,
Maybe sigh this time.
And one more time,
Breathing in.
As you exhale,
See if you can soften into your own body just a little bit more.
Take up a little more space.
When we stop fighting reality,
We open the door to our own inner peace.
When we soften into the what is,
We can then discover our freedom.
Our own resistance leads to suffering.
A deep acceptance of whatever is allows us to move away from our suffering.
This meditation is an invitation to release the struggle and to soften the urgent grip,
The want of control,
To allow yourself to rest in the what is,
To invite things to be just as they are.
Allow your breath to move easily,
Naturally.
If your mind wanders,
Simply come back.
Come back to the sound of my voice.
Allow yourself to be in this moment with you,
Just as you are.
You might be aware of some sounds around you,
Sounds near and far.
Not trying to search for them,
But instead just allowing them to come and go.
Letting go the want of judging the sounds.
The sounds are neither pleasant nor unpleasant.
They're simply sounds.
Allow them.
Notice what is building in you or emerging from within you.
As you allow each sound to come and go just as it is,
Sound rises and falls,
Very much like a wave.
It's always moving.
Behind each sound and between each sound,
There is silence.
Sound,
Therefore,
Emerges from the silence and then slides back into the silence.
And just as sounds appear and disappear,
So too do your thoughts,
Your emotions.
As you become aware of your thoughts,
Try not to hold them.
Instead,
Treat them like the sounds,
Allowing them to come and go as they please.
Simply allowing thoughts like sounds to appear and disappear.
We can observe sound.
We can observe thoughts and emotions.
Whatever is showing itself in this moment,
Just let it be.
In seeing what is,
Perhaps you recognize the futility in resisting it.
All that is within this moment is to be accepted.
And acceptance of this brings peace.
Acceptance brings freedom.
In your mind,
Silently whisper these words,
I allow this moment to be just as it is.
I let go my urgency to control everything.
I welcome life as it unfolds in front of me.
Allow these words to sink deeply into your heart.
Notice the stillness within inside you.
Notice that you are in this moment.
You are in the current experiencing of this moment.
Without resistance,
Simply resting in this moment.
This space of acceptance exists within you.
This space is available to accept whatever is.
To accept you as you are,
And others as they are.
To accept life as it is.
Life is unfolding as it should.
Let us release our desire to control what we cannot.
Take a moment to re-presence yourself in the space.
To gently allow your eyes to flutter open.
And to acknowledge,
To accept that in this moment you are all right.
Accept the reality of what is.
Make changes where you can.
And know that what happened was not okay.
But in this moment,
You're all right.
I wish you well.
Namaste.
