Kindness to self,
Meditation practice.
What helps us settle just now?
Maybe it's putting our hands to the left and right of the navel to connect more deeply with the breath in the body.
Maybe it's feeling the sensations in the feet or hands.
Maybe what helps us settle is getting a felt sense of the whole body just now.
Sitting for a moment,
Connecting to what's here in our experience.
Bodily sensations.
Emotions.
Thoughts.
If there's tightness or tension in the body,
Breathing in being aware of the tightness or tension and breathing out,
Releasing,
Finding ease,
Softening.
The more we can soften,
Relax the body,
The more we can be fully here.
And now very gently taking our awareness into the heart area.
What does the heart feel like?
What's the felt sense of the heart?
Is it small,
Open,
Soft,
Constrained,
Expansive,
Receptive?
Whatever the heart feels like,
That's what it feels like.
Can we allow it to be as it is right now?
The heart is where kindness and love live.
These qualities are already here.
So very gently now bringing kindness to yourself.
You may find it helpful to put a hand on your heart to connect with the quality of kindness.
Or you may want to imagine a golden warm sun in your heart radiating out kindness,
Well-wishing.
Or you may want to imagine a warm golden beam of light touching your heart,
Touching your whole body.
Every cell of your body with kindness,
Appreciation,
Tenderness,
Being held in kindness.
Kindness is already here.
You don't have to fabricate it.
We can allow ourselves to be held in kindness and love.
Using the space around us being imbued with kindness,
Breathing in kindness and breathing out kindness,
Warmth,
Friendliness,
Love towards yourself.
Noticing any critical thoughts that may arise here such as I don't deserve to be kind.
I can't do kindness.
It's for other people,
Not for me.
This is silly.
We can notice these thoughts and see them for what they are.
Just thoughts,
Not true.
Breathing in kindness,
Breathing out kindness,
Warmth,
Friendliness,
Tenderness towards yourself.
Each one of us has the capacity to be kind.
Sometimes it just takes some practice to reignite the heart's loveliness,
To reteach the heart its kindness,
To re-familiarize ourselves with it.
Connecting with the quality of kindness,
Warmth,
Well-wishing.
Bringing a kind,
Open,
Caring attitude to ourselves,
Well-wishing from the heart.
The very attitude we would bring to someone we love or appreciate,
Maybe our partner,
Child or colleague.
Breathing in kindness,
Feeling the warm,
Soft breath flowing through the heart,
Through the body.
And breathing out kindness,
Warmth,
Tenderness towards yourself.
Sitting now for a moment in awareness of kindness to yourself,
Of wishing yourself well.
What do you notice?
And very gently now bringing closure to this practice.
Maybe now bringing closure to this practice in whatever way works for you.
Maybe taking a deeper breath,
Moving the toes,
Hands or stretching the body.
Please try this.
You
