Hello and welcome to this meditation practice designed to help you navigate through feelings of grief,
Hopelessness,
And sadness.
My name is Laya and I invite you to first find a quiet and comfortable place where you can sit down or lie down.
I know it's not easy to show up in this moment so I commend you for being here.
Allow yourself this time to connect with your body,
Your breath,
And the present moment.
Let's begin.
As you find this comfortable place,
Support yourself with pillows and cushions and once you are as comfortable as you possibly can,
Start to soften your gaze or perhaps close your eyes.
Let's take a few deep grounding breaths,
Inhaling through your nose and exhaling through your mouth,
Breathing in deeply and breathing out completely.
And as you breathe,
Feel the weight of your body supported by the surface beneath you.
Notice any areas of tension or discomfort.
Become aware of any spaces of softness,
Relaxation.
Inhale deeply and exhale completely.
Start to direct your attention to your physical body,
Bringing your attention to the bottom of the body.
And with each breath,
Imagine a soft warm light starting at the bottom and gradually moving upward.
Feel this light releasing any tension or heaviness.
Allow it to spread and expand,
Bringing a soothing sensation of relaxation.
Inhale deeply and exhale completely.
Begin to shift your focus more and more toward your breath,
Letting yourself feel and observe the natural rhythm of your inhalations and exhalations.
With each breath,
Imagine you are drawing in healing energy and exhaling out any pain or sorrow.
If it serves you,
As you inhale,
Silently say to yourself,
I am open to healing.
And as you exhale,
Repeat,
I release what no longer serves me.
Inhale,
I am open to healing.
Exhale,
I release what no longer serves me.
Stay with the breath.
Stay with the mantra.
Now place your hands right over your heart in the middle of your chest.
And for a moment,
Feel the warmth of your hands.
Observe the gentle rise and fall of your breath beneath them.
And continue to visualize a radiant soft light,
Perhaps now glowing from your center.
Begin to notice what is held in your heart in this moment.
And if those feelings of grief,
Sadness,
Hopelessness arise,
Allow them to do so,
Letting go of any resistance and simply observing yourself with compassion.
It is absolutely okay to feel these emotions.
They are part of your healing journey.
So allow yourself to observe the rise and fall of the emotions.
When a wave of sadness comes along,
Take a breath in and let it go.
Let yourself be as you are with what you feel,
Knowing that this is the healing journey,
The journey of life.
And as you continue to breathe with whatever arises,
Imagine your breath flowing into the area where you might feel the emotions the most.
Perhaps it feels like a tight ball or like warmth or heat.
Start to imagine wrapping these emotions,
These sensations in a cocoon of warm light.
With each breath,
Feel the cocoon becoming softer and more vibrant.
Imagine sending love,
Understanding and acceptance from yourself to yourself.
With every inhalation,
Visualize the light within you growing brighter from the center,
From the heart,
Expanding with hope and with resilience.
And as you exhale,
Feel this light radiating outwards,
Touching every fiber of your being.
Deep breath in,
Long,
Slow breath out.
And as you give yourself full permission to feel whatever is there to be felt,
To move through the emotions,
Through the grief,
Through the pain,
Knowing that you are not those feelings,
Those emotions,
Those thoughts,
That you are the one experiencing them.
And in the same way that you feel this despair at times,
Remember that you are also capable of feeling infinite joy.
Inhale,
Let it go.
And now repeat this affirmation silently to yourself.
Or perhaps you'd rather repeat them out loud.
I am capable of healing and finding joy.
I am capable of healing and finding joy.
I am capable of healing and finding joy.
I embrace the ebb and flow of life's emotions.
I embrace the ebb and flow of life's emotions.
I embrace the ebb and flow of life's emotions.
I am connected to a wellspring of inner strength.
I am connected to a wellspring of inner strength.
I am connected to a wellspring of inner strength.
Hope resides within me,
Even in the most challenging times.
Hope resides within me,
Even in the most challenging times.
Hope resides within me,
Even in the most challenging times.
Take a deep breath in.
Fill up your body front to back,
Side to side,
Top to bottom.
Perhaps hold at the top and then gently release.
As you release as well,
The focus from the affirmations and from your breath.
Once you feel ready,
Start to wiggle your fingers.
Maybe move your head a little side to side and gradually reawaken your body.
And when you're ready,
Open your eyes.
Take one more moment to notice how you feel.
Remembering that you can return to this meditation whenever you need to reconnect with your inner light and find some solace in moments of grief.
May you carry this sense of healing and hope with you as you continue this journey.
Thank you for practicing with me today.
Be well.
