Hi there,
My name is Maria Basil and I'm an instructor here on Insight Timer and I want to welcome you to our premium offering Meditating with Maria.
In today's practice we'll be cultivating self-care and self-compassion and then offering it out to others.
So to begin,
Let's find a comfortable place to sit,
Settling into your sitting bones and closing your eyes when you're ready.
Let your posture be relaxed though alert and then ground your attention for a few moments in the flow of your breath.
Each breath is like an anchor that helps you reconnect with this present moment.
If you notice any habitual contraction or tightness in the body such as in the forehead,
The shoulders,
Or the jaw,
Relax this holding pattern gently and then return to your breath.
Feel this breath now as if it is nurturing your heart.
Without force,
See if the heart can open itself to being nourished by your breath.
Now bring a hand to your heart,
Letting your palm rest with care upon it.
Notice the way it rises and falls.
With each breath,
Let the touch of your palm to your chest be tender so you can feel the care your hand offers and in return feel your palm filling with the compassion of your heart.
The offering of care goes back and forth,
Back and forth,
Into the palm and out of the palm.
Stay here for another few breaths.
Notice now if there is any other part of your body that needs this caring touch.
If so,
Gently move your palm to that place or your hand can also stay right where it is if you prefer.
Feel the energy of self-care expanding either still within your heart or to another part of your body.
Continue to breathe naturally while offering yourself a few compassionate prayers.
May I take care of myself.
May I speak to myself with compassion.
May I be filled with peace.
May I take care of myself.
May I speak to myself with compassion.
May I be filled with peace.
If there are any other words of care you need to hear at this moment,
Offer these to yourself as well.
Now feeling how loving and nurturing this is for you,
Take a moment to extend this care to another.
Bring to mind someone in your life who could use this loving energy.
Once you have this person in mind,
Offer them those same prayers of compassion.
May you take care of yourself.
May you speak to yourself with compassion.
May you be filled with peace.
May you take care of yourself.
May you speak to yourself with compassion.
May you be filled with peace.
Rest here for another few breaths.
Now gently release the image of this person from your mind now and then call to mind all of humanity and silently or not so silently repeating,
May we take care of ourselves.
May we speak to ourselves with compassion.
May we be filled with peace.
May we take care of ourselves.
May we speak to ourselves with compassion.
May we be filled with peace.
And rest here for a few more breaths.
Gently release all internal images now and then settle back into your own heart.
You might let a hand rest here once again or you can sit comfortably with your hands in your lap or at your sides and take three long clearing breaths now coming back into your body and then continue to breathe naturally and steadily and when you are ready you can slowly open your eyes to come back.
