So becoming aware of your body,
Contact of your body with the chair,
Feeling the contact of your feet on the floor or cushion,
Contact of your seat,
Your weight held and becoming aware of the physical sensations within the body,
A tingling and humming,
A sense of movement of breath and energy and knowing that we are bringing a kindly awareness to our experience,
Perhaps warming up your awareness by placing a hand on your heart area or another place on the body that for you,
You find soothing and supportive and feeling the warmth of the hand,
Tenderness of the touch,
Feeling how your hands support,
Perhaps feeling your heart cradled beneath your hand and bringing to mind a dear friend,
Someone who just makes you smile when you bring them to mind,
Someone who accepts and loves you unconditionally and seeing this person's face in your mind's eye and seeing their smile of welcome,
Feeling what it's like to be with your dear friend and knowing that they,
Like everyone else,
Every living being on this planet,
Ages,
Grows old,
Is vulnerable to illnesses and disease,
Misfortunes,
Failures and their greatest wish is to be happy and free from suffering.
Begin offering them your good wishes,
Your good intentions for their well-being by repeating silently in your mind your phrases,
May you be happy,
May you be safe,
May you be healthy,
May you live with ease,
May you be happy,
May you be safe,
May you be healthy,
May you live with ease and feeling your body,
Any naturally arising sensation,
Especially in the heart area,
However subtle or faint,
May you be happy,
May you be safe and protected,
May you be healthy and strong,
May you be free from suffering.
Now letting go of your loved one,
Letting go of your dear friend and bringing yourself forward into the centre of your circle of compassion and begin offering yourself your phrases,
The phrases we've been working on in this course or you may follow my words,
May I be happy,
May I be safe,
May I be healthy,
May I live with ease,
May I be happy and joyful,
May I be safe and protected,
May I be healthy and strong,
May I be free from suffering and remembering the intention,
Good intention,
Your good wishes for your good self,
May I be happy,
May I be safe,
May I be healthy,
May I be free.
Now letting go of your good self and bringing to mind a neutral person,
Someone you don't know very well,
Perhaps somebody who serves you in a shop or a bus driver you recognize,
Colleague at work you don't really know and bringing this person to mind and knowing that they too are worthy of happiness,
Freedom,
Begin offering them your phrases,
May you be happy,
May you be safe,
May you be healthy,
May you live with ease,
May you be happy,
May you be safe and protected,
May you be healthy and strong,
May you be free,
Free from pain and suffering to live a life of ease.
Now bringing to mind all three people,
Your good friends,
Your good self and the neutral person and widening your circle of compassion to include all of you and widening it further to out from this room to include all of us sitting here in this room,
Out beyond into the city,
Expanding your circle of compassion,
May we be happy,
May we be safe,
May we be healthy,
May we live with ease,
May all living beings be happy and joyful,
May we all be safe and protected,
May we all be healthy and strong,
May all living beings be free and allowing yourself to feel what you're feeling,
It's all okay,
Allowing yourself to be who you are,
Just like this and as we draw this practice towards a close,
Releasing any effort,
Relaxing in your chair,
Allowing yourself to absorb the practice and ever so gently and kindly begin,
Begin moving some fingers and toes,
Gently wiggling the body and opening your eyes.
