Welcome to this meditation on self-compassion.
So taking the time to find a comfortable seat.
Somewhere you can find ease through your body and somewhere where you'll be comfortable for about 15 to 20 minutes.
So taking the time to set up,
Perhaps you're sitting with your feet pressing to the earth on a chair.
Perhaps you're sitting cross-legged on the floor or up on a sofa.
And of course at any time throughout this practice if you need to lie down or adjust your body to find comfort,
Please do so.
So settling in,
Making any adjustments that you need through your body to find comfort and ease.
And now closing down your eyes and allowing your face to soften.
Allow your jaw to soften.
Notice as your shoulders melt away from your ears,
Releasing tension through the neck and the upper back.
Let your arms fall with ease by your sides,
Hands resting comfortably,
Perhaps in your lap,
Hands on knees,
Whatever's most comfortable for you.
Feeling a slight opening across the chest.
Allow there to be spaciousness around the heart space.
Softening your belly,
Relaxing all the muscles of your belly so your breath can come and go with ease.
Relaxing through your hips and feel a wave of ease wash down your legs all the way to the soles of your feet.
Begin to settle into your breath.
Trying your best to smooth out the breath,
Deepening the breath with each inhale.
Letting go of tension through your body with each exhale.
Take a few breaths like that.
Now for this meditation on self-compassion,
Self-love,
Self-care.
Bring your awareness now to your heart space at the center of your chest.
Just notice what's present here with a kind awareness,
Non-judgmental awareness of your heart space.
Notice how it feels in your heart today.
Is there a lightness,
A heaviness?
Is there a lot of emotion present?
Perhaps none at all.
Can you feel energy moving around the heart space?
Perhaps you feel nothing here and all are completely fine.
We're just drawing our awareness here.
Beginning to notice what's present.
Now beginning to breathe into your heart space.
Inhaling to the center of your chest.
Feel a beautiful expanse of the ribcage,
Belly.
And exhaling to let go.
Just taking a few breaths into your heart space.
Now bring to mind a loving being.
Someone who you know loves you unconditionally.
Take your time.
Perhaps it's a dear friend,
A parent,
A sibling,
A cousin.
Perhaps it is a deity or a master,
The Buddha,
Kuan Yin.
Perhaps it's a beautiful loving pet of yours,
Your dog or your cat.
A being who loves you or a being who you know is loving and compassionate to all beings including you.
Perhaps you picture love itself or compassion itself as a color,
Energy or vibration.
So really take the time to notice this being,
This energy,
Source of love.
And begin to visualize whoever it is,
Whatever it is before you,
Like you're seated face to face.
So you are sitting before pure love and compassion,
Unconditional love.
Now see this being,
Person,
This energy before you,
Looking at you,
Seeing you for all that you are.
And looking at you with the eyes of love,
Taking you in,
Loving you as they do.
Perhaps you begin to feel love wash over you or a kindness,
A beautiful soft energy,
A healing warm energy.
Just through being seen,
Through being loved and accepted exactly as you are.
You are being viewed through the eyes of love.
And this being,
This loving being or person before you,
They can see and feel your suffering.
They know that you have suffered.
And their greatest wish is to remove your suffering.
They're seeing you now through the eyes of compassion.
The eyes that see and know that there are always causes to suffering.
Their greatest wish is to ease your suffering so that you may find more grace and ease in your life.
Notice how your heart space feels.
Can you soften your belly,
Soften your face?
And allow suffering to float away,
Leaves your body through their loving intention for you.
They know you and they understand you.
They love you unconditionally.
They know that there are no failures or mistakes in this life,
Only learnings.
They see you as a soul learning,
Evolving and growing in this human incarnation that we call life here on earth.
They see all the good that you do and all the light you bring to the world.
They're here viewing you through the eyes of love and compassion and honouring you for all that you are and all of the light you bring to others.
Taking a few moments here,
Just breathing,
Allowing the body to soften,
Receiving their love,
Compassion,
Kindness and non-judgment.
They are allowing you to simply be as you are,
Moment to moment.
Now really holding focus on their energy of love,
Compassion,
Kindness,
Acceptance.
Hold that energy but as you do,
See them fade away into the distance.
So only their energy and essence is left.
Now can you see yourself in the place that they were?
So there's now two of you.
There's you,
The loving being,
The loving energy,
The compassionate one.
Viewing yourself,
Perhaps this might be easier if you view yourself as much younger,
A more innocent time,
Perhaps of youth,
Being a child or right now at your current age or even a future age,
A time into the future.
Might even help if you can view them,
The watcher,
You the watcher,
As your wise future self.
You're viewing yourself through the eyes of love,
The eyes of compassion,
The heart of unconditional love,
And the heart that seeks to remove your suffering.
Taking yourself in,
Radiating love to yourself and receiving it,
Welcoming love.
Now can you view yourself through the eyes of compassion and really self-compassion?
Can you see all the causes of the suffering that you've experienced or at least know them?
You know you've suffered and you know the causes.
And know that you've always done your best.
You've always sought to grow and learn,
To evolve and transcend,
And you have.
And you were so worthy of compassion right from your own heart.
Can you allow yourself to feel compassion,
To receive it?
Can you forgive yourself,
Knowing the causes of your suffering,
Knowing your desire to transcend these,
To bring more light into the world?
Allow your body to soften and smooth out your breath.
Continue to receive compassion,
This gentle,
Loving,
Understanding the causes of suffering,
The desire to bring more ease into your life,
To forgive yourself,
And to let go,
And to let be.
Now bring your awareness to you the viewer,
Sending yourself love and compassion.
Begin to see that version of yourself merging into one,
To you the person receiving compassion and love.
Know that this unconditional love and self-compassion,
Kindness and understanding lives within you.
You can access it anytime.
It exists around you in your friendships,
The pure energy of love and compassion that exists throughout the world,
Allowing yourself to be loved just as you are.
Receiving love fills your heart,
Radiates throughout your entire body.
Feel,
Sense,
Simply know that every cell of your body is filled with love now,
With kindness,
Non-judgment.
You are filled with pure light and love.
And you are always worthy of love and compassion.
Self-compassion exists within you.
It's always there if you become quiet enough to see through your wise mind and feel through your loving heart.
And you are enough,
Just as you are moment to moment.
Allowing yourself to just breathe all the way down to your belly.
Allow your body to soften.
Perhaps you take a nice big inhale through your nose and hold the breath at the top.
Take a nice big sighing exhale through your mouth.
Take a couple more breaths like that,
Just beginning to let go of this practice,
Softening the body,
Letting go.
And if you need a little more time here,
Then stay with your breath.
Gently breathing,
Allowing your body to just be at ease,
Allowing your heart to be soft,
Loving.
Your mind still calm.
You're making your way out of this meditation,
Begin to wiggle your fingers and your toes.
Perhaps you stretch your arms overhead.
You can turn your head side to side,
Take a little twist through the body.
And then take your time to gently,
Compassionately go about the rest of your day.
Sending all my love and compassion.
Namaste.
