Heart Centred Meditation Week 2: Returning To Allah’s Mercy

‘I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh’ (Ezekiel: 36:26)

Welcome to From the Heart. You will find here 8 Islamic Heart-Centred meditations to be used across 8 weeks. There is a natural sequence from week 1-8, where you gradually get closer to Allah, so do not try jumping across weeks.

The meditations are based in a long tradition of heart-centred contemplative exercises from the Islamic tradition that goes back to Al-Ghazali. They were originally developed by Wadud Hassan and edited by Dr Miguel Farias and Sara Shah.

These meditations were developed as part of a research project sponsored by the Templeton World Charity Foundation. The protocol was published in BMC Psychology, 2024 and the research was led by Faye Ng, Miguel Farias, and Inti Brazil.

Transcript

Relax your mind and body. And sit with curiosity. Have you ever seen a bird just sitting in your yard? If you are sitting on the floor, Sit in a comfortable position and support your back. If you are sitting on a chair. Support your lower back. Lengthen your spine. Soften your shoulders. Place your hands on your thighs. Feel your feet on the floor. This is called grounding. Bring your body to a relaxed position. Yet alert position to do this guided practice together on Allah's name. Asalaamu Alaikum Lower your gaze, Close your eyes, Focus inwardly, And bring the remembrance of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala into your mind. Take a deep breath in. And let a long breath out to fully relax. Let us do two more of those. Deep breath in. And a long breath out. Now let us breathe normally. No need to shorten or lengthen your breath. Just breathe in and breathe out normally. And as you breathe, Focus upon the presence of Allah in your heart. Every breath. Every moment is a gift from Allah and we bring a sense of gratitude into our heart, A smile on our faces as we concentrate on Allah's presence with every breath. Let's focus inwardly into the heart. The very center of our being. Be mindful of Allah's remembrance deep within your heart. Become aware of your breath. Moving into your heart. You When you breathe in, Be mindful of Allah's remembrance. Deep in your heart. When you breathe out. Be mindful of Allah's remembrance. Radiating through your whole being. You you When you breathe in, Imagine Allah's remembrance moving deeper into your heart. When you breathe out. Feel Allah's light. And love. Radiating through your whole body. When you breathe in, Imagine Allah's remembrance moving deeper. Into your heart. When you breathe out. Feel Allah's light and love radiating through your whole body. When you breathe in, Imagine Allah's remembrance moving deeper into your heart. When you breathe out, Feel Allah's light and love radiating through your whole body. You you Let us now reflect on Allah. The most merciful God. My Allah! Is the most compassionate God. The most merciful God. Feel the forgiving presence of Allah. Upon you. Keep breathing into your heart while saying slowly, Lord, Forgive and have mercy. You are the most merciful of all. Now imagine the mercy of Allah. Descending upon you. Like a purifying shower. In washing off all sins, All worries, And anxieties. Imagine Allah's mercy. Descending upon your heart. And emanating. All throughout your body. To every organ. Every limb. Every cell. From your head. Down to your feet. Keep thinking of Allah's mercy. Descending upon your heart. And emanating. Through all your body. Allah is deeply merciful. When any distress befell the Prophet. Allah bless him. He would say. O living. Of sustaining. In your mercy, I seek relief. We ask Allah. To forgive and cleanse. All our sins and shortcomings. We send his blessings to the beloved messenger of Allah, Muhammad. May Allah bless this practice. Infinite praise and thanks to Him alone. You may open your eyes gently and take in your surroundings. After you finish. Write down the main experiences, Insights, Or questions from today's practice in your notebook.