Hello and welcome back to Expansive Health Services Mindfulness Meditation Series.
Today I have a really wonderful practice for you.
It's called Loving Kindness and as I was reading a book with my young daughter this morning,
The book was on service and paying it forward.
It's called Ordinary Mary's Extraordinary Deed and it's about a young girl who by a simple act of kindness kind of spreads joy and spreads love and spreads happiness throughout the world and it was just a simple beautiful expression of the love that we can share with each other.
So I thought I'd take the time to record this meditation and hope that you enjoy it.
So to begin,
Please close your eyes and sit comfortably with your feet flat on the floor and your spine straight,
Again if you can imagine that string being pulled through the top of your head and all the way down through the midline in your body.
Relax your whole body,
Keep your eyes closed.
Throughout this practice it will be a visualization practice and I would just invite you to bring your awareness inward.
No need to strain or to concentrate too hard,
Just relax and gently follow the instructions.
So to begin we'll just take a deep breath in and breath out.
Now with your eyes closed,
Please think of a person that is close to you,
Who you automatically have positive feelings about when you think about them,
Who you love,
It could be a family member,
It could be a close friend,
It could be a neighbor or a co-worker,
It could be a pet,
If you have a pet that you love,
It could be someone from the past or someone from the present,
Someone in life that you have around you still or someone who's died previously,
It could be a spiritual teacher,
It could be a guide in your life.
But imagine this person standing in front of you and these feelings that you're having about this person,
Once you get them in mind,
This is loving kindness,
This is charity and as you imagine this person that you have these positive feelings for standing in front of you,
Begin to send positive feelings,
Begin to send love towards that person,
Send all your love,
All your warm wishes to that person.
And if you would like to repeat these phrases either out loud or silently to that person,
May you be safe and protected from all danger,
May you be happy and free from sadness or pain,
May you live with and find ease,
May you find health in your physical body and in your mind,
Feel free to repeat these phrases,
Whatever resonates with you or your own phrases.
Now I'd like you to imagine this person who you love and who you care about,
Who you respect,
Sending those wishes for wellness and health and happiness,
For kindness and warmth coming to you from that person.
Imagine yourself receiving loving kindness from that person.
So may you live with ease,
Meaning you who's doing this meditation,
May you be happy and free of sorrow and sadness.
May you be healthy and free from pain and sickness.
May you be filled with ease and well-being.
Sometimes it's difficult to receive this loving kindness from others,
But see if you can be open to the possibility.
See if you can acknowledge any disqualifying thoughts or discounting thoughts that come up as you try and receive this loving kindness from this person.
And always breathe,
Let that breath anchor you to this love and to this kindness.
Next we'll think of an acquaintance,
Somebody you don't know very well,
Or towards whom you don't have any particular feelings,
Sort of neutral feelings.
You and this person are alike in terms of your wish to have a good life,
And so we're going to take a moment now to send good wishes to this neutral person.
It could be someone who you're not very well acquainted with at work or at school.
It could be someone that you come across in your daily walk to the grocery store or to the library or somewhere else,
Someone that you might see occasionally but don't really know that well.
And send all of your wishes for well-being to that person.
And as before,
Feel free to use these phrases if you like,
Or your own if you prefer.
So may you live with ease and well-being,
May you be safe and free from danger or hurt or violence,
May you be happy and free of sorrow and sadness,
May you be healthy and free from pain,
May you feel loved,
Seen,
And connected.
Now bring to mind another acquaintance towards whom you feel neutral.
This could be a neighbor,
A professional colleague,
Or a relative stranger who you see around but don't know very well.
And remind yourself that like you,
This person wishes to experience joy and well-being in his or her life as well.
And send your good wishes to that person.
May you be happy,
May you be healthy,
May you be free from all pain and sorrow.
May you be happy,
May you be healthy,
May you be free from all pain and sorrow.
Lastly,
Let's expand your awareness and picture the whole globe before you as if it were a little ball and you're able to see all living beings.
And send those positive wishes,
That warmth,
That love to all living beings on the globe who like you want to be happy.
And again repeat these phrases,
Just as I wish to,
May you live with ease and well-being,
Happiness and freedom from sorrow,
Safety and freedom from violence or hurt or danger,
Good health and freedom from pain.
Take a deep breath in and breathe out,
And another deep breath in and let it go.
Just take notice of the state of your mind and of your body,
How you feel after this meditation.
Breathe in that love and that kindness.
When you're ready,
You may open your eyes.
Thank you my friends for joining me today for this loving kindness meditation.
I hope that these feelings that you're having travel with you throughout your day and throughout your life and wish you good health and peace.
