Hello and welcome.
Today we'll be doing a loving-kindness meditation,
So I invite you to find somewhere comfortable to sit where you can be both relaxed and alert,
Such as sitting upright in a chair or on a comfortable cushion on the ground.
We'll begin this meditation by focusing on the breath,
And I invite you to close your eyes or to cast your gaze downwards,
Whichever feels best for you.
And if you feel comfortable doing so,
I invite you to place your hand upon your heart.
And as you breathe in,
Imagine that you are breathing into your heart.
And as you breathe out,
Imagine that you're exhaling from your heart.
And as you breathe in,
Let love fill your heart all the way up.
And as you breathe out,
Release any past hurt that you have experienced.
And I invite you to continue breathing through your heart for the next few moments.
And if your mind starts to wander and you find yourself getting distracted,
That's okay.
Whenever you notice that it's happening,
Just gently and kindly bring your attention back to the breath.
Now,
If you placed your hand on your heart,
I invite you to rest it on your knees or in your lap,
Whichever is the most comfortable position for you.
Next,
Bring to mind a picture of yourself.
It could be you as you are now,
Or you as you were when you were younger,
Or even you as you were when you were a child.
And with this picture in mind,
I invite you to repeat these phrases either silently or out loud,
Whichever feels most natural for you.
May I feel safe.
May I feel loved.
May I be at peace.
And I want you to feel the love and kindness flowing out from your heart and spreading all over your body.
And now we're going to repeat those phrases two more times.
May I feel safe.
May I feel loved.
May I be at peace.
May I feel safe.
May I feel loved.
May I be at peace.
Now that you sent love and kindness to yourself,
I invite you to send love and kindness to someone else that you care about deeply.
Now this person could be a child or a partner or a dear,
Dear friend.
Whoever they are,
Bring an image of them to mind and repeat these phrases either silently or out loud.
May you feel safe.
May you feel loved.
May you be at peace.
Now keep the image of your loved one in mind and then repeat these phrases two more times,
Infusing your words with love and kindness.
May you feel safe.
May you feel loved.
May you be at peace.
May you feel safe.
May you feel loved.
May you be at peace.
And now let's focus once more on our breath and feel love fill your heart as you breathe in.
And then as you breathe out,
Release any past hurt that you have experienced.
Breathe in and feel the love spread all over you and breathe out and release your past hurt.
And as we come to the end of this meditation,
Slowly bring your attention back to the room.
And when you feel ready,
Gently open your eyes if you close them.
And I invite you to look around the room until you find an object whose color catches your attention.
Focus on that color.
Really see it.
And let it guide you back to the here and now.
And I invite you to bring the feelings of love and kindness that you cultivated here with you into the day.
