This is a loving kindness meditation with giving and receiving.
Take a moment to feel comfortable seated or lying down.
I prefer to be seated for this practice,
But you might start by standing,
Swaying,
Stretching,
Wiggling,
And noticing any tender parts of you.
Give yourself what you need before you get into a seat.
Once in your seat,
Take a moment and look around.
Before you go inside,
Make sure you feel safe in your external environment.
If you like,
You can relax your face and eyes or close your eyes.
Environment.
If you like,
You can relax your face and eyes,
Or close them.
And begin by simply becoming aware of the natural breath rhythm inside your body.
Tune in to the moment when the breath flows in.
And notice it turning to flow out.
There's nothing fancy you need to do with your breath.
Simply tune in and enjoy this continuous,
Rhythm of breath.
As you continue breathing naturally,
I invite you to welcome any sensations,
Any thoughts,
And any emotions you experience.
Now say these words softly to yourself in your mind.
May I be happy?
May I be peaceful?
May I be safe from harm?
May I know happiness?
And the true root of happiness?
May I know ease and well being?
May I know ease and well being?
In body,
Mind and spirit?
Notice what it feels like to wish yourself well.
Like you would talk to a pet or a child.
Sweetly,
Lovingly,
Compassionately.
Now extend that loving kindness to someone else.
Perhaps the first person that popped into your mind,
Whether you know them or not,
Whether they're with you close by,
Or live far away or have gone from this world already.
Hold this person in your mind.
And say to yourself,
May you be happy?
May you be peaceful?
And may you be safe from harm?
May you know happiness?
And the true root of happiness?
May you know ease and well being?
In body,
Mind and spirit?
Notice what it feels like to wish this person well.
Regardless of your relationship to them.
Now extend the loving kindness to all beings everywhere.
And say to yourself,
May all beings be happy.
May all beings be peaceful.
And may all beings be safe from harm.
May all beings know happiness.
And the true root of happiness.
May all beings know ease and well being.
In body,
Mind and spirit.
Notice what it feels like to wish all beings well.
Yourself included.
Continue to welcome any thoughts,
Memories,
Emotions and sensations.
They are part of your experience.
Part of this meditation.
Now we'll move into the giving and receiving part of this meditation.
Having established a loving and kind energy with yourself and with everyone.
I want you to hold another person in your mind.
Could be the same person as before,
Maybe someone different.
And perhaps it's someone you feel could use a little bit of extra healing.
A little bit of extra compassion.
Maybe this person is going through a challenging time in their life.
And you'd like to do something that feels helpful.
So bring this person to mind and hold them tenderly.
And continue to breathe naturally in and out through your nose.
And the next time you feel yourself naturally inhaling,
Imagine that you could take away this person suffering and draw it out of them.
And as you feel yourself exhaling,
Send this person love,
Healing,
Compassion.
Continue to breathe and take away all of their suffering,
Anger,
Worry,
Confusion.
And then send them loving kindness,
Soothing comfort.
Continue this exchange of giving love,
Kindness,
Healing,
Sending them these energies.
And then taking away their suffering,
The receiving,
Not receiving for yourself,
But bringing it out of them.
Erasing pain.
Notice perhaps more intensely at first the way in which you really want to end their suffering.
To help this person feel better in themselves,
In their body,
In the world,
In their relationships.
And notice the fervor with which you send them healing,
As if a balm or a blanket of comfort.
As you continue,
Notice the pace of your breath and of this experience,
This sending and receiving,
And any thoughts and sensations that are part of this experience for you.
Notice what changes with time.
Notice what changes within you.
How do you feel in your heart?
How do you feel in your belly?
In your bones,
On your skin?
Allow the senses and your experience of this moment to bring you to feeling yourself here on the earth,
In this place.
Having spent time inside yourself and with others,
Someone perhaps you care very much for.
Take some time to transition before your next activity.
Before you re-engage with the outside world.
Maybe you take a moment to open the eyes and look around your space.
Though the space may be familiar,
It may look different,
Something's changed.
Be kind to yourself as you move into the rest of your day.
And give thanks for this time that you've created for yourself.
