And scanning the body,
See what's present,
What's there in this moment,
Seeing if there's any areas in the body that are holding tension,
Feel tight,
Just allowing those areas to soften and release,
Feeling the softness in your hands,
What's present in the hands in this moment,
Feeling the softness around the eyes,
Allowing the body to release and soften,
Beginning to sense into your breath,
It naturally flows in and out of the body,
Trying to change it in any way,
Just simply sensing into the in-breath and the out-breath.
The breath is always breathing,
Breathing itself,
Though most of the day it might go unnoticed,
Simply bringing attention to something that often goes unnoticed throughout our day,
Feeling the breath in the belly,
The belly expand on the in-breath,
Contract on the out-breath,
And feeling the breath as it flows into or through the heart space,
The chest area,
Paying attention to that area of the body as you settle attention on the breath,
Bringing to mind someone for whom it's easy for you to feel love towards,
It could be a friend or a parent,
Teacher,
Pet,
Sensing into that being's goodness that makes that person dear to you,
Be their caring nature or humor,
Feeling,
Sensing the being close to you,
Face,
Their eyes,
Looking in their love and kindness,
Feeling into how you experience loving-kindness towards this person,
Noticing how it's dwelling in this love that you feel for the other being,
Feels in the body,
In the mind,
Simply sensing deeply into how you experience this loving-kindness,
Continuing to imagine the person,
The being sitting in front of you,
One that you find it easy to feel love towards,
Just connecting and getting very familiar with that sense of love that you feel for the other,
Bringing attention to yourself,
Opening to your own goodness,
Extending that feeling of love towards yourself,
Regardless of what you think you have done or whether or not you think you deserve it,
True love is unconditional,
Sending this unconditional love,
Fully accepting yourself just as you are,
Extending this love towards yourself,
If you're finding this difficult to extend this,
The same love that you felt for a dear one towards yourself,
Perhaps imagining a sense that someone who finds you dear,
Sensing into their love for yourself,
Putting arms towards yourself,
Perhaps you putting your hand on your heart may help you connect with a sense of love,
Dwelling in this sense of self-acceptance and self-love,
Feeling it in your heart space,
Feeling it in your body,
Phrases of self-love might be helpful,
Just silently repeating to yourself any phrases come to mind,
Express the love towards yourself,
May I be happy,
May I love myself just the way I am,
May I feel the love that is my essence,
My mind and heart be free and liberated,
This isn't something we think about or figure out,
It's a feeling that we sense into,
Sensing into the deep field of self-love,
May I be happy,
May I love myself just the way I am,
May I know love as my essence,
My heart and mind be free and liberated,
Repeating those phrases or any other phrases that feel appropriate to dwell in this way in self-love,
Moving beyond the self-judgment,
Self-criticism that may rise in the egoic mind,
Coming back to our essence,
True nature of love,
May I be happy,
May I love myself just the way I am,
May I know love as my essence,
And my heart and mind be free and liberated,
The simple practice of dwelling the self-love that is always and already your essence or true nature,
Connecting into this field and dwelling here can be very transformative,
Foster wellbeing as well as awakening.
