There's a loving kindness meditation to help cultivate our compassion muscle.
Let's get comfortable in a seated position.
Sit with your spine straight but relaxed and allow your hands to rest gently in your lap or on your knees.
Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths.
Just inhale deeply and exhale slowly.
Allowing your body to settle and your mind to quiet.
Let's do that again.
Take another deep breath in and a loud sighing exhale.
Beautiful.
We're going to cultivate loving kindness known as Metta,
M-E-T-T-A,
Using four simple phrases.
These phrases will be directed first towards yourself and then gradually extended outward to others.
Together,
We're going to radiate love,
Peace and goodwill to all beings.
Are you ready for that?
Wonderful.
Okay,
The first step is cultivating loving kindness for yourself.
Yes,
We're going to bring a little love and compassion and focus it towards ourselves.
Begin by offering yourself loving kindness.
Turn your attention inward and reflect on the fact that like all beings,
You deserve love.
You deserve love,
Compassion and care.
And in opening yourself to that possibility of love,
Compassion and care,
Silently repeat the following phrases to yourself,
Allowing the meaning of each phrase to settle deeply in your heart.
May I live in peace and harmony.
Really reflect on what those phrases mean.
What does it mean to live in peace and harmony?
Allow your body to soften as each phrase brings that sense of warmth and compassion.
Let's do the next one together.
May I feel balance and calm.
Achieving an inward sense of balance and calm.
May I live with grace and dignity.
What does that mean to you?
What does it look like to live with grace and dignity?
How would you do things differently if you set the intention to live with grace and dignity?
May I find inner strength and courage.
We're going to repeat those phrases again.
And as we do so,
I want you to really let the intention behind these words fill you with a sense of peace and strength.
And if your mind wanders,
Just gently bring the mind back to the phrases without judgment.
Let's repeat them slowly and mindfully,
Allowing each phrase to create a space of compassion within you.
Ready?
Here we go.
May I live in peace and harmony.
May I find balance and calm.
May I live with grace and dignity.
May I find inner strength and courage.
The next stage of our little adventure in compassion is to extend loving kindness to a loved one.
So let's think of someone that you really care about.
Someone that's really easy to care about.
This might be a family member,
A friend,
Or mentor.
Someone who has shown you a lot of love and kindness.
Visualize this person in your mind's eye,
Seeing them happy,
Relaxed,
And at peace.
And you're going to open up your heart to them and send them these really beautiful wishes.
Silently repeat these phrases,
Directing that same sense of compassion and care to them.
Are you ready?
Here we go.
May you live in peace and harmony.
May you find balance and calm.
May you live with grace and dignity.
May you find inner strength and courage.
Now imagine this person receiving your well wishes,
Surrounded by the love and kindness that you're offering them.
Feel that connection between you,
Recognizing that like you,
They are wishing for peace,
Balance,
And strength.
Now let's pick a neutral person.
Somebody you don't have any kind of particular feelings about.
You really don't know them well.
Maybe it's someone you encounter regularly in your daily life,
Like a neighbor or a colleague or someone you've seen but don't really know personally.
Visualize this person in front of you,
Acknowledging that they too are seeking happiness and freedom from suffering,
Just as you and I do.
And let's offer them these phrases.
May you live in peace and harmony.
May you find balance and calm.
May you live with grace and dignity.
May you find your inner strength and courage.
Do you feel the warmth of your goodwill expanding towards this person,
Even though they are neutral to you?
Recognize their shared humanity.
Let your heart expand,
Thinking of them with the same loving kindness.
Okay,
So here's the tough one.
This next phase is the real growth muscle phase of this practice.
We're going to extend loving kindness to someone with whom you have had difficulty,
Someone that has made your life harder.
Now bring to mind this person with whom you've had a difficult relationship.
This person may have caused you pain or frustration.
You don't have to pick the absolute worst person.
You can start smaller,
Or if you're ready to take on the tough one,
That's okay too.
You're going to hold this person in your awareness,
Not really trying to change how you feel,
But simply recognizing their humanity.
Let's repeat the phrases,
Offering this person compassion,
Even if it feels challenging.
May you live in peace and harmony.
May you find balance and calm.
May you live with grace and dignity.
May you find inner strength and courage.
Notice any resistance that may arise.
Allow yourself to stay with it.
You're not condoning any harm,
Rather you're releasing the burden of anger or resentment and opening the door to peace,
Peace within yourself.
This can be such a transformative practice.
All right,
Now we're going to do the huge heart opener.
We're going to extend loving kindness to all beings everywhere.
This is where you are going to flood the whole world with love.
For those known and unknown,
Human and animal,
Near and far,
Feel your heart widening as you include all beings in your incredible circle of compassion.
Imagine the entire planet as you say,
May all beings live in peace and harmony.
May all beings find balance and calm.
May all beings live with grace and dignity.
May all beings find inner strength and courage.
Can you visualize the entire world surrounded by this feeling of loving kindness and peace and goodwill?
The connection between yourself and all living beings,
Recognizing our shared desire for happiness and freedom from suffering.
Now take a few moments to rest in the warmth of the loving kindness that you have cultivated.
Feel the peace that comes from offering compassion,
Both to yourself and to others.
Know that you can return to this practice whenever you wish to reconnect with love and peace and strength.
When you're ready,
Open your eyes.
Thanks for practicing with me.
