Hi,
I'm Sammy from Temple Yoga Perth.
Welcome to your space.
This meditation is your chance to pause,
Breathe and care for yourself.
My hope throughout time is that you can unwind,
Release what's not serving you and connect to your higher self,
Bringing your mind,
Body,
Heart and spirit back into alignment.
Meditation Day.
Thank you for joining me for this mini meditation practice.
It will only take a couple of minutes and it is my honor to guide you through it.
Whether you are a complete new person to meditation or whether you have a regular practice,
Thank you.
For some of us that are new,
We might think that we're not good at meditating or maybe we feel like we've had expectations that meditation should mean my mind is completely clear or maybe we feel like we should have experienced calm or bliss.
A clear mind,
Feeling calm and bliss can happen from a regular meditation practice,
But by no means is it our goal or is it our actual experience every time.
The reality of meditation is that we do experience distraction.
Time can sometimes slow down for us.
Sometimes feelings arise,
Thoughts arise and this is the beautiful part of being a human with an active mind,
Body,
Emotions,
Spirit.
Meditation doesn't mean that you have failed if you can't have bliss,
Calm,
Clear mind.
You are actually meditating if you can be aware of your thoughts,
That you can sit with discomfort,
That you can allow yourself to face the reality of your feelings,
Your thoughts,
Your presence,
Your humanness in any moment.
So really,
If you're able to be aware of that,
You are meditating and you are doing it well.
Most of us,
When we think about meditation,
Think about a form called Vipassana,
Which is that stillness,
Finding that gentle breath.
Maybe you visualize someone sitting on a hilltop in lotus position.
That may be Vipassana,
But the truth is most of us do meditate.
So we find that maybe through moving meditations,
Through the ritual that it takes to do an activity like maybe making your coffee,
Going for a walk in nature,
Really meditation is any time when our mind has been applied to an object for an extended period.
So yeah,
In a way,
We've all meditated,
Whether you've scrolled on Instagram for an extended period of time and focus your attention there,
You've meditated.
So it's something you can do.
And by a meditation practice,
You apply that exercise to something positive for yourself,
Something good for your mental health,
For your mind,
For your growth.
So today I'm going to introduce a beautiful practice,
2,
600 years old from the Buddhist tradition called Metta.
This is an active meditation practice,
Not a passive one.
So instead of focusing on our breath in stillness,
We focus on love and kindness and fostering those feelings.
We focus our mind's eye on a prayer,
I suppose,
For ourselves and for others that we like and that we don't like.
It can be a challenging practice.
Feelings might arise.
Just notice your thoughts,
Observe it,
But don't hold on to it and don't judge it.
Just be really curious about what pops up in your thoughts,
What feelings pop up as you say these words and just allow yourself to let go of everything that is weighing heavily on your heart.
So in saying that,
Please find a space where you are free of distraction.
So it doesn't mean you need to be seated on a cushion.
You can be.
Keep in mind as well,
Though,
That usually our internal state is often reflected in our outward posture.
So set aside your busyness,
Maybe find a seat,
Lie down,
Have a walk,
Whatever you're doing and just be present for yourself now.
We will begin by taking two big clearing breaths.
So breathing in through our nose,
Filling our throat,
Upper chest,
Expanding our ribs and our belly with the in-breath and exhaling gently with ease,
Allowing it to take its time.
One more full in-breath through your nose,
Filling your ribs and belly.
If you can,
Allow yourself to have a soft gaze with your eyes or even close your eyes.
We are going to start our loving kindness practice.
By filling your heart with loving kindness.
Often we can look for love outside from a thing,
From a person,
From a situation.
But actually,
Love is inside of you.
You are love.
Just bring your awareness to that and allow your heart to fill with pure love and kindness.
Say these words to yourself,
Out aloud or in your mind,
I love myself.
Let's say that one more time.
I love myself.
Now we will repeat this metta meditation practice,
Which is four simple sentences.
Like an affirmation or a prayer.
Starting with yourself.
May I be safe.
May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May I be at ease.
Now think of a loved one that you would like to say this to.
Have them in your mind,
Picture their beautiful face.
And let's repeat this for them.
May they be safe.
May they be happy.
May they be healthy.
May they be at ease.
Now let's bring our mind's eye to our family and our friends.
So people we like and love,
But maybe aren't as close to us.
Let's extend this loving kindness to them.
May they be safe.
May they be happy.
May they be healthy.
May they be at ease.
Now let's bring our mind's eye to someone that we don't appreciate.
I don't want to use the word enemy,
But it might be.
It could be someone that has hurt us,
Or that triggers us.
Or it might be the neighbor's dog that keeps barking.
But it is someone that we don't easily like.
Now wishing them loving kindness doesn't mean that you are inviting them back into your life.
If it's someone that has hurt you.
But it is just purely extending forgiveness and compassion.
And it doesn't change what they've done to you,
Or take away the importance of your path and your healing journey.
But we are going to extend this loving kindness even to them.
So picture them in your mind.
May they be safe.
May they be happy.
May they be healthy.
May they be at ease.
Imagine if we all said this prayer regularly,
Repeated these affirmations,
Maybe even weekly.
I'd like to imagine that the world would probably be a very different place.
Now picture in your mind the entire planet,
Not just your city or country,
But all of the Earth.
Our home.
Let's repeat this affirmation for planet Earth.
May it be safe.
May it be happy.
May it be healthy.
May it be at ease.
