Hello and thank you for joining me today for this guided meditation practice on loving kindness.
My name is Stacey Anderson with the Sundream Collective.
I invite you to get into a comfortable position either sitting down or lying flat on your back.
You could close your eyes if you wish or maintain a soft gaze towards the ground.
Taking a deep breath,
Slowly counting to three and holding it at the top and release.
Loving kindness is the practice of paying attention to ourselves and to those around us with interest,
Compassion,
And care.
As you slowly begin to deepen your breath,
Open up your heart center,
Offer loving kindness to yourself by silently repeating the following words while imagining a cool and fresh stream of water flowing throughout every part of your body,
Melting away any tension or stress that your body may be holding on to.
May I be full of love and forgiveness,
Health and peace.
May I be filled with stillness and happiness.
Shift your attention around the meaning of these phrases.
How does each word make you feel?
Notice if any emotion arises to the surface.
Notice your physical body.
Do you feel any energy stuck?
If so,
Take a deep breath and breathe into that area.
Now I invite you to call to mind a friend,
Someone who has given you support,
Stood by your side,
And helped you through this time.
Or someone that you look up to that has shown kindness towards you.
Allow yourself to extend kindness to this person in return saying the following words,
May you be full of love and forgiveness,
Health and peace.
May you be filled with stillness and happiness.
Here the anchor is not your breath but the repetition of these phrases.
Remember if your thoughts begin to wander,
It's completely okay.
Allow any feelings and thoughts to arise and pass just like clouds in the sky.
Accept that your mind has strayed and gently return your attention back to these phrases.
Even if the words don't fit in this very moment or sound strange or do not feel comfortable,
It's okay.
See if you can connect to the meaning of these phrases even if you might not feel the safety and warmth right now.
In time they will become more and more natural to you.
They are the vehicle for connecting to you and to those around you.
Let's begin to extend this loving kindness to your family which can include your parents,
Your spouse,
Siblings or your children.
Repeat the following words,
May my family be full of love and forgiveness,
Health and peace.
May my family be filled with stillness and happiness.
Bring to mind someone who is hurting or experiencing a difficult time in their life right now.
Picture them near you,
Feel their presence in yours and extend your loving kindness to surround them with love that is so healing and so pure without the expectation that it should make you or them feel in any particular way.
Quietly repeat,
May you be full of love and forgiveness,
Health and peace.
May you be filled with stillness and happiness.
Take a few minutes now to feel how it is to wish these things for them.
Notice how it feels as you send these wishes of well-being to this person you love or care for.
Even when you wish a person well and it does not appear that they are open to receive it,
Sending loving kindness to them is a heartfelt wish without any strings attached.
No matter if they do or do not receive it,
That is out of your control.
Let go of any attachments or expectations.
Sending loving kindness is all about opening up your heart to free yourself from any negativity,
Anger or fear towards yourself or others.
Now bring to mind a difficult person,
Someone you have had trouble getting along with or whose words or actions are painful and have hurt you.
Sending loving kindness to a difficult person is a process of relaxing your heart and setting yourself free from fear and corrosive resentment.
There are no enemies,
There are only people who we dislike or who dislike us.
I send loving kindness to this person.
By sending compassion to this person,
We allow ourselves to be liberated from grudges that could block our hurt center.
This will help you to remember that just like you,
They want to be loved and just like you,
They want peace in their life.
Quietly repeat,
May it be full of love and forgiveness,
Health and peace.
May it be filled with stillness and happiness.
Finally,
I invite you to offer your well wishes to all beings everywhere.
May it be full of love and forgiveness,
Health and peace.
May it be filled with stillness and happiness.
As this loving kindness meditation comes to an end,
Take the time to appreciate the potential of this practice to increase your sense of connection and belonging.
Remember that as a human being,
Every single one of us has an innate need for connection and belonging.
Slowly begin to turn to your full awareness.
Start to wiggle your fingers and toes.
Softly open your eyes and become present in your surroundings.
Notice the movement and flow of your breath,
Bringing nourishment and life to your body.
Just as your wishes of loving kindness will bring nourishment and life to those around you.
Again,
This is Cece Anderson with the Sundream Collective.
Thank you so much for meditating with me today.
I hope that you have a magical rest of your day.
