This is an introduction to recognizing loving kindness in the body,
Returning to it and staying with it.
Start by finding a comfortable posture.
This could be sitting,
Lying down,
Or standing.
We're practicing care for the body,
So being generous to yourself and assume a posture that embodies the sense of care.
And from this posture,
Find a supportive sensation in the body.
Any sensation that is consistent,
Whether it's the movement of the breath or any of the contact points to the surface under the body.
And once you find this place,
Allow yourself to feel held here.
And if you notice any resistance against or desire to escape this allowing,
There's no need to see this as incorrect or as failure.
Set a firm intention not to push back into this difficulty or indulge the escaping.
Instead of pushing this tension away and perhaps creating more tension as a result,
Allow yourself to acknowledge the resistance and create some space to hold this tension in your awareness.
Once you notice this difficulty softening,
Being patient with this process,
Bring your attention back to the place where you feel held.
This may happen once or many times.
And spend the next few moments returning again and again to that anchoring sensation in the body.
And this tension may arise from many different things and show up in many different ways.
Sometimes the sound in the environment might be agitating or the practice of relaxing might bring up its own kind of resistance.
And if you notice any places in the body that feel particularly tense or reactive,
Grounding into that place that feels held and allowing that part of the body to soften in that direction.
Sometimes this happens quite immediately and sometimes the softening takes a little bit of time.
And whatever the case may be today,
Inviting the same amount of patience and the same amount of kindness as you use discipline.
Once this allowing feels a little more natural,
Continue to settle into the presence of your body in this state.
Noticing the quality of being held by the body and the environment.
And if any other sensations from any of your senses fit into this quality,
You can slowly start to incorporate them into your awareness as well.
If doing so doesn't feel distracting or destabilizing.
Any textures,
The temperature of the room.
The light and the warmth hitting the skin or the fronts of the eyelids or anything that I haven't mentioned.
Or maybe just staying with that one place that feels supported and anchoring.
Amazing.
Continue to let your body and awareness settle.
Whatever arises in the moment,
Whether ease or difficulty,
Meeting them with a sense of friendliness and resilience and knowing that those two qualities don't need to fight,
Settling into that place in the body that feels grounding.
And now find a word for this feeling of ease.
Any word that works for you could be wellness or peace or any synonym that feels right here.
And while you're embodying this quality,
Silently set the intention to bring about a continuance of the state with a simple phrase.
For example,
May I be well or may I be at ease.
And if resistance arises,
Working with it just as you have been for this practice.
And every time you repeat this intention,
Tuning into the direct experience of this sense of ease,
The sense of grounding,
Doesn't need to be what you think it means mentally,
But from what you know right now in the body.
And finishing your phrase once more.
And now bringing someone dear to you to mind.
And inhabiting this anchored sensation in the body,
Take the next few moments to extend this wish to them as well.
For example,
May they be well.
May they be at ease using the word and the phrasing that works for you.
And finishing this phrase once more.
And drawing the attention back to grounding on that one place in the body that feels held.
You may start to welcome a more wakeful breath into the body.
And if you wish,
You can also bring some small movements into the fingers,
Maybe the toes.
And in a moment,
You're going to hear one bell chime and this will conclude the practice.
Following the sound with your awareness until you can't hear it any longer.
And taking your time to open the eyes.
Thank you for practicing with me today.
I hope you have a great rest of your day or a good night.
