Let's begin today's meditation.
Today we will focus on forgiveness to yourself,
To others,
Just letting go.
If meditation is in your practice then get yourself into your comfortable meditation posture and if meditation is not something you practice regularly then just sit down in your comfortable seated position.
Your back can be supported.
Maybe you want to place some pillows underneath your knees for extra support.
Just get yourself comfortable.
Take the next moment or two to take a few deep breaths to get yourself comfortable and then let's take a deep inhale and as you exhale close down your eyes.
You deserve to forgive yourself for regrets you may have,
For mistakes you've made,
For disappointment you are experiencing,
For every single time you haven't lived up to your own or others expectations,
For not being perfect.
So the intention of today's meditation is to give you the inner peace and soul nourishing love that comes from truly forgiving yourself.
Let's begin by just breathing naturally as you inhale breathe in fresh oxygen and positivity and as you exhale let go of any tensions or worries without changing your natural breath just become aware of the fresh oxygen flowing,
Flowing with positivity into your life and with each exhale give yourself permission to let go,
Let go of tension or worries.
Let yourself relax and release any busy mind chatter.
Simply try to be present.
If any thoughts come to your mind just bring yourself back to my guidance.
Let's begin by becoming aware of the sounds around you,
Noticing any sounds outside of the room that you're sat in and gradually draw these sounds in drawing yourself into the present moment.
Being aware of the sound your own breath creates.
Calm and centered.
Be here now.
Allow your mind to empty what it no longer needs to hold on to.
Let it go,
Flow out and away.
Allow your body to release what it no longer needs to hold on to.
Let it go,
Flow out and away.
Bring your awareness on your being as you sit here simply breathing.
Now rest your awareness in the area of your heart.
Breathe into this hot area and allow yourself to feel any stuck emotions that are present.
Become aware of the memories that bring you pain,
The barriers you may have put up to protect yourself and the lingering emotions you carry due to not letting go and forgiving.
Just let those feelings arise now and allow them to become present.
Where is it hiding?
The guilt,
The shame,
The embarrassment,
The regret.
Take a moment to locate these in your body.
Maybe you feel tightness in your throat or a heaviness in your stomach or tightness in your shoulders or pain in your head.
Wherever they are these heavy emotions just identify them.
What shape are they?
What color?
Just observe the heaviness is real but you can choose to let them go.
The guilt,
The shame,
The embarrassment,
The regret.
You can choose to forgive yourself to accept that you are not perfect but you are human and that part of what makes you so special is that you do not live your life perfectly.
You mess up and learn and evolve and blossom.
Bring your attention back to your breath and now back to where your heavy emotions are sitting and on every exhale I invite you to see those entities dissolve just a little bit more.
Breathe in and breathe out watching them dissolve until they're all gone completely vanished from your body.
Now take a deep cleansing breath in washing out and your remaining emotions exhale relaxing your body deep deep deep into comfort and calm.
Now hear yourself say I forgive you I forgive you beautiful and I love you.
Let's dive even deeper.
Visualize you are in a beautiful garden on a mild day with fluffy clouds rolling by in the sky and the sun periodically warming your skin and nourishing the plants in this garden.
As you admire the beauty here the way the leaves are caressed by the wind.
There are many colors of flowers throughout this garden and their fragrance is sweet and welcoming.
You look down to see a small foot path through some flowering shrubs and it's an inviting and mysterious path.
Begin to walk down this way as you curve around the beauty of this garden.
You inhale the fresh oxygen that these plants produce.
You feel very pleasant and relaxed as you around a corner a small bench made of wood comes into view and you see the person you most need to forgive is sitting there.
A person that can even be yourself.
They have been waiting for you because this is a very important encounter.
You sit down beside them because this place is very safe and there are some things that need to be said to this person.
With bravery and courage look them directly into their eyes and say you hurt me and I have suffered for too long because of this burden I carry in the form of a grudge towards you.
I forgive you.
I forgive you not to help you but to better myself.
I forgive you and you will not enter my thoughts any longer.
I forgive you because forgiveness leads to openness in all aspects of my life.
You notice the darkness that was once in their eyes begins to lighten and for a while they do not say a word.
Then the silence is broken.
They simply say to you I will leave you alone now and you will not be tormented by the thought of me anymore.
They get up from the beautiful wooden bench and walk into the depths of a nearby wooded forest.
You watch as their figure grows smaller into the distance until you no longer see them.
Never once did they turn and look back your way.
Just watch,
Watch that figure grow smaller and smaller and smaller.
This is a very important meeting today.
In this beautiful garden and now as you breathe in the new fresh air you feel twice as light as you did before.
That's because a huge weight has been lifted now that the person you needed to forgive is no longer sitting within your secret garden.
They have moved on and so have you.
Let's take the next minute sitting in silence and just notice what other things are sitting in your secret garden that you need to let go of,
That you want to forgive.
Forgiving to give yourself that openness in all aspects of your life.
Notice them in your secret garden.
Forgive them and then watch them disappear.
You you good very good you have forgiven you've let go the secret garden is even more beautiful now the air is even lighter the smells are even more pleasant and the flowers are more vivid in color let's move away from the secret garden now and bring yourself back to your breath just become aware of yourself breathing begin noticing the sounds around you begin smelling any smells around you and become aware of each part of your body coming back to your body coming back with all your senses drawing a picture of your room in your mind allowing each item to come together noticing yourself sitting in that room and then feel yourself sitting in that room just be here be now coming back to your body to your mind slowly in your own time you can gently bring some movement into your body but allow your gaze to still be inwards eyes remain closed slowly as you come out of this meditation at your own pace you might notice that you're eager and ready to take the steps needed towards past no achievement treasure those take them with you slowly begin to move your hands your fingers maybe you choose to gently stretch the body taking a deep inhale and as you exhale just let go for the last time and when you feel ready just gently coming back and opening up your eyes namaste
