Hello and welcome to this meditation about seeing beyond flaws and cultivating wholeness and compassion.
I am Rashid Zahidi,
Creator and author of the Emojim Journal,
A journal and workbook for emotional awareness and for balancing your way of life.
In this meditation,
You'll learn to quiet the part of your mind that constantly looks for what's wrong in yourself and in others and in life in general.
Through gentle awareness and reflection,
You'll train your perception to see balance,
Progress and wholeness instead of only imperfection.
You'll practice compassion,
Gratitude and presence,
The antidotes to fault-finding and self-criticism.
Begin by finding a comfortable position.
Let your body settle,
Your shoulders relax and your breath deepen.
With each inhale,
Feel yourself expanding gently.
With each exhale,
Allow tension,
Judgment and effort to melt away.
Now close your eyes when you can do that safely and notice how your attention naturally looks for something to fix,
Adjust or evaluate.
Maybe it's your posture,
Your breath or even how well you're meditating.
Simply notice this tendency without judging it.
It's not wrong,
It's just the mind trying to stay safe and in control.
Take a slow breath in and as you exhale,
Silently say to yourself,
I don't need to find flaws right now.
Let that statement sink in.
Feel the space it creates in your chest,
In your mind and in your heart.
Now bring to mind a recent moment when you found yourself judging,
Maybe yourself or maybe someone else.
Without replaying the story,
Just observe how that judgment felt in your body.
Where in your body do you feel it?
The chest?
The stomach?
Maybe the jaw?
Wherever it is,
Breathe into that area gently.
Allow the tension to soften as you whisper to yourself,
I see this too and I can choose peace.
As you continue breathing,
Imagine that each inhalation brings clarity and brings balance and each exhale or exhalation releases harshness and pressure.
See your inner vision expanding from a narrow focus on flaws to a wider lens that includes everything,
The effort,
The intention,
The humanity,
The beauty.
Now visualize yourself or the person you judged standing in front of you.
Notice the imperfections,
Yes,
But also the light,
The goodness,
The story,
The complexity.
Whisper silently,
I choose to see the whole picture.
I choose to see the softer eyes and I choose to see with softer eyes.
I choose to see the whole picture.
I choose to see with softer eyes.
Stay with that feeling for a few more breaths.
Let it expand like a quiet wave of understanding,
A quiet wave of warmth flowing through you.
Then gently bring your attention back to yourself.
Think of one thing,
However small,
That you appreciate about who you are or how far you've come.
Hold that in your heart for a few seconds.
Let it become an anchor,
A reminder that perfection was never the goal.
Only awareness and growth.
As you prepare to return,
Take a few deeper breaths.
With each exhale,
Release the old habit of fault finding.
With each inhale,
Welcoming calm acceptance and compassionate perception.
When you're ready,
Slowly open your eyes.
Notice the space around you.
A little softer,
A little clearer.
Carry this awareness with you into your day.
You don't have to stop seeing flaws.
You simply have to remember they are only part of the picture.
They are only part of the full,
Complete picture.
And let these things ring in your mind and you can repeat them to yourself if you wish to.
I see progress,
Not perfection.
I choose compassion over criticism.
I see beauty in wholeness.
I allow myself and others to be human.
Thank you.
