Tonglen Meditation With A Brief Body Scan

Hello and thank you for being here today.

Today we're going to practice a very special meditation technique called Tonglen.

Tonglen means giving and receiving in Tibetan and is a way of using the vehicle of the breath to alchemize the suffering of others and then breathe out blessing.

So we're breathing in the suffering of others,

Whether it's a big group or a small one,

Or individuals,

Or perhaps even ourselves,

And then we're breathing out blessing or whatever it is that we perceive them as needing.

And in the context of everything that is happening in today's world and also just by virtue of the fact that as human beings,

Part of our existence is characterized by suffering,

And there's no way around that.

Our task is instead to welcome and sit with that suffering and in the case of today's meditation,

To alchemize it if we can.

And today I would like to facilitate us through that.

It is my belief that anything that is in front of the eye started as a feeling in the heart or as a thought in the mind.

And so this technique really can have a lot of power.

And as a friend recently said,

If we can't see peace or blessing in the mind or feel it in the heart,

Then how can it ever be?

So we need to put ourselves there and do this kind of work for it to come to pass.

With meditation,

You don't necessarily have to be in an isolated place that's quiet,

But it's really nice if you are.

So see if you can hold space for yourself right now and let those with whom you are sharing space know that you'll be occupied for the next handful of minutes.

If you're not already in a comfortable sitting position,

Then please do that and we'll get started.

We're going to bridge visualization with traditional vipassana techniques that are used for a body scan.

So before we get into the tonglen meditation itself,

We'll do a partial body scan just to bring ourselves to this moment,

To arrive in the here and in the now,

This time,

This place,

With nowhere else to be and nothing else to do.

One thing to note,

Tonglen can be kind of intense,

So it's important to pay attention to what's happening within and just take care of yourself.

If we really are tuning into the collective consciousness,

It can be very intense.

And so if you find yourself feeling overwhelmed with emotion,

Consider backing off of it a little bit or perhaps name it and sit with it and let it be what it is and it will pass as all emotions do.

We'll also want to be sure that we're remembering the concept of noting.

The brain will present you with thoughts as that is its job.

Pretend that you're the host at a restaurant and your job is to welcome the guests and then return to your place at the door.

Acknowledge the guests,

Welcome them and then let them pass.

Don't hover over them in the restaurant or stay at their table.

Return to greet the new guests that have continued arriving.

And so now in your comfortable position,

If you prefer to meditate with eyes closed,

Go ahead and do that now.

And give yourself some grace if the eyes won't close all the way immediately or if they're fluttering a little bit.

Arriving in this space after a busy day,

Sometimes that can happen.

And so here we'll start out with just a few breaths.

The breath will be our vehicle of transformation today,

So we'll use that as our focus and as our anchor as well.

So let's just take a few easy breaths and begin to notice any sensations with the in-breath and with the out-breath.

You might start to notice with the next in-breath,

Notice the expansion of the belly,

Of the abdomen.

You might consider placing your hand over the belly to further deepen your observation of those sensations.

Just notice as it slowly expands and the breath slowly fills the chest.

And then notice the sensation of the lungs as they receive the air and how they intuitively know what it is to accept what nurtures them and then release.

And with each out-breath,

Ask yourself if you can perhaps collaborate with the body to release just a little bit more.

If you're noticing tension anywhere,

Perhaps in the shoulders,

The neck,

The back,

Just check in and make note of your starting point.

No need to necessarily change anything and certainly don't force anything,

But just give it a name using two percent of your attention.

And then let that breath release.

And let's just take a couple more breaths with our focus on any sensations available to us.

And now we're going to visualize a glowing thread stretching from the top of the head all the way into the heavens,

Straight up.

And notice that this thread is very gently supporting you in sitting upright with shoulders rolled back,

Supporting you so you don't need to strain to sit up straight in a comfortable relaxed pose.

And notice also how this thread stretches all the way up,

Connecting you so you are essentially the connecting agent between the earth and the heavens by this thread.

And it also stretches down through the center body into the earth so you are softly anchored in place,

Supported by the earth below and the heavens above.

And at the point where the thread exits the head to extend up into the heavens,

Begin noticing any sensation at the top of the head.

Notice any tingling,

Any warmth.

And if you don't feel anything yet,

Don't worry.

Just notice any sensation and perhaps gently make note of what it is.

And then very softly,

Slowly move the focus down over the front of the head to the forehead and the brow.

This part of the face we use a lot in our expressions and our interactions.

We can carry tension here as well as in the temple area,

Or perhaps the space between the brows where we find ourselves frowning without knowing it.

So just notice any tension there,

If there is any,

And invite it to release.

Using the breath as the vehicle,

Invite it to release.

And with this next breath,

Let's cascade the attention just maybe a few inches further down to the eyes,

To the eyelids.

Perhaps notice if the corners of the eyes can relax just a little bit further.

If the eyelids are fluttering or if the eyes don't want to close,

Perhaps just let them be as they are.

And if the eyes are closed,

Perhaps you can notice the play of light across the back of the eyelids.

If you're in a dark space,

Notice the softness of the empty canvas in front of you,

Leaving so much space for the eyes to rest.

And with this next exhale,

Allow the corners of the eyes,

The eyelids,

To relax just a tiny bit further.

And from the eyes,

We'll move the focus down from the cheeks into the face,

Into the lower part of the face.

Let's focus on the jaw area.

And once again,

This is another area that we use so much throughout our day-to-day.

And just ask yourself if that can release just a bit further.

Notice if perhaps the jaw was clenched,

If there was unnecessary tension in the mouth.

Perhaps invite it to slacken.

Perhaps place the tongue behind the front teeth so that the jaw can simply hang loose.

Nothing to say,

Nothing to do,

Just here.

And now we're actually going to intentionally activate the muscles in the face for just a moment,

To turn the corners of the mouth up ever so slightly into a gentle smile,

Giving yourself gratitude for carving out the time in your busy lives to be here today,

To come together.

And then from there,

Let's move on down.

Down across the lips,

Across the chin,

Down into the front of the neck.

And once again,

The neck has a very important job of balancing our head on the shoulders all day long,

Every day.

And it can carry a lot of tension as well.

So once again,

Let's utilize the vehicle of the breath to invite any tension that you find there with your exploration to release.

Notice any sensation that's there.

And if you do find tension in any part of this,

You might take the visual of a block of ice in a pan over an open flame.

Notice as the ice slowly melts,

Becomes liquid,

And then begins to boil off into steam,

Weightless and light.

Allow any tension you find to loosen,

To lighten,

To release.

Just a little bit more,

And if it's not ready,

Then allow it to be as it is.

And now we will extend yet further from the front of the neck out to the shoulders,

The tops of the shoulders,

The caps.

And once again,

Here you might notice,

Ask yourself if the shoulders are relaxed.

Perhaps you might relax them down and then hunch them just up a bit further,

And then back down again.

And notice if there's additional tension that can be released here.

Allow gravity to do its work.

Allow the arms to hang in the sockets.

Allow the hands to be at rest.

And with the next out breath,

Invite the shoulders to relax yet further.

It's amazing how we unconsciously carry so much there.

And then we're going to cascade the attention further down the arms,

Keeping the hands at rest,

Not needing to do anything.

And let's actually focus on the hands.

Bring your awareness there and just notice how alive they are with sensation,

How much they do for us on an everyday basis.

And notice once again,

Any sensation that's there.

And perhaps send a little bit of gratitude to the hands for everything that they do for us.

Let's once again activate our muscles in this part of the body by taking the thumb of one hand and pressing it gently into the center of the palm of the other,

Applying gentle pressure for just a few seconds.

Now switch hands and do the other side.

And notice how with the application of pressure,

You can feel the energy in the center of the hands more intensely.

Perhaps you can even feel the pulse that is responsible for keeping you alive.

And then from the hands,

Whatever part of the body they're in contact with,

If you're in a seated position,

Likely it's somewhere on the legs or the floor,

Bring the palms of the hands into contact with the tops of the legs.

Notice the sensation of the hands coming in contact with your body and gently begin to and gently begin to transition the attention from your hands to the tops of the legs.

And from here,

We'll gently start to move back up into the torso.

So from the legs,

We'll move into the hips and rest the attention there for a few moments,

Just exploring the field of awareness there.

And then we'll find our way into the lower abdomen.

Just welcome and name anything you find there.

And then we'll gently make our way back up to the sternum,

To the solar plexus,

Until we find our way to the heart space,

Which is where we will spend the rest of our time together today.

And once you have felt your way up to the heart space,

We're just going to kind of explore the space here.

You might even call it opening the space.

So first notice any sensations here in the heart space,

Right here in the center of the chest.

The emotional heart is an amazing container for us.

It can simultaneously contain both joy and sorrow.

It can expand to contain everything that comprises our experience all at the same time.

And so with our focus here in the heart space,

I'd like you to call to mind someone that you care about very,

Very deeply.

You have so much love for this person.

What happens to your heart space when you think of them?

What is the strength of what you feel?

Perhaps you might call to mind their face,

The color of their eyes,

The texture of their skin,

What it looks like when they smile.

Notice the sensation of this love in the heart space,

The immense compassion that it conjures up.

It is this feeling in all of its intensity,

Volume,

Depth,

Breath.

This is what we are going to use today to alchemize suffering into blessing.

And perhaps while we're here,

You might also just get to know the heart space,

Exploring it like you would a warm room.

So while holding this love there,

Notice any other sensations that are there.

And now that we're comfortable in the space,

We're going to visualize this love we have conjured up as if it is an ocean of compassion in the center of the chest,

Slowly ebbing,

Slowly flowing.

Perhaps even feel your own heartbeat as part of this rhythmic flow,

Combining with the crashing of the waves to smooth even the hardest of stones on the beach.

And note how immensely powerful this ocean of compassion is right here in the center of your chest.

No darkness,

No suffering of any creature or any being can stand up to the powers of these waves of compassion that are right here in the center of your heart space.

Let's take just a few nice deep breaths,

Maintaining the heart center as the focus.

And now we're going to really focus in on those,

That person or that group to whom you wish to extend your compassion and your support.

You might call this person or this group to mind,

You might picture them.

And once again,

Notice any sensations that arise.

Really notice details of this group,

Or this person.

Really notice those details as if they are in the room with you,

As if they are sitting across from you.

Hold a very clear picture of them in your mind.

And now we're going to breathe in the suffering that we perceive them as experiencing.

Perhaps you might visualize this suffering as thick black smoke.

As you breathe in,

Feel that smoke filling the chest.

And then watch as the smoke encounters the ocean of compassion that you've only recently discovered in the middle of your heart space.

And then perhaps observe as the smoke settles gently over the surface of the ocean.

The way fog might blanket the waters in the early morning.

And then watch as the smoke is absorbed,

Consumed by these waves,

To gently sink beneath,

Overcome by this compassion.

And then with the outbreath,

Begin to notice a glow beneath the waves.

And observe as with your outbreath,

Rays of healing golden light emerge from the waves and are sent out high into the sky to reach those you have taken as your focus.

And notice as it reaches those you are supporting,

And they are bathed in this light.

You can see them glowing in this golden blessing.

And with the next breath,

Once again,

Breathe in that thick black smoke.

The suffering that you perceive them as experiencing.

Take it in and trust this ocean of compassion,

That it has great power to transmute this suffering into the golden light of your blessing.

So we'll continue this for the next few breaths.

With the next in-breath,

Once again,

Breathing in that thick black smoke from those you have taken as your focus and taking it from them and breathing it in,

Alchemizing it within your heart space with the love and compassion there.

And then sending them this golden light in return,

So they are bathed in it.

And if you find that the mind is doing its work and presenting you with thoughts,

It's very easy to get lost in story when doing these kinds of visualization experiences and this technique.

Perhaps give thanks to your mind for presenting you with this thought and then gently return your attention to the present moment.

Perhaps you may also feel yourself begin to experience some emotion during this process.

And if so,

You might name the emotion and allow it to pass.

Or if it becomes too intense,

You could briefly take a break from this technique and just be here in the body for a few breaths.

Or perhaps practice Tonglen on yourself.

Breathe in any distress that you yourself are experiencing and transmute it using the power of compassion in your own heart.

Send yourself that blessing.

You deserve it.

Let's take another few breaths this way,

Continuing with the in-breath of suffering and the out-breath of blessing.

And with this next breath,

If you have not done so already,

We're going to go ahead and send ourselves this blessing.

Perhaps you might take your hands and put them over the heart space.

Sending yourself blessing in the face of any challenges you have encountered,

Anything that has come up today or has come up recently.

Part of life is suffering,

So we all have our challenges.

We all have things that come up.

So breathe in your own struggles,

Your own emotional suffering,

And then use this powerful place of compassion to transmute that suffering for yourself.

See yourself bathed in the light that you yourself have generated.

And with this next breath,

Send yourself so much gratitude for this work that you have done today.

And as you continue to take these slow,

Easeful breaths,

Begin to gently wake up parts of the body that have been still for these past few minutes.

Perhaps wiggle the toes,

Begin to wiggle the fingers.

Rotate the wrists.

Roll the shoulders back.

Perhaps roll the head from side to side.

You can remain in this kind of relaxed pose for as long as you need,

For as long as you might wish.

I thank you all for coming.

Namaste.