This is a short practice for self-forgiveness.
I believe it's good to have a practice repertoire and one of the most important practices in our repertoire should be a self-forgiveness practice.
We often don't realize how much we accumulate stresses on ourselves in the form of things that we haven't fully forgiven.
So we're holding these little grudges against ourselves and we don't even know it and sometimes we prod and poke and criticize and it's going on at this kind of low level where we've just got used to it and we wonder why we feel a little unsettled or unsafe inside or we feel a little off or we don't like ourselves as much.
And I'd like you to consider or to offer to you the thought that this could be that we're just not spending time also forgiving ourselves,
Letting ourselves off the hook,
Ending an argument with ourselves,
Deciding we're not going to criticize ourselves like that anymore,
That we're a human and every day we show up and do our best in some human experiences that can be pretty challenging and that our innate nature is goodness.
We're all trying our best.
It's really soothing and relaxing to hear words like that because our body actually knows that's true and that soothing and relaxing feeling from hearing those words comes from deep in our bones.
There's a familiarity with that truth.
So in these short practices we go back to what we know in our bones that we're worthy of things like forgiveness and compassion,
Kindness,
Love,
Pleasure,
Rest,
All the good things.
Simply that.
And so by having a little practice every day in your repertoire for things like this your body overall gets to relax and remember who you really are and what it means to be alive in a lovely way and meet challenges with more resilience.
Forgiveness is an important practice for allowing us to build that kind of internal safety and resilience and this is a very short practice as I said.
So without further ado let's begin.
It may be as you settle in and make yourself comfortable that you can already bring to mind something specific that you want to forgive yourself for.
Some grudge you've been bearing for a while and you can't let go of it.
Something that's happened that you couldn't control but you're making it feel like you could and you did wrong.
If it feels safe and comfortable for you you might feel into that again let that arise.
Otherwise just know that even if you're not aware of parts that are asking for forgiveness and that you're being hard on but they are present now and that your words will help them and we're not just using words we're actually feeling into the words inside our bodies.
So tuning into your body on the inside make a connection to your breathing.
Not trying to change it in any way.
Finding a rhythm that feels comfortable enough for you now and that takes you into a connection with the inside of you.
And maybe placing your hands on your body as a gesture of self-alliance and self-friendship.
And feeling the support you're on.
You may be sitting,
You may be lying down and feeling the ground underneath you and the support the ground offers freely.
And then say to yourself and all your parts,
I'm just like every other human seeking some happiness for my life.
And feel that thought landing in you and the contact between your hands and your body and the way you're releasing to the free support of the ground.
Saying it again,
I'm just like every other human seeking some happiness for my life.
Breathing in and breathing out and letting your bones and your cells receive that truth.
And again with your attention on yourself,
I am just like every other human seeking to lower or heal suffering in my life.
Breathing in and feeling the space in your body as a welcoming space for your experience.
Breathing out and maybe feeling grudges,
Holding on,
Letting go.
They're letting go.
They're not needed here.
You don't have to do that anymore.
They're not helpful.
Breathing into the goodness and the space.
Breathing out and releasing any excess load you've been placing on yourself.
And then repeating to yourself,
Just like every other human I have known sadness,
Loneliness and despair.
Feel what awakens in your body with that knowledge and know that healing forgiveness and self-compassion is a great balm and healer of suffering,
Of hurt,
Of those more difficult things that we all experience.
And then again focusing on yourself and feeling your breath in your body.
Just like every other human I'm learning about life.
You're exploring,
You're exploring,
You're growing,
You're adventuring.
It's not that you're making mistakes,
It's that you're taking different turns and you'll find the paths and the paths back.
You can't do it without exploring and you can't grow without making mistakes.
Mistakes are not a bad thing.
So let's go through all four of those again,
Those words,
Those sentences.
Focusing on yourself,
I am just like every other human seeking some happiness for myself and for my life.
Breathing in and breathing out.
I am just like every other human seeking to lower or heal suffering in my life.
Breathing in,
Breathing out.
Just like every other human I have known sadness,
Loneliness and despair.
Breathing in with immense self-compassion,
Breathing out,
Letting go of any grudges.
And just like every other human I am learning about life.
Breathing into the light of that,
That's what's beautiful,
And lightly breathing out.
And as you are with these truths and yourself,
Can you feel any more light or space in your body?
You're making peace with yourself.
Can you feel that peace?
And asking nothing of yourself,
But to be with light and peace.
Just take a few last moments here,
Breathing inside your body and maybe visualizing as you feel all the space and the light that has flowed in because of what you have offered yourself,
This quality of healing wise attention.
The light may be a particular color or colors.
It may just be a feeling of light,
An atmosphere inside your body.
There may be some new spaciousness there.
And as you're with that,
Can you ask yourself,
What does this feeling do for me?
Feeling this way,
Spacious and light and good.
This flow of goodness inside of me and peace,
What does this make possible for me?
And imagine the possibility,
See yourself acting and moving in the world from this space.
And with these feelings inside you,
You are recognizing yourself as a natural human being in your true nature and what that makes possible for you.
And now getting ready to come back,
But keeping close to this feeling,
Drawing some clearer,
Longer breaths.
And as you're with that,
Can you ask yourself,
What does this feeling do for me?
Drawing some clearer,
Longer breaths.
Beginning to feel your body awaken.
Maybe yawning or stretching.
Softly fluttering,
Open your eyes.
Taking a moment to thank yourself for this practice.
And then with the blessing of this practice still resonating inside of you,
Going forth into the next moment of your life.
