So welcome to your meditation on Maitri or loving kindness also called metta or friendliness.
And so the meditation it offers words of affirmation as a form of blessing or you can think of it as prayer.
And so we'll begin with a little settling.
So find your comfortable seat in your chair or on a cushion on the ground.
Scoot forward so your sitting bones are to the front of your seat and move the bottom flesh back which will help the tailbone move backward which is honoring the natural lumbar curve.
Palm down on the thighs.
Close your eyes.
If you're on the ground widen your knees and if you're in a chair feet flat,
Hip or mat width.
Focus on your exhales out of the mouth.
Feeling the bones of your body ground down.
Create a slight tuck of the chin and lean your chest back a little bit over the pelvis.
And as you inhale draw the breath from the earth up toe tips,
Fingertips,
Crown,
No force.
And as you exhale out of the mouth trace that pathway back down.
So from crown exit tension or holding out of fingertips and toe tips to the earth.
Again slow your breath.
Inhale toe tips,
Fingertips,
Crown.
Out the mouth exhale soften the tongue.
Let the jaw unhinge.
A few more.
Inhale gathering.
Exhale emptying.
And continue on your own smoothing and deepening the rhythm of your breath.
As the inhale rises just scan the body slow no judgment.
As the exhale falls scan the body slow meeting yourself where you are welcoming this experience.
One more breath.
And release that on the exhale and let your breath be natural and soft just noticing the subtle shift.
Great so now as we move into our meditation you'll let your breath be as natural as possible.
However when the mind comes becomes distracted you can take those deeper breaths that I just taught you to resettle because it's natural that thoughts will arrive.
And we want the body to be as still as possible and if you find that you become uncomfortable or agitated in the body it's normal.
Breathe into it so instead of moving right away see if you can take a deeper breath into the discomfort and remain still.
However if you have to move at some point it's okay.
Alright be gentle with yourself.
So find your inner gaze at the center of the chest and without any force just let the breath pass through the chest softening tension just feeling the shoulders.
Releasing tension as it moves down the arms in the hands.
The energetic heart in yoga it also includes the arms in the hands this idea of whatever comes from you and to you is of the heart right.
So just feeling that space the back of the shoulders the middle of the spine and then feeling the top of the rib cage in the front body where it connects to the breastbone just feeling.
Breath soft and sensing that every exhale can soften the energy of the heart just a little opening like a crack where the light shines through and breathing into that space and I like to say these words on the current of the inhale and let the exhale just be silent to feel the effects.
So repeat to yourself may I offer love the exhale is just noticing the inhale may I receive love and then the next inhale may I love myself and that's our meditation on the inhale may I offer love suggestion so soft may I receive love on the inhale just feeling the breath soft at the chest may I love myself.
Feeling any sensations without a lot of language.
May I offer love on the inhale.
May I receive love breath so soft.
May I love myself.
Continue repeating the words silently and eventually feeling the words in your body and if you forget the pattern may I offer love it's okay may I receive love may I love myself.
May I offer love on the inhale so soft.
May I receive love.
May I love myself and it's natural as you repeat these to notice any sort of resistance or limitation to these offerings and then just breathing with it letting it be there.
May I offer love on the inhale.
No force exhale softens the whole body may I receive love.
May I love myself natural breath breathing in and out of the heart.
May I offer love on the inhale.
Feeling the words may I offer love.
May I receive love.
May I love myself an invitation.
Your attention aligns to the words.
This is your point of focus.
Just inhale so gently the word.
Exhale feel at the heart.
Xview Sohun And the next time that you end the phrase,
May I love myself,
Release the technique and take a sweeping breath through the whole body.
Inhale toe tips,
Fingertips rising up to crown.
When you exhale out of the mouth a little haaa and empty back down.
Out of fingertips,
Toe tips to earth.
And we'll do a little movement to seal in these affirmations of loving kindness.
Right palm up under the navel,
So right at the belly button below it.
Inhale left arm circles out and up.
When it gets overhead,
Half prayer exhale down.
And then when the left hand meets the right,
You switch.
So left palm up,
Inhale right arm circles out.
Half prayer down the midline,
Exhale.
Do this a few more times please.
One more with the left arm circling.
Last one with the right arm circling.
Inhale rush,
Just feeling the movement and breath.
And now circle both the arms,
Breathe in.
Exhale hands to the heart,
Gentle bow of your head.
Honoring the sacred space shared.
Honoring the thumbs in between the eyebrows.
Just sealing in the effects.
Namaste.
Lifting your head,
Right hand to the chest,
Left hand on top.
Cross your thumbs.
These are the heart wings and jai,
Praise the flow that guides you.
Heart,
Spirit,
Life.
Listen and let it guide you.
Stay with me.
Jai offalow.
Thank you.