Welcome,
Nice to be with you today.
My name is Jeremy,
I'll be guiding this meditation.
Loving-kindness meditation is a common practice in Buddhism,
Referred to as metta,
But the practice of cultivating loving-kindness is present in many spiritual traditions.
The purpose is to cultivate an attitude of unconditional love,
Kindness,
Care,
And compassion for all beings.
Practice helps us to get in touch with our true nature or natural state of being and its positive inner qualities of joy,
Gratitude,
Peace,
Contentment,
And unity.
This practice has been a light for me through some of the darkest times in my life,
And I hope it can be a light for you as well.
For this practice,
I encourage you to follow your intuition.
If something doesn't resonate or work for you,
Feel free to be creative and adjust the practice to whatever works for you.
My words are just here as a guide.
I hope you enjoy this meditation of giving and receiving loving-kindness.
So let's take a few minutes to settle in.
Start with a gesture of kindness and gratitude towards your body by finding a comfortable position where you can be relaxed and present,
Making any final adjustments that feel supportive.
Take a few slow,
Deep breaths,
Filling your chest and belly with fresh air and exhaling slowly,
Inviting a sense of calm and peace with each inhale and exhaling any tension or stress.
Feeling gratitude for this gift of life that is renewed with each breath.
See if you can gently relax any areas of tension in your body,
Relaxing your face,
Especially the muscles around your eyes,
We hold a lot of tension there,
Relaxing your jaw,
Your shoulders,
Your back,
Your chest,
Letting your belly be soft,
Relaxing your bottom,
Your legs,
Your feet.
Just giving permission to your body to rest,
That it's safe to just relax.
Visualize any thoughts,
Worries,
Decisions,
Ideas,
To-do lists,
Items,
Floating up as pieces of paper from the top of your head into a file cabinet for later,
Trusting that they will come back if and when you need them.
Sending kindness and gratitude to your mind for all that it does to support you and giving it permission to rest.
Now let's take a few minutes to connect to your heart,
Bringing your awareness to your heart area,
Breathing in and out of this area.
Visualize a pink light representing your loving essence emanating from your heart area and filling your entire body.
Visualize this beautiful,
Pure pink light expanding beyond your body and gradually emanating outwards to encompass the whole area around your body.
Your body,
Your neighborhood,
And the entire world.
If you'd like,
You can try placing a hand over your heart.
You can also try bringing a soft smile to your face.
Allow yourself to follow your intuition and experiment with whatever helps you feel more connected to your loving essence.
We're not trying to manufacture a feeling,
We're really just softening and letting our loving nature come forward,
Like clouds parting so the sun can shine through.
Now I'm going to send you blessings of loving kindness.
Although you may or may not know me,
These blessings are expressions of the unconditional love I feel for all beings,
And were meant for anyone who may be listening to this meditation.
So I welcome you to feel as though these blessings are specifically for you.
Receiving love can also be difficult for many people.
Many people don't feel that they are worthy of love,
And receiving can bring up feelings of unworthiness,
Self-criticism,
Or guilt.
So if anything doesn't resonate with you,
Or brings up resistance for you,
Just know that that's okay.
Try to meet any resistance that arises with compassion,
And try to feel the intention and energy behind the words,
Not just the words.
The intention is for you to feel unconditionally loved,
And to feel the unconditional love within you.
Feel free to use your intuition and creativity in whatever way that feels good.
You can imagine these words are coming from a loved one,
A spiritual figure,
Or a higher power,
Spirit,
Source,
The universe.
You can listen to the silence between the words,
And see if new blessings come naturally,
Or tune out the words completely,
And just enjoy the music and receiving loving energy.
May you feel loved and accepted exactly as you are.
May you be happy and free.
May you know that you are perfect with all your imperfections,
Perfectly imperfect.
May you walk in peace and joy all the days of your life.
May you know in your heart that all the challenges in your life are blessings in disguise.
May you be filled with contentment and gratitude,
Fulfillment and peace.
May you walk through life knowing that there is nothing that you can say or do that could make you unlovable.
May you feel a sense of freedom and abundance.
Know that you are always safe and protected.
You are always connected and loved,
No matter how far away you feel.
May you receive your heart's desires and know that they will all be fulfilled at the right time and in the right way.
May you be patient for life to unfold in its own time and its own way.
May you feel free to pursue your heart's desires.
May you know that you are always safe and supported.
May you have the strength,
Resilience,
And courage to weather the storms of life.
Know that no matter how dark things get,
There will be brighter days ahead.
Know that you are always blessed and held in love.
You are always safe.
No matter what happens in your life,
You are okay.
You are loved.
You are perfect,
Just for being you.
All your imperfections are what make you perfect,
Just as you are.
Whatever your connection to a higher power,
God,
The universe,
Love,
Know that you are always connected,
Always being guided,
And always loved unconditionally,
Even when it's beyond your understanding,
Even when you make mistakes.
Life can be hard.
Sometimes it can be really,
Really hard.
Know that these challenges also come from love.
You have the strength and resilience to handle whatever challenges come your way.
You are stronger than you could imagine.
And these challenges are here for you.
They come from love.
They serve to show you your own strength,
Your own resilience,
To guide you,
To free you,
To deepen your connection with the boundless love and compassion within you.
Be patient.
Trust your life as it unfolds.
You will be okay.
You are always okay.
Boundless,
Infinite,
Unconditional love is always with you and is always within you.
May you see the perfection and beauty of each moment as it unfolds with eyes of wonder.
May you meet every experience in your life with a kind and gentle heart.
May you meet every experience in your life with equanimity,
Balance,
And honesty.
Just love.
Be love.
You are never alone.
Always supported.
May you be at peace.
May you feel free.
May you be well.
Trust that everything is exactly as it's meant to be.
Everything's going according to plan.
It always has,
And it always will.
Relax into trust.
Relax into patience.
Relax into peace.
Relax into acceptance.
Relax into love.
Be.
Relax and enjoy.
The storms of life come.
The storms of life go.
You are the presence.
The awareness that witnesses it all.
That is it all.
Always here.
Life changes.
Experiences come and go.
But the one constant is you.
Eternal consciousness.
Always here.
Always experiencing.
Pure.
Infinite.
Boundless and free.
Infinite love itself.
Now take a few minutes to follow your heart.
If you feel cold,
See if any blessings of loving kindness of your own arise.
These could be blessings for yourself,
For your loved ones,
For someone in particular who is struggling,
Or for the world.
Feel free to use any practices that help you to connect with your heart.
A hand over your heart,
A soft smile,
Palms together in front of your heart.
You can say the blessing silently or out loud,
Or visualize specific people,
Or the world being filled with pink light.
Or just be silent and feel the energy of loving kindness emanating from within.
Just follow your heart and see what arises naturally.
Gently wrapping up your expression.
Beautiful.
Thank you for your practice today.
Trust and know that connecting with your natural state will flow through your intentions,
Words,
And actions and benefit all those you come in contact with.
I encourage you to make loving kindness not just a meditation practice,
But a way of being.
You can carry this energy with you in whatever way feels aligned.
You can choose one blessing to use as a mantra throughout the day,
Bring your attention to your heart area in conversation,
Or visualize a pink light.
Our state of being shapes our words and actions,
Which shapes our lives.
Feel free to come back to this meditation any time you want to connect with the energy of unconditional love within you.
It doesn't have to always be a formal seated meditation.
I like listening to guided meditations on a mindful walk.
Wishing you a beautiful day and sending you lots of love.
