Revisiting the good meditation.
For this practice you may choose to sit or lie down comfortably,
Being mindfully present to whatever is here right now and allowing the breath to soothe you.
Can you think back to a recent situation where you saw something that filled you with joy?
Perhaps you saw the smiling face of a dear one,
Playing children in the park,
The beauty of a flower,
Sky,
A landscape,
A sunset,
Or a work of art.
Imagining that you are seeing this right now,
What you saw then,
What colors,
Shapes,
Details touched you and filled you with joy.
What is happening now?
When you reconnect with this experience,
What are you noticing in your face,
Body,
What in the region of the heart?
And now remember a situation where you heard something that filled you with joy.
Perhaps the sound of laughter,
A singing bird,
Rolling waves or beautiful music.
Imagine you are hearing now what you heard then,
Exploring what it was in the sound that struck the chord of joy inside you,
Exploring the details of the experience.
What are you noticing now in the body and the heart?
Moving on now to an experience of smelling something that filled you with joy.
Perhaps the smell of morning coffee,
Of food,
A lovely perfume,
Or a fragrance in nature.
Imagine inhaling deeply and smelling now what you smelled then.
How does it affect you now?
In your nose?
In the rest of the body?
And now imagining in detail a situation where the sense of taste was the channel of joy.
Imagine tasting now what you tasted then and savoring it on your tongue.
What are you noticing in the mouth and in the rest of the body?
Exploring also a situation where the sense of touch was the source of joy.
It may be that you touch something warm or soft,
Stroke the hair of a loved one or the fur of your pet.
It may be that you are touched by feeling of warmth,
The cool breeze,
The grains of sand between your toes on the beach.
Imagine feeling now what you felt then.
What sensations are you noticing on your skin,
The rest of the body,
The region of the heart?
The five senses you just explored connect us with the outer world.
We also distinguish a sixth sense,
The mind,
With which we can think thoughts and feel emotions.
Can you remember a situation where this sense of your inner world was the channel of a joyful experience?
Perhaps there were some beautiful thoughts or insights,
An experience of Ah,
Now I understand.
Maybe you were touched by a metaphor,
Story or poem.
Imagine you experience now what you experienced then.
What was it that touched you?
And how does it affect you now when you reconnect with it?
Paradoxically,
This exercise can also stir up sadness and grief for what is lost or aching desire for what is missing.
Maybe this can be acknowledged and appreciated too as part of this exercise that may need a compassionate response.
You can spend as much time as you like revisiting the good and exploring the wonderful experience of joy.
We can find joy anywhere if we open the doors of our senses and take time to mindfully abide with it in the calmness of the soothing system.
Even in the midst of darkness something can lighten up that fills our hearts with joy.
You may close this practice by placing a hand on your heart,
Appreciating the capacity of the heart to be filled with joy and appreciating yourself for taking time for this practice.
