Congratulate yourself for being brave and honoring your self-care.
Mindfulness includes awareness of the full spectrum of emotions,
Thoughts,
And senses.
Attending to matters of the heart may be the most worthwhile yet difficult.
As the author Paulo Calo wrote,
You will never be able to escape from your heart so it's better to listen to what it has to say.
This brings us to heartfulness.
Heartfulness is another word for loving kindness or metta and it can include practices for cultivating kindness,
Compassion,
Gratitude,
Empathy,
Forgiveness,
And peace.
Heartfulness,
Part of mindfulness,
Is purposely having kind thoughts or wishing good things for yourself and others.
With heartfulness,
We're bringing attention to the sensation of well-wishing.
This is a way to balance out the brain's natural negativity bias.
In mindfulness,
How we pay attention to the present moment,
Our attitude,
Is just as important as paying attention.
Are we paying attention in a curious,
Compassionate way?
Heartfulness supports mindfulness by helping us respond to difficult situations and relate to ourselves and others with compassion,
Which subdues the judgment and storytelling mind of the inner critic.
In heartfulness,
We send wishes for things that are desirable for all beings,
Such as happiness,
Health,
And peace.
Those are some of the most common.
I like to choose whatever wishes feel most appropriate for me in the moment.
So perhaps safety,
Connection,
Hope,
Love,
Support,
Worthiness,
Strength,
Clarity,
Etc.
All emotions are welcome in mindfulness,
So whether the practice feels heartwarming or unnatural or forced or anything else,
There's so much value in setting an intention and gently,
Non-judgmentally,
Observing our present moment experience.
As we do the practice,
Feel free to change the wording of any of the heartfulness wishes to whatever feels right for you.
To start this heartfulness practice,
I invite you to get into a mindful body posture that feels most comfortable for you.
Relaxed while alert or upright,
Not uptight.
Allowing any tension in the body to be released,
If possible,
Or allowing what remains to just be as it is.
If it feels comfortable,
You can close your eyes or you can direct a soft gaze to a fixed point.
If it feels comfortable,
I invite you to put one or both hands on the heart or wherever helps you feel connected.
Some people like one hand on the heart,
One on the belly,
Maybe a hand on the forehead.
You choose whatever feels right for you.
Knowing that in mindfulness,
We want to do what we feel fully resourced to do.
You get to choose if it feels right to just dip a toe into the practice or dive in completely.
And now allow the sound of the bell to lead us into the heartfulness practice.
Let's start by setting an intention.
Is your intention for more openness,
Compassion,
Curiosity,
Or anything else?
Once you've set your intention,
Begin by bringing to mind someone you care about.
It could be a friend,
Relative,
Or even a pet.
Imagine this someone doing something they enjoy.
And as you imagine them doing something enjoyable,
Just bring attention to what you sense in your heart.
No need to judge yourself for what's there or not there.
And now we're going to send that someone kind wishes.
I'll say each wish out loud and you can repeat the wishes silently in your mind.
Just continuing each wish until you hear the next one.
I wish for you to feel connected.
I wish for you to feel supported.
I wish for you to be hopeful.
Imagine this someone receiving your wishes instantly.
They begin to savor these wishes.
What do you sense in your heart?
What body sensations,
Emotions,
And thoughts are you experiencing?
Allowing this image of this someone to fade.
Bring your attention to the sensation of breathing.
And now bring your attention to yourself.
Perhaps it might be easy to imagine yourself as a child or at any other age.
Imagine yourself doing something you enjoy.
What do you sense in your heart?
And now with this image of yourself in mind,
We are going to send kind wishes to ourselves.
I'll say each wish out loud and you can repeat the wishes silently in your mind.
Continuing each wish until you hear the next one.
I wish for me to feel connected.
I wish for me to feel supported.
I wish for me to be hopeful.
Can you allow yourself to savor these kind wishes?
What sensations,
Emotions,
And thoughts are you experiencing?
Allowing the image of yourself to fade.
Bring your awareness to the sensation of breathing.
Now bring your attention to your community or a specific group or even the world as a whole.
See if you can imagine this large group to whom you will send heartfulness wishes.
What do you sense in your heart?
I will say each wish out loud and you can repeat the wishes silently in your mind.
Just continuing each wish until you hear the next one.
I wish for you to feel connected.
I wish for you to feel supported.
I wish for you to be hopeful.
What sensations,
Emotions,
And thoughts are you experiencing?
Allowing this image to fade.
Bring your attention to the sensation of breathing.
And as we close this practice,
Take a moment to acknowledge yourself for honoring yourself with self-care.
An empty lantern provides no light.
Self-care is the fuel that allows your light to shine brightly.
