Hey everybody,
So my name is Latha Poonamali and I use mindfulness and contemplative pedagogy as a way to build a better world.
So in this session,
I'm going to provide a universal loving kindness meditation in a very brief format.
So take a comfortable position.
You can sit or stand or even lie down.
I always say that.
I like that the sitting form,
As in like,
You know,
More than the active forms,
Which I like too,
Because it gives us permission to step out of the fast paced day that we have and take that moment for ourselves.
And now close your eyes if you wish,
If you feel comfortable,
Or you can,
You know,
Simply turn your gaze inwards.
And we always start with three deep breaths.
In my practice,
I find breath very accessible.
Inhale,
Exhale,
Inhale,
Exhale,
Inhale,
Exhale.
Make sure your shoulders are relaxed,
That your back is neutral,
Comfortable,
That you feel safe and secure in the embrace of Mother Earth.
And now imagine you are in a bubble,
We are all in this little COVID bubble.
So imagine you are in this beautiful,
Safe,
Loving bubble,
Like your love bubble.
And send yourself some loving kindness and acceptance and self compassion.
See how you feel about self compassion.
If you have difficulty,
Then imagine yourself as a small child,
Gives you a bit of distance and ability to be compassionate yourself.
Send yourself some loving kindness.
I accept myself as I am.
May I be happy.
May I be peaceful.
May I be free of pain.
May I be free of suffering.
May I be filled with loving kindness.
May I be the giver and the recipient of loving kindness.
May I be expansive and generous in my loving kindness.
And now take a moment to appreciate that loving kindness you've generated for yourself.
Because you are worthy,
You're deserving,
Because you are you.
And now imagine this bubble expanding over the universe,
Over all the people,
People we love,
People we hate,
People we don't know,
People that think like us,
People that don't think like us,
People that come from a similar background,
Speak the same language,
People that don't,
Foreigners,
Strangers,
All the people.
Expand the bubble to keep all of them.
And then expand the bubble to include all living beings,
All sentient beings,
Mother Earth was a living being who protects,
Nourishes us on the Milky Way and the galaxy and the universe.
Bring all of you.
You have like,
Imagine like you're born,
You can kind of like.
You have the capacity to hold this bubble and bring all of the universe into your love bubble,
Your safety bubble,
You feel secure,
Safe and alive and joyous and peaceful and loving.
And now let's send loving kindness to all of universe and all of the living beings.
May all beings be happy.
May all beings be peaceful.
May all beings be joyful.
May all beings be free of pain.
May all beings be free of suffering.
May all beings be love.
May all beings be filled with love.
May all beings be recipients and givers of loving kindness.
I hold the universe in this love bubble,
Safety bubble that I have.
Imagine receiving the same loving kindness from all of the universe,
All of the sentient beings.
The entire bubble is filled with love.
So if you share,
We are the web of life.
We are not separate from them.
They are not separate from us.
We are the web of life.
We are interdependent.
So hold that universe and hold that loving kindness in your heart and feel that warmth.
Feel where that warmth comes to you in your body.
How does your heart feel?
How does your face feel?
Like losing and comfortable?
Now we close with three breaths.
Inhale,
Love.
Exhale,
Kindness.
Inhale,
Gratitude.
Exhale,
Joy.
Inhale,
Safety.
Inhale,
Love.
Inhale,
Joy.
Inhale,
Safety.
Exhale,
Loving kindness.
Thank you for joining this practice.
I wish you would take this the rest of the day and whenever you need to.
Namaste.
