Sitting comfortably or laying on your back,
Whichever works for you,
You can gently close your eyes or soften your gaze and begin to settle in,
Just noticing the natural rhythm of your breathing.
Begin with a few cleansing breaths,
Taking a long,
Slow,
Deep inhale in through the nostrils,
Exhaling out slowly through your mouth,
Emptying all the breath,
Releasing any energy that doesn't serve you.
Again,
Long,
Slow,
Deep breath in through the nose,
And exhaling out.
Always remembering that the breath is the anchor of your awareness.
Notice how much calmer you are,
Just how peaceful your breathing can be in your presence when you begin to connect with yourself,
With the sounds and the sensations around you.
And from this place,
We can also begin to connect with our heart center.
We can begin to cultivate loving kindness.
We all have this within us,
Loving kindness that is unconditional and open,
Gentle,
Supportive.
Loving kindness is a natural opening of a compassionate heart for ourselves and for others.
It's simply a wish that everyone be happy.
So from this position,
Begin to picture in your mind's eye or sense what it feels like when you think of a person who is close to you,
Someone that you feel a great amount of love towards.
Notice how this love feels in your heart when you think of this person.
What do you feel?
What sensations are around your heart?
Maybe you feel a sense of warmth or openness or tenderness.
So continue breathing and focus on those feelings as you visualize or sense your loved one.
And as you breathe out,
Imagine that you are extending a pure white golden light that holds your warm feelings from the center of your heart.
Feeling that the golden light reaches out to your loved one,
Bringing him or her peace and happiness.
And at the same time,
Silently recite these phrases to them.
May you have joy and happiness.
May you be free from suffering.
May you ride the waves of life.
And may you have peace no matter what you experience.
May you have joy and happiness.
May you be free from suffering.
May you ride the waves of life.
May you have peace no matter what you are given.
So just continue to silently recite these beautiful offerings of joy and happiness,
Of freedom from suffering,
Remembering to extend the golden light to your loved one from your heart center.
And feeling with all of your heart that you wished your loved one truly to be happy and free.
Think of a time when this person that you love so much was suffering.
Maybe they experienced an illness or an injury.
Maybe it was a difficult time in a relationship or they failed at something.
Notice how you feel when you think of his or her suffering.
Continue to visualize your loved one as you breathe.
And imagine that you are still extending this golden light that's enveloping them from your heart center.
It's easing their pain and their suffering.
Extending this light out even further to them during each exhalation with that strong heartfelt wish.
May you have joy and happiness.
May you be free from suffering.
May you have joy and happiness.
May you be free from suffering.
And now contemplate a time when you yourself have suffered.
Perhaps you experienced a conflict with someone that you care about or did not succeed in something you wanted or were physically ill.
How do you feel when you think of your own suffering?
And so just as we wish for our loved one's suffering to end,
We wish that our own suffering would end too.
We may also envision our own pain and suffering leaving us so that we too may experience happiness.
So visualizing yourself as you breathe,
Sensing yourself.
Imagine that the golden light that's emanating from your heart center is engulfing you.
It's all encompassing like a cocoon or an orb and it's emanating from your heart easing your suffering.
And with each exhalation,
Feel the light emanating within you with the strong heartfelt wish that you be free from suffering.
And you can silently recite to yourself.
May I be free from this suffering.
May I have joy and happiness.
May I ride the waves of life.
And may I have inner peace no matter what I am given.
May I have joy and happiness.
May I be free from suffering.
May I ride the waves of life.
And may I have inner peace no matter what I am given.
So just continuing a silent prayer to yourself and if you feel so inclined,
You can bring one or both palms of your hands to your heart center.
May I have joy and happiness.
May I be free from suffering.
Notice how this feels in your heart center now.
What kind of sensations do you feel?
And now moving your attention to someone in your life that you have difficulty with.
Maybe it's a parent you disagree with or an ex-partner or spouse or coworker that you don't get along with.
And although you may have negative feelings towards this person,
Think of how this person may have suffered in his or her own life.
This person has also had conflicts with loved ones or has dealt with failures or maybe has suffered an illness.
Can you think of a situation in which this person may have suffered?
And can you notice your heart center now when you think of this person or imagine them?
Does your heart center feel different?
Don't judge whatever answers come up,
Just label them.
Notice.
How do you feel?
And if you can continue to visualize this person as you breathe and imagine that you are extending the golden light from your heart center to him or to her and that your golden light is easing their suffering.
Bring this light out to them during each exhalation with the strong heartfelt wish that they should be free from suffering.
And just begin to see if this wish can be as strong as the wish for your own or a loved one's suffering to be relieved.
Just over time,
Like a muscle,
This level of compassion can be strengthened.
So silently reciting to him or her,
May you have joy and happiness.
May you be free from suffering.
May you ride the waves of life and may you have peace no matter what you are given.
May you have joy and happiness.
May you be free from suffering.
May you ride the waves of life and may you have peace no matter what you are given.
And notice now how your heart center feels.
Did the sensations change towards this person even slightly?
And allow this person to thank you for your kindness towards them as you begin to turn your attention now to a heartfelt wish for all other beings on the planet suffering to be relieved.
Can you imagine or sense yourself slowly lifting up from the cushion or the floor,
From your bed,
The chair,
Wherever you are,
Slowly lifting up and floating away above the rooftops,
The tree tops,
Above the topography of the town or city or rural area that you are in,
Hovering above the coastlines of the continent and floating higher and higher than the clouds?
And you can begin to see the curvature of the earth as you look back and see the beautiful blue and green planet that we call home.
And as you reflect back on earth,
Let that golden light radiate from your heart center and know that just as you wish to have peace and happiness and be free from suffering,
So do all sentient beings on this planet.
From up here,
There is no conflict,
There are no borders.
So make this wish for everyone on this beautiful planet as you extend your golden light.
May we have joy and happiness.
May we be free from suffering.
May we ride the waves of life and may we have peace on earth in our lifetime.
May we have joy and happiness.
May we be free from suffering.
May we ride the waves of life.
May we have peace on earth in our lifetime.
So bask here in the joy of this open-hearted wish to ease the suffering of all people and just see how this attempt brings joy and happiness and compassion into your heart at this very moment.
When you're ready,
You can slowly begin to float back.
Watch as the green and blue planets begin to get closer and closer as you float downwards through the clouds,
Over the oceans,
Along the coastlines,
Over your hometown and the rooftops and the trees and slowly back to your position from where you started.
And you can feel that your muscles are relaxed,
Your energy has been revitalized and your spirit is fresh,
Your mind is clear,
Your heart center is connected.
And you know that no matter what or who you have to face in your life,
You can do so with love in your heart.
And so becoming conscious of your breath,
Your surroundings,
You can wiggle your toes and your fingers.
You can open your eyes or widen your gaze and adjust your position.
And you can feel free to sit in this space for a while.
And you can be free to just be.
Just be love.
