Loving Kindness Towards the Body

Welcome to our Inside LA Guided Meditations.

I'm Trudy.

Years ago,

About really a long time ago,

Maybe 30 years ago,

I was sitting a silent meditation retreat at the Insight Meditation Society in Barrie,

Massachusetts.

And a monk,

I guess,

Was leading the retreat.

I don't remember if he was visiting just for that day or if he was leading the whole retreat.

So many retreats,

They kind of blur after a while.

And he gave a meditation instruction that at first I really had trouble not giggling out loud because it seemed so silly.

But then,

You know,

You're there in the retreat and I was actually following his guidance and doing what he was saying.

And it really worked.

It was kind of surprisingly beautiful.

So it's a very simple way of offering loving-kindness to our bodies.

And it's a good thing to do at the beginning of a meditation because it helps us relax.

And it's a good thing to do in general because we have lots of fears and judgments about our bodies.

So I think it also helps us have a little bit more love and acceptance,

At least,

For our bodies,

Just as they are.

We have so many images and ideas about what they're supposed to look like.

And at the time,

They can be very tormenting for us.

Like,

I remember when I was 16,

I remember like squeezing my thighs all the time to see if they were too fat.

I mean,

It sounds,

But when you're a teenager,

You do things like this.

You know,

If you're a boy,

You inspect your chest at age 14 to see if there's,

You know,

Bushy chest hair coming.

And it's not going to come for quite a while,

Usually.

But do you know what I mean?

You do these things and you develop these comparing,

Objectifying ways of relating to the body in terms of body image,

Let alone body health or how it feels,

Aches and pains,

Whatever.

Body abilities that vary for each of us.

For some of us,

Getting up the stairs is really hard,

Like climbing a mountain or something.

Others of us just,

You know,

Two at a time,

Fly up those steps.

So beginning to develop a relationship from within is what mindfulness practice is about,

From the sense of just our own being in this body.

And what we'll do this morning is suffusing that mindfulness and awareness of inhabiting our own body with some tenderness and love.

And then,

Of course,

Just always,

If I'm guiding a meditation,

The invitation is to do whatever you feel like.

Do your own practice,

Ignore it or follow as you wish.

So let's sit together.

So taking a few deep breaths to settle into the body,

Letting the attention drop from the head,

Where it's usually lodged,

Just gently moving the attention like a falling leaf.

From the head into the neck and shoulders,

Hands,

Chest,

Back,

Belly.

Belly,

Hips,

Buttocks,

Thighs,

Knees,

Lower legs,

Feet.

And just breathing into the whole body.

And so this practice that the monk taught us,

This practice of metta,

Our loving-kindness for the body,

Is not one that I've seen anywhere else.

And so bear with me and yourself if you think it's silly.

Just try it out if you like it.

And we begin with the feet,

Just bringing attention to the feet and offering this metta,

This loving-kindness.

May my feet be happy.

May my toes be happy.

May the soles of my feet and my heels be happy.

You can repeat the phrase silently to yourself and just notice what it's like to do this,

To appreciate your feet,

All they do for you.

And wish for their happiness.

May my feet be happy.

May my ankles be happy.

May my calves and shins,

My whole lower leg,

Be happy.

May my knees be happy and strong.

May my thighs be happy,

Free from judgment.

May they be happy.

May my hips be happy.

You can add a word if you want,

May they be flexible,

May they be at ease.

Appreciating our whole legs,

Our hips.

May our buttocks be happy,

Our genitals,

Our whole bottoms,

Be relaxed at ease.

May our bellies be soft,

Relaxed,

Happy.

And may our lower back be free from tension.

May it be calm and happy.

May our spine be happy,

Middle back and upper back be relaxed and happy.

May our chest be happy,

At ease,

Open and happy.

May our hands be free from tension,

Soft and happy.

May our wrists and forearms be happy.

And may our elbows be peaceful and happy.

May our upper arms,

Our whole arms and hands be appreciated and happy.

And may our shoulders be happy.

May any tension held there dissolve.

May our necks and shoulders be happy.

And may my head be happy,

My face relaxed at ease.

May my scalp and hair,

May my head rest in happiness.

And you can continue sweeping the attention through the body and wishing every body part well and happy.

And when your attention wanders,

Just coming back to that or continue with your own practice,

Whatever that may be.

Was Wishing for our whole body to be free from discomfort,

Soreness or pain.

May this body be at ease,

Safe and protected,

Healthy and strong.

May this body be at ease,

Safe and protected,

Healthy and strong.

May this body be at ease,

Safe and protected,

Healthy and strong.

May this body be at ease,

Safe and protected,

Healthy and strong.

May this body be at ease,

Safe and protected,

Healthy and strong.

May this body be at ease,

Safe and protected,

Healthy and strong.

May this body be at ease,

Safe and protected,

Healthy and strong.

May this body be at ease,

Safe and protected,

Healthy and strong.

May this body be at ease,

Safe and protected,

Healthy and strong.

May this body be at ease,

Safe and protected,

Healthy and strong.