This guided meditation is a variant on the classic loving-kindness practice and is tailored specifically to cultivate self-compassion.
So first,
Make sure you're in a comfortable position,
Sitting either on a meditation cushion or on a chair,
Something very comfortable where you can sit upright and still be relaxed.
Settle into your posture.
Notice how your body feels,
The sensation of your feet touching the floor or your bottom touching the cushion,
The weight of your arms and your head.
Be in your body right here,
Right now,
Fully inhabiting your lived experience.
Now shift your focus to your breathing,
The sense of inhaling and exhaling.
Whether you feel the breath most strongly at your nostrils or perhaps as your chest rises and falls.
We'll take a few moments just to rest with our breath,
Simple and easy.
Notice the peacefulness of being quiet,
Of resting as you just gently breathe.
And now I'd like you to bring to mind some aspect of your personality or perhaps some mistake you made,
A failure that has been bothering you lately.
Something that perhaps you've been criticizing yourself for or that has made you feel inadequate in some way.
Whatever this trait or action is,
Try to get in touch with your feelings about it.
What does it make you feel?
Sad?
Unwanted?
Isolated?
Inadequate?
See if you can locate the sensations of the emotions in your body.
Just a tightness in your throat,
A heaviness in your heart,
Tension in the shoulders.
Just allow them to be there instead of resisting these natural feelings that arise when we judge ourselves.
Just notice them.
Get in touch with how much suffering is caused by our self-judgment.
Our fears of not being good enough.
Some of our greatest suffering is caused at our own hands,
By the belief that somehow we should be perfect.
Take your hand or both hands if you prefer and place it gently over your heart in a calm,
Soft,
Comforting manner.
You might even want to rub a little soothing,
Reassuring circle.
See if you can sense your heart right now.
See if you can let your heart be moved by how difficult your emotional experience is when you think about this thing that makes you feel badly about yourself.
And now what we'll do is repeat some phrases,
Loving kindness phrases,
Designed to help you feel compassion for the fact that you are an imperfect being,
Feeling the warmth of your hand on your heart.
May I be safe.
May I be peaceful.
May I be kind to myself.
May I accept myself as I am.
May I be safe.
May I be peaceful.
May I be kind to myself.
May I accept myself as I am.
Repeat these phrases silently,
Really trying to get in touch with the intention behind the words,
The intention to offer yourself kindness,
Compassion,
And acceptance.
As your mind wanders,
Which it will inevitably do,
Just refresh the phrases in your mind.
May I be safe.
May I be peaceful.
May I be kind to myself.
May I be peaceful.
May I be safe.
May I be peaceful.
May I be kind to myself.
May I accept myself as I am.
May I be peaceful.
Remember that everyone feels inadequate in some way.
Everyone makes mistakes.
Everyone fails.
This is the human condition.
This is normal.
This is something we all share.
It's okay.
Now I'd like you to think of something that's been causing you suffering that you don't necessarily blame yourself for.
Maybe you have a loved one who is sick or something's going wrong in your life due to external circumstances.
Something that's very hard to bear,
Hard to deal with.
Give yourself compassion for this source of suffering.
Human suffering comes from two main sources.
From within ourselves not being as we want,
Or from our lives not being as we want them to be.
So,
Thinking of this aspect of your life that's causing you pain,
Repeat the following phrases.
May I be safe.
May I be peaceful.
May I be kind to myself.
May I accept my life as it is.
May I be safe.
May I be peaceful.
May I be kind to myself.
May I accept my life as it is.
Really feel your caring concern,
Your tenderness for yourself,
Struggling like so many others.
May I be safe.
May I be peaceful.
May I be kind to myself.
May I accept my life as it is.
Again,
Put your hand on your heart,
Or if it's been there the whole time,
Really feel your hand on your heart.
See if you can feel what the compassionate self feels like.
Maybe your heart is tingling,
Or feels warm,
Feels vibrant in some way.
Notice the good qualities of an open heart that's filled with compassion.
The beautiful feelings of tenderness,
Care,
Concern,
Kindness.
Notice the joy of compassion,
Of connectedness,
Of open heartedness.
This is also part of the human experience.
Thank yourself for being a good supportive friend to yourself in this practice today.
As we finish this meditation,
Think about when you could benefit from bringing in some self-compassion in your day-to-day life.
I encourage you to set an intention of taking a pause when you notice that you might be beating yourself up some,
And instead,
See if you can bring forth these wishes for yourself that you practiced and enjoyed here today.
Thank you for meditating with me.
May we all be well and safe,
Happy and free.
Take good care.
