Loving-Kindness Meditation
A guided mindfulness practice to encourage a kind and gentle attitude towards yourself and the world around you.
Our human heart is amazing, pumping gallons of blood throughout our bodies every minute, without us lifting a finger. Thump, thump, thump. Even when we are sleeping, our powerful hearts keep us alive. What a miracle. And while are hearts are beating day in and day out, we often can feel disconnected from the true essence of our hearts—our own innate goodness, kindness, and gentleness. We get caught up in the daily struggles and stresses of life and our never-ending to-do list leaving us feeling thirsty for something we can’t quite name.
What am I missing, you might ask? You are doing everything you can and yet you feel tired, burnt out. Or maybe you have suffered a huge loss and are not able to do anything. The gerbil wheel of life has stopped, and you feel may simply feel stuck or lost. Add in the world’s troubles and it is not hard to understand that we may avoid anything that will upset up or cause us to feel pain in our hearts.
This ancient mindfulness meditation practice arose in response to what is an inescapable part of our human experience—suffering. Many find practicing it comforting, soothing, and healing during difficult times. And difficulties show up every day so basically, you can practice this meditation at any time. It can be a place of refuge, of pausing, of taking a time out to unplug from the world and then plug back in.
It is called Loving-Kindness or simply Kindness Practice. Let me say right off the bat, that this practice is not about you forcing yourself to feel loving or kind towards yourself, anyone else, or even the world. Not at all. But also know this. Your heart is designed for goodness, caring, and kindness. We are all born with these innate essences. Consider this practice a gentle invitation to touch back into this heartful space inside.
As you listen to this meditation, I guide you in offering phrases or well wishes of kindness and care. You might think of these wishes as the kind you offer someone when they take a trip or celebrate their birthday. You can follow my guidance or offer your own set of phrases. Or, you can choose to simply listen along.
You can’t get this practice wrong. Whatever you feel, is what you feel. Again, we are not conjuring up unicorns and rainbows here. We are simply touching into qualities of the heart that we all have as human beings and offering these qualities to ourselves and others in a way that my help you feel a renewed sense of connection to yourself and the world around us.
You might set an intention to do this practice daily for a week to explore what unfolds. Each time you practice, you may hear something new or feel different sensations in your heart. Invite in your curiosity. Invite in your skepticism. Invite it all in and hit play. You can always hit pause when needed or return another time. This is your journey.
May you be safe and protected
May you be well and thrive
May you be happy
May you be peaceful
xoxo Mary