Engage in loving kindness (Metta) meditation, as it has the power to turn your day around and is scientifically proven to be beneficial, even if it initially seems ‘cheesy’.
Commit to a 10-minute loving kindness meditation session to integrate this practice into your daily routine.
Assume a comfortable position for meditation, whether on the floor, in a chair, standing, or even walking, whatever works best for you.
Begin your loving kindness meditation by focusing on an ’easy person’ or animal, such as a pet, a child, or a close friend, bringing their image or a felt sense clearly to mind.
Once focused, repeat the four loving kindness phrases: ‘May you be happy, May you be safe, May you be healthy and strong in your body, May you live with ease.’
Tweak your mental image to align with the sentiment of each phrase, for example, imagining a family hug for ‘May I be happy’ or a safe scenario for ‘May I be safe.’
Actively try to connect the words of the phrases to your mental image and allow the sentiment to deeply resonate within you.
If you don’t feel a specific way or if negative feelings arise during meditation, acknowledge them and continue with the practice, as it is an exercise in repetition.
Direct the loving kindness phrases towards yourself, picturing your current self or a childhood photo, or simply tuning into your sense of being a self.
Expand your loving kindness practice to include a mentor, benefactor, or role model, whether a family member, teacher, or historical figure.
Direct loving kindness towards a neutral person you see often but have no strong feelings about (e.g., a barista), as this is a good exercise for ’tuning up the mind.’
Extend loving kindness to a difficult person, remembering that this is not condoning their bad behavior, but rather acknowledging that happy and safe people tend to behave better.
When meditating on a difficult person, try to imagine sending benevolence from a ‘God perspective’ or a benevolent viewpoint looking down from a great height.
Finish your meditation by extending loving kindness to ‘all beings everywhere,’ either by visualizing the planet or feeling an omni-directional sense of benevolence somatically.
If you struggle with visualization, generate a ‘felt sense’ in your body instead of an image when focusing on a person or animal during meditation.
Subscribe to the paid Substack to join live guided meditation and Q&A sessions every Tuesday at 4 PM Eastern, featuring a teacher of the month.
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Sign up to attend live podcast tapings in person, such as the one on November 18th in New York City with Pete Holmes, which also benefits a meditation center.