One of the key practices of yoga and key lessons in life is learning to move from the heart. When we are in balance we live and move from this space through the element of Vayu (wind). This all starts from within!
Over the coming weeks, we are going to share some beautiful heart practices that are all designed to ignite love, kindness, and compassion for ourselves and also for others. To begin we want to share a beautiful practice called Loving Kindness.
This journal contains:
- What is Loving Kindness?
- What are the benefits?
- How to practice Loving Kindness
- A short guided Audio Meditation
Opening to love is joyful, it lightens what’s heavy, it's affectionate and caring, it's also strong and humane, and it joins together the heart, mind, and spirit.
Loving Kindness
The intention of this meditation is to expand kindness and compassion to ourselves and others. The practice shows us that we really aren’t that different from one another by seeing ourselves and others through a different lens. It is an invitation to experience and practice love, kindness, empathy, and compassion. We cannot fully experience love, compassion and empathy for others unless we experience it first for ourselves.
Loving-kindness is a beautiful practice and the science can’t be denied.
Here are 5 reasons why you should give it a try:
- Studies have found this practice increases positive emotions and decreases negative ones
- Increases vagal tone which increases positive emotions & feelings of social connection
- Decreases the severity and frequency of migraines & chronic pain
- Helps to reduce symptoms of PTSD
- Increases empathy and emotional intelligence…. The list goes on
Loving kindness teaches us to see and feel the goodness and beauty we have in ourselves and in others. It can also show up the spaces where we don’t feel love or feel negative about ourselves or others.
It is in this space where we can hold ourselves, the heartbreak, bitterness or resentment in loving-kindness as well. Over time with the practice of loving-kindness meditation comes self-compassion, empathy for others, focused attention and emotional intelligence.
HOW TO PRACTICE - LOVING KINDNESS
Prepare your space for practice.
- Get your comfortable meditation cushions and cleanse your space with our grounding aromatic spray or ritual kit.
- Get comfortable by preparing your meditation cushions. Getting comfortable to practice is an act of loving kindness in itself. We recommend getting set up with one our meditation bundles. Find out the best meditation cushion for your practice in our Meditation Cushion Guide.
Prepare the body mind and heart to be more receptive to loving kindness
- Use the sound of a tingsha or singing bowl to signal to the body and mind that it is time to start practice.
- Begin by setting an intention to be open to the practice of loving kindness.
- By offering yourself love and compassion it allows you to see more clearly and move from the heart. This kindness becomes part of who you are and how you move through life with kinder understanding and more forgiving of others. It naturally has a ripple effect to all those you come in contact with.
- When ready you can extend this loving kindness to others you hold love and care for, those who challenge you, your community and the entire world.
Reflect and journal
After each practice we recommend that you take a few minutes to reflect and journal. See what came up for you. How you felt before and after practice. Writing down your feelings will allow you to dive deeper into the areas you want to work on and the ground you are making.
This practice along with others including yoga helped me to accept myself as I am and also start to feel the love again :)
To truly experience this wonderful meditation we need to feel, practice and experience it. A short version of the practice is included below:
An essential part of this practice is to discard the negative self-judgment of yourself and of others. As you practice this meditation there is a release of unhelpful thoughts and impressions (samkaras). When we replace these negative patterns with positive impressions of love and kindness there is a beautiful healing that takes place from the inside out. As you release judgment you are able to move more freely from the wisdom of the heart.
It is our firm belief that real love comes from the inside first and this practice can help us do just that.
Lokāḥ Samastāḥ Sukhino Bhavantu Auṁ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ
May all beings everywhere be happy and free from suffering, and may the thoughts, words and actions of my own life contribute in some way to happiness and freedom for all. Aum, peace, peace, peace.
Angela Knight
Calm Buddhi Ma
Yoga, Meditation and Yoga Nidra Teacher