Kind Mind

So just taking a moment to settle in to your meditation posture. And when you're ready, just allowing your eyes to gently close. And now just bringing all of your attention to the feeling of the breath moving in your body, that gentle rhythm. And being with each inhale and each exhale as they flow in. And out.

And can you begin to bring an attitude of warmth and kindness to the sensations of the breath,? Almost as if you were breathing kindness into and out from the sensations of breathing. Almost as if you could bathe the breath in warmth, kindness, and ease. And if the mind wanders, just notice what happens when the mind wanders, how you respond. And do you become frustrated and impatient? And do you have any sense of aggression towards the mind? Do you kind of rough handle it and yank it back to the breath? So this can be one of the most powerful points in meditation, to cultivate a kinder mind. So whenever you notice the mind has wandered, see if you can just take a moment to really appreciate and absorb that this is a moment of waking up.

It's a little bit like having an inner smile at the fact that you're awake again and no longer caught up in the mind. And then with gentleness, with patience, just guide the mind back gently to the sensations of the breath. So just continuing to practice like that. If the mind wanders, just kindly bringing it home to the present moment via the breath. Just seeing if you can saturate the whole meditation with this kind of ease, patience and kindness towards yourself in the mind.

So if it feels a little bit tricky or unnatural to bring kindness to yourself in the mind in this way, don't worry. Many people who aren't used to this kind of practice find it a little clunky at first. So if you find it tricky, try to be patient with yourself and where you're at. Or if we can continue to bring this attitude of kindness and compassion into our meditation, it can really transform our whole practice. It brings with it more ease, lightness and joy.

And not only that, but the way we train in meditation, of course, ripples out into our life. So if we can be less harsh and impatient, less judgmental with ourselves in meditation, then of course we're going to be more kind, patient and less judgmental with ourselves and others in life. And we can become islands of sanity and peace in a frantic world. So as this practice now comes to a close, just take a deep breath in. And breathing, out wriggling fingers.

Blinking open the eyes. And just noticing how you're feeling after bathing yourself in kindness and awareness. Well, thank you so much for your practice today. Take care.