10-Minute Guided Meditation: Self-Love | SELF

Loving-Kindness Meditation

Mano guides a loving-kindness meditation, an ancient practice intended to cultivate kindness, acceptance, warmth, and tenderness toward yourself.

1. Settle into a comfortable position—seated, lying down, or standing. If seated, keep your spine upright but relaxed and rest your hands comfortably.
2. Take a deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth, then let your shoulders relax. There’s no need to control your breathing or force your mind to be quiet.
3. Notice your body and the sounds around you without needing to judge or explain them. Bring awareness to your heart.
4. Visualize yourself as you are now, or as a child. Silently repeat these wishes, recalling a time when you experienced each feeling:
   • “May I be happy.”
   • “May I be safe.”
   • “May I be healthy.”
   • “May I live with ease.”
5. Notice how the phrases and the feelings they evoke register in your body. Rest with any sense of loving-kindness or tenderness that arises.
6. To finish, release the technique, notice how your body feels, and consider carrying that kindness toward yourself into the rest of your day. Gently open your eyes when ready.

Presenter/source: Mano (Manoj) Dias, meditation teacher and co-founder of Open; SELF.