On this day of candy hearts, here’s my real valentine to you, my friends in the blogosphere: one of my favorite meditations, from Jack Kornfield’s book "A Path with Heart: A guide through the perils and promises of spiritual life".
May I be filled with loving-kindness.
May I be well.
May I be peaceful and at ease.
May I be happy.
The directions:
Recite these inwardly directed towards yourself. You start with yourself because without loving yourself it is almost impossible to love others. You can picture yourself as a young and beloved child, or sense yourself as you are now, held in a heart of loving-kindness. Let the feelings arise with the words. Adjust the words and images so that you find the exact phrases that best open your heart of kindness. Repeat the phrases again and again, letting the feelings permeate your body and mind. Practice this meditation until this sense of loving-kindness for yourself grows.
When you feel ready, you can gradually expand the focus to include others: a benefactor (someone who truly cared for you), friends, community members, neighbors, people everywhere, animals, the whole earth, and all beings. You can even experiment with including the most difficult people in your life, wishing that they too be filled with loving-kindness and peace.
From my heart to yours: may you be filled with loving-kindness, may you be well, may you be peaceful and at ease, may you be happy.
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How could including "loving-kindness" impact your work to make a difference?
Before specializing as a professional coach in 2004, I spent more than a decade in leadership, management and program development for state and local government and non-profit organizations. Now I get to help leaders and teams have more clarity and ability to stand up for what's important in their work and in their organizations. Working with me, leaders and teams find more meaning and purpose, feel happier and more confident, navigate change and conflict, and work together better.
I really liked your post Hanna. I know that I am on a continuous journey to convince people in positions of management that everthing they want can be attained if they will have the greatest care and respect for people.
Places where I have managed and applied that, have flourished with minimal effort on my part. Even before I would ask for something to be done, the workers were on the way to doing it.
We had learned to not only care for the customer, but to work for one another.
Gary,
Thanks for visiting and sharing your thoughts!
I’m struck by the very words you used to describe your experience, and how true that the simplest acts of kindness and respect can have the most profound impact. It’s a case that we could all take to heart.
It’s there, in our daily actions not only in our reflective or meditative times, where the rubber really hits the road.
Thanks again for your comments, and hope you’ll visit again!