Dilute the Heart's Poisons

(waves splashing) This next skill is one of our most important. So snuggle in, big deliberate inhale, exhale, let a huuuuh happen. Soft in the belly. Easy at the back of the heart. Feel the slightest brightness in the heart center.

You're going to need it. Let the elbows be heavy, palms be open and finally, alignment of the skull. So tune in. I'm hoping this is getting easier and easier. Find your heart center and begin to feel the movement of the breath.

Eyes are closed or softly focused out in front of you. And the request here in this next skill is do your best to let someone with whom you might have a disharmonious relationship come into focus. And as you do this it might not feel safe to let them feel like they're sitting right up in front of you. So if you need to, sort of, put them a hundred yards back or even kind of under a glass jar, it's okay. If even bringing this person into your framework causes a great amount of stress, then step one is just simply do your best to let this person be present and come back to the mantra of may I be well, may I be happy.

Okay, so if it's too much to have them in your focus already stay with the mantra of self-care, okay. Do your best to simply self-soothe and offer protection and offer well-being to yourself. That's phase one. Yes, okay, so stay with that. If your breath can maintain a quality of easy rhythm and you feel ready, phase two is do your best with as much heartfelt sincerity as you can summon because even this person, no matter what your relationship is with him or her, she or he, too, desires to be happy and free.

And so can we allow ourselves to assist them on their journey. And so inhale and exhale, may you be happy, may you be free. Inhale and as you exhale, may you be happy, may you be free. Let your hands feel soft. Let your skull feel light.

Do your best to really keep the wish, in the realm, in the region of the heart. If it comes up into the mental realm it can be difficult. Do your best to really allow this to be a heartfelt wish and maybe even allow yourself to feel curious in wonderment. Just a few more moments, we're at the beginning of developing these skills and we don't want them to feel like chores. We want them to be helpful, not harmful.

Last few beats, may you be happy and may you be free. Okay, at the end of the next mantra relax the effort. Rest and, if necessary, almost like a chaser if you're feeling quite troubled if it would help, just bring your mind back to your easy, affectionate loved one. (puffing breath) Nice. So today, let this be your practice because while it would be wonderful if the only people we ever thought on were the ones we loved and adored, generally, our mind, our attention goes towards those with whom we have difficulty.

There's just a natural attraction to the disharmony, the pain. And so, as you find yourself thinking on these difficult relationships, these complicated relationships, these troublesome situations, which may be quite personal or very far away. Try it, practice. Just practice changing the tune of your heart to wishing this being well, freedom, happiness and just see what happens. Thank you.