Bernie's guided meditation

 Looking Deeply, Healing - for 8/12/21 sitting 

- after Thich Nhat Hanh in Blooming of a Lotus

 

1.     Knowing I will grow old - knowing I am growing old - I breathe in.          

     Knowing and accepting that I cannot escape old age, I breathe out.

 

2.   Knowing I will get sick, that I cannot know when or how sickness will affect me, 

            I breathe in.

      Knowing and accepting that I cannot escape getting sick, I breathe out.

 

3.   Knowing I will die, truly believing I* will actually die, I breathe in.

      Knowing and accepting that I* cannot escape dying, I breathe out.

 

4.   Knowing that one day, and more likely on many days, I will have to abandon the 

      things that I cherish today, and that there is no way to know when these days will 

      come, I breathe in.

      Knowing and accepting that I cannot escape having to abandon all that I cherish, I

      breathe out.

 

5.   Knowing that my choices and actions are my only belongings, all and every one of 

      them, I breathe in. 

      Knowing that I cannot escape the consequences of my choices and actions, I 

      breathe out.

 

6.   Determined to live my days deeply, fully in mindfulness, I breathe in. 

      Seeing the joy and gifts of living mindfully, I breathe out.

 

7.   Vowing to offer joy each day to my beloved and to all beings, I breathe in. 

      Vowing to ease the pain of my beloved and all beings each day, I breathe out.

 

 

(* I didn't use this in the meditation but during the reading I thought about substituting "this body-mind” for “I”) 

 

 

                                                - Bernie Shore