Loving Kindness Meditation (Digital Audio File)

Compassion is one of the most respected spiritual states of mind and heart. It serves as the doorway into acceptance, forgiveness and peace of mind. Thanks to research from positive psychology we have proof that being compassionate is highly beneficial to our mind, body and relationships. Take a moment and bring to mind a time when you felt compassion for someone or for yourself. More than likely you will notice this memory accompanied by a good feeling or at least a heart-warming one. Given the positive impact that compassion has on our health, it is highly beneficial to experience this often. This is where the Loving Kindness Meditation comes in, (also known as LKM).

LKM consists of 4 simple steps and has been shown in numerous studies to be one of the most powerful methods to increase feelings of compassion and positivity. It is a foundational practice for letting go of the past, healing the heart and expanding our capacity to love. Additionally it is a dynamic practice that develops and strengthens our ability to love unconditionally, to see our similarities more-so than our differences and to lead with our hearts-open.

Here are a few of the powerful benefits you can expect when practicing the Loving Kindness Meditation:

• Relationships ~ Increase kindness, empathy, positivity towards others, and social connections, while decreasing feelings of isolation and loneliness.
• Emotions ~Increase positive emotions such as happiness and contentment while decreasing negative emotions and stress.
• Forgiveness ~Increase the ability to open your heart and let go of past hurts which are essential to forgiveness.
• Authentic Potential ~ Activate your prefrontal cortex, limbic system, and reward networks, all of which increase neural plasticity and allow you to make desired changes in your life. Activate your gamma waves, leading to increased self-awareness, perceptivity, creativity and problem solving skills.
  * Lutz, A., Brefczynski-Lewis, J., Johnstone, T., Davidson, R. (2008). Regulation of the neural circuitry of emotion by compassion: Effects of meditative expertise. PLoS ONE, 3(3), e1897

During this meditation you will be guided through the 4-Step Loving Kindness Meditation practice with the beauty of soothing music and sound.