Class 3

Forgiveness and Loving Kindness

One of the biggest things you can do for
yourself, for your own health, is to forgive
yourself and others.
Hanging on to pain and hurt from the past only
takes away from our current and future
happiness and wellbeing.
Its definitely easier said than done, but just
learning to forgive quickly can save us from the
stress of staying angry about what are, in the
bigger picture, usually minor offenses.
Using the loving kindness meditation can help you
open your mind and heart to everyone around
you, making it easier to forgive yourself and
others.
It can make you more compassionate to all people,
more patient with their mistakes and your own,
sometimes helping you avoid stressful situations
altogether.
Being able to forgive and let go can lessen feelings
of stress, anger and anxiety, lower blood pressure,
make relationships healthier, give you an overall
sense of well-being and minimize feelings of
depression (Mayo Clinic, 2011).
Use diaphragmatic breathing to get into the
meditative state.
Imagine a person you have a great deal of love for
and concentrate on sending out all of your
positive energy and love to that person.
Start to imagine those positive feelings radiating
out to people you know who are hurting.
Imagine these feelings of love expanding out to all
the hurting people in the community, the state,
the world (Dacher, 2006).
Use this as your new daily meditation, 15 30
minutes per day.
**Practice ** Questions

Recommended Reading:
Integral Health: The Path to Human Flourishing by
Elliot Dacher explains the loving kindness and several
other meditations for further insight and self-
awareness.
Web Reading:
8 Basic Kinds of Meditation (And Why You Should
Meditate On Your Heart) presented by the Institute
of for Applied Meditation give a great overview of
some more simple forms of meditation. Available at:
http://www.iam-u.org/index.php/8-basic-kinds-of-
meditation-and-why-you-should-meditate-on-your-
heart
Dacher, E. (2006). Integral health: The path to human
flourishing. Laguna Beach, CA: Basic Health
Publications.
Mayo Clinic. (2011). Forgiveness: Letting go of
grudges and bitterness. Retrieved August 5, 2014,
from http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-
living/adult-health/in-depth/forgiveness/art-
20047692?pg=1