Meditations For Healing

Because who doesn't need some of that?

Something that I feel many of us could use more of in our lives is meditation. I personally have fallen off a bit, and I certainly feel the negative effects, so I’m making an effort to return to it. It’s important to have that internal space, and the rough patches can serve as a good reminder of that.

A few people rather near and dear to me have been asking for some meditation techniques that could help them rough the storms they’re currently in. I figured while I’m getting back into practice, I would share a few meditations that have been rather useful to me as a healer and a human being. The first four are staples for Buddhists, the last two are more niche. All of them are lovely, if you ask me.

And for clarification, these are instructions, not scripts.

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Shikantaza (just sitting):

The background:

This is the fundamental practice of the Sōtō school of the Zen tradition. This is a form of Zazen (seated meditation), but is a very unique form of it. Whereas most meditation is about concentration, Shikantaza is about surrendering method altogether.

The meditation:

Sit upright with your spine straight, as if your head were being pulled up by a string. You can sit in a chair or cross-legged on the floor—whatever makes you happy. Rest your left hand in your right, lightly touch the thumbs, and keep them beneath the navel.

Like this.

Relax your eyes and point them to the ground, and drop all expectations.
You’ve arrived. This is where you just let everything be and “just sit.” No focusing on anything, no not focusing on anything.

Let all thoughts, sounds, itches, and sensations come and go as they please. Don’t hold onto anything or push it away. If you have a thought or a thought about your other thoughts, let go of that as well. The more you meditate, the more you’ll see thinking as something that happens to you rather than something to be identified with. Trungpa Rinpoche put it best:

"You might have a thought of assassinating your guru, or you might want to make lemonade and eat cookies. A large range of thinking goes on, but in terms of sitting practice, it does not matter whether you have monstrous thoughts or benevolent thoughts, sinful or virtuous thoughts—any thought is just thinking. So please don't be shocked by your thoughts, and don’t think that any thought deserves a gold medal."

So whatever comes by, don’t judge, don’t push away judgment. Let whatever happens go on its own and allow it without participation. Treat your awareness like the sky and everything passing through it as clouds.

You can do this for as long as you’d like. Preferably, set a timer if you have somewhere to be so as not to sit and worry about the time.

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Samatha:

The background:

Literally translating into “tranquility,” Samatha is a form of meditation oriented towards bringing the practitioner peace through single-pointed concentration. You can focus on a variety of things, but today’s instructions will be on the breath (something I assume you can relate to).

Andrew Holecek described Samatha as dropping your attention onto something like a sandbag and letting it sit there. Easier said than done, but that’s the goal.

The meditation:

Get into a seated position, spine straight, eyes closed or relaxed, and just breathe normally. Let your breathing happen to you and just observe it as it flows in and out of you. Notice the sensations, nostrils to diaphragm, and experience the breath as it occurs on its own accord.

Be aware of the in-breaths and out-breaths, but also observe the space in between them. Notice any wheezing or tension that may be altering your breathing.

Although the behavior of your breath may give you insight into your mental state, it’s important to remember that this is about single-pointed concentration, not analysis or insight. If you have thoughts or feelings, you can gently acknowledge them and then return to your breath. If you have thoughts about your thoughts, just acknowledge them and return to your breath.

During this practice, there is only one thing that is interesting to you: your object of focus. If you’re caught up in thoughts about how interesting it is, acknowledge the interested thoughts and then go back to your breath.

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Metta:

The background:

A big part of being a person is about loving (or at least tolerating) other people. Metta means “loving-kindness” and is a staple in Buddhist practice. When we are in a mental state of cultivated Metta, our focus turns outward, directing our minds and actions towards the well-being of others.

If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.

- The 14th Dalai Lama

The meditation:

As per usual, sit straight and comfortably. For this one, your eyes will be closed.
Start by visualizing yourself as you are now. You may look like a mess, you may be ashamed of yourself, but you’re just perfect the way you are. Lovingly direct your focus to yourself and recite in your mind:

May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May I be safe.
May I be at peace.

Hold onto every loving feeling that arises and let the warm love grow in your heart. If it’s not a loving thought or feeling, that’s alright—just let it go. Things that aren’t love can come back some other time. Now’s not that time.
After some time, turn your attention to someone you love very much. Direct all of your love towards them and recite:

May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you be safe.
May you be at peace.

Hold onto every loving feeling that arises and let the warm love continue to grow in your chest. If it’s not a loving thought or feeling, just let it go.
After some time, turn your loving attention to someone you hardly know. Direct all of your focus towards them and recite:

May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you be safe.
May you be at peace.

Hold onto every loving feeling that arises, let everything else go.
Now turn your direction towards someone you have challenging feelings towards. I am not going to assume you hate anyone, but if you did, they’d be a fantastic candidate.
With only love, letting go of everything else, focus your heart and mind towards this person and recite:

May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you be safe.
May you be at peace.

And finally, turn your attention towards your heart. Visualize that loving energy expand around you until it encompasses your immediate area, your love encompassing all that surrounds you. Expand it further. Have it encompass your house, your town, your country, and finally the world. Take a few minutes to love your home and all of the complicated people within it. Allow that energy to go where it may as a blessing to all it touches.

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Tonglen:

The background:

Tonglen literally means “taking and sending” and is a wonderful practice for self-healing and generating compassion for others. It’s a practice in which you breathe in the suffering of others and breathe out healing blessings towards them. This not only helps us extend our ability to understand and empathize, but it changes our relationship with people and the nature of suffering.

It can be done as a formal meditation, but it can also be done anywhere at any time. You can even do it while talking to someone, which is a very powerful practice, especially if you’re in a helping role. You can even do it for yourself!

The practice/meditation:

Focus on whoever you feel needs healing. That may be a friend, a stranger, a country, the world, or you. When you breathe in, visualize a dark, heavy cloud of negative energy entering you, taking on the suffering of your subject. When you breathe out, visualize a bright, healing cloud of positive energy sending out from you towards the subject of your practice.

Depending on what they are suffering with, the dark clouds may have different elements, such as loss or fear, while your light clouds will contain different antidotes to match, such as comfort or clarity.

However you decide to do this, formal or on the go, I’m sure you’ll do great.

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The Cave:

The background:

I learned this meditation from a lovely woman who I call Aunt Kimberly. Aunt Kimberly is shaman-adjacent in her practice and uses a great amount of American Indigenous practices as well as some things she picked up from Vodun priestesses. To her, The Cave is not just the meditation I am sharing here, but a sort of mind-fortress she goes to for her deeper spiritual work.

If the Cave is a place you feel good about, you’re more than welcome to experiment with this safe place in your mind however you see fit.

The meditation:

Start by finding a safe, quiet place where you can meditate without being disturbed—a place where you feel safe enough to enter vulnerability. Once ready, do your preferred meditative practice to get to a deeper mental state (the above two are sufficient). There is no rush. Just be present with your practice and let go of your resistance to the moment.

When you are ready, visualize yourself inside of a cave. This cave is your special place where nothing can hurt you. Construct this space in your mind with the knowledge that it exists for the purpose of healing. There’s a cozy fire in the middle.

Once you’re situated within your cave, invite in a wound of yours to join you by the fire. It could be someone who has hurt you, a part of yourself you haven’t contended with, or a physical manifestation of some scar you bear. Whoever it is, have an openness to your guest. Then, ask your guest, “What do you need?” After those four words, your only job is to listen.

You can have as many guests as you like. When you're finished, open your eyes.
This meditation is great for healing yourself and getting unstuck from emotional blockages.

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Two-breath:

The background: I learned this one from the Living/Dying Project. I have no idea who came up with it, but it’s wonderful. It can take as little as two breaths and can take as long as you need. If you need a quick centering, this is certainly a great way to do it.

Also, it’s an encapsulation of the whole spiritual path in just two breaths, which is pretty cool to contemplate on.

The practice/meditation:

Breath 1:

Inhale—straighten your spine as if your head is being pulled upwards. Bring your self-perception to your crown chakra at the top of your head, remember your connection to God and fill with motivation.

Exhale—bring your self-perception down into your stomach and ground yourself there in your center of gravity. Be aware of your sturdy presence in the moment.

Breath 2:

Inhale—visualize that you’re breathing directly into your heart as if you had nostrils in your chest. Feel your heart filling up through the inhale, cultivating feelings of love and compassion.

Exhale—visualize the exhale radiating around your body, bringing you with it. Feel yourself expand into the universe around you and let all feelings of separateness dissolve.

Up, down, in, out.

Repeat as much as you’d like.

If you have any meditations that you love and want to share, you’re more than welcome to share it in the comments. Namaste, everyone!

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