posted September 26, 2016 02:39 AM            

There's a chapter called "The Smile Inside" and it basically explains a form of meditation which I did myself and felt completely soothed and happy. I thought I'd share it with you guys and hopefully it will benefit some of you.

1. Begin by finding a comfortable spot where you feel secure and at ease enough to close your eyes. Sit or lie down, and just notice the feeling of the air on your skin and other pleasant sensory stimuli, noises, scents, etc. Inhale and feel your chest along with everything else expand with your breath. Exhale fully and feel the natural contraction in your body. Repeat. Begin to withdraw from sensory input let your ears, eyes, and mouth rest. Stop responding to outward things and move in.

2. In this new awareness imagine a time you are grateful for. Fill in the details with the environment, people, animals, and all that took part. You might smile. With this happy memory in mind, visualize a smile that starts behind your eyes, in the back of the mind. Breathe. Let the inner smile take hold.

3. Picture your inner smile growing and expanding from ear to ear and let it light up your forehead, cheeks and jaw. Down to your throat and upper spine. It may have a color or shift to it. Allow it to flow. It might bring other emotions and feelings. Let it flow into your chest area where your heart is. That will allow it to flow through your shoulders down to your fingers. Your upper body should be at a higher frequency now.

4. Move your inner smile from your heart space and let it fall like water deep into the organs. Smile to your lungs, stomach, liver, kidneys and thank them for keeping your body strong and detoxified. Smile to the organs and tissues of your lower abs and especially to your reproductive organs. Let the spirit of your smile run down your legs all the way to your ankles and toes. Expand gratitude to your body for working endlessly.

5. You may now be at a natural state of peace where you can meditate longer and resonate with the life force you've created. Another option is to go back and begin another smile from the back of your eyes and mind and repeat.

It suggests that this would be ideal when going into a medical procedure or surgery. You can prepare yourself for whatever it may be by practicing weeks or days before. Thank your body and become your own friend. It also explains how some people may be physically unable to smile. Therefore this technique would be ideal for them so they can create a way to generate that positive feeling when smiling.

posted October 03, 2016 09:47 AM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by PlutoSurvivor:
Thich Nhat Hanh Teaches smile meditation...
Breathing in I calm my body, breathing out I smile...

I would recommend reading his books, too - available at your local library

---