Anita Adams:
00:00:05
Welcome to the joyful journey podcast. If
Anita Adams:
00:00:08
you're uncertain about what you really want or unsure how to be
Anita Adams:
00:00:12
a force for good, you know this world craves, then this is the
Anita Adams:
00:00:16
show for you. I'm Anita Adams, your host and guide to finding
Anita Adams:
00:00:21
clarity and creating a life you love. Let's tap into our inner
Anita Adams:
00:00:26
wisdom, access our highest self and unleash joy. As we raise our
Anita Adams:
00:00:32
vibration, we heightened the collective consciousness and
Anita Adams:
00:00:35
that, my friends,
Unknown:
00:00:36
is the joyful journey. Let's dive in.
Anita Adams:
00:00:43
Hey, joyful journey or need to Adams here your host
Anita Adams:
00:00:45
of the joyful journey Podcast. Today, I want to talk about
Anita Adams:
00:00:49
compassion as the path through pain and suffering that leads to
Anita Adams:
00:00:53
joy. Please note that this episode ends with a short guided
Anita Adams:
00:00:58
meditation that will help deepen your compassion for yourself and
Anita Adams:
00:01:01
others. So either save listening to this episode to a time when
Anita Adams:
00:01:06
you can safely go into a meditation or put it on pause at
Anita Adams:
00:01:10
the appropriate point and come back to it later. All right.
Anita Adams:
00:01:15
Let's start with the
Anita Adams:
00:01:16
acknowledgement that joy is not the absence of sorrow. The two
Anita Adams:
00:01:22
can and do coexist. great sadness, pain, heartache. These
Anita Adams:
00:01:28
are no strangers to me, nor likely to you I suspect. Yet we
Anita Adams:
00:01:32
are still very capable of feeling great joy and
Anita Adams:
00:01:37
transcending our pain. I recently read a beautiful book
Anita Adams:
00:01:42
called The Book of joy, which was co authored by the Dalai
Anita Adams:
00:01:46
Lama and the recently deceased Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and it
Anita Adams:
00:01:51
has much to say on this topic of transcending pain and suffering.
Anita Adams:
00:01:56
In this book, which is full of delightful banter between these
Anita Adams:
00:02:00
two amazing human beings, the Dalai Lama suggests that the way
Anita Adams:
00:02:04
to heal your pain is by turning to the pain of others. The idea
Anita Adams:
00:02:10
is to take the focus off of oneself, and instead to
Anita Adams:
00:02:14
acknowledge the pain and suffering of other people. This,
Anita Adams:
00:02:17
of course, is acting with compassion. And according to the
Anita Adams:
00:02:22
Dalai Lama, when you stand in this place of compassion, you
Anita Adams:
00:02:25
not only ease the pain and suffering of others, you also
Anita Adams:
00:02:29
ease your own pain and suffering. But a beautiful idea
Anita Adams:
00:02:33
and one worth exploring further. When things go sideways in your
Anita Adams:
00:02:38
life. When you lose someone you love, or lose a job or get sick.
Anita Adams:
00:02:43
It's common to focus on your own pain. Of course it is. And it
Anita Adams:
00:02:47
makes perfect sense to do that. Give yourself permission to
Anita Adams:
00:02:52
grieve for your loss, and then begin to explore the edges of
Anita Adams:
00:02:57
compassion, by removing the focus from you, and looking to
Anita Adams:
00:03:01
ease the pain and suffering of others. I understand this is
Anita Adams:
00:03:06
easier said than done, particularly when your pain is
Anita Adams:
00:03:10
great. It can be done and has been done by many, some of the
Anita Adams:
00:03:16
world's greatest leaders, Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr,
Anita Adams:
00:03:21
Nelson Mandela, to name just a few lead with deep compassion,
Anita Adams:
00:03:27
and we're no strangers to pain or suffering. I would argue to
Anita Adams:
00:03:31
be a great leader, whether you are leading a nation accompany a
Anita Adams:
00:03:36
family or yourself, you must lead with compassion. The Dalai
Anita Adams:
00:03:43
Lama says that by showing compassion and doing small acts
Anita Adams:
00:03:48
of kindness, you bring others joy, and in so doing, you feed
Anita Adams:
00:03:52
your own joy and ease your pain. he elaborates further, the more
Anita Adams:
00:03:58
we turn to others, he says, the more joy we experience, and the
Anita Adams:
00:04:03
more joy we experience, the more joy we can bring to others. He
Anita Adams:
00:04:09
calls this a virtuous cycle. Isn't that beautiful? Being more
Anita Adams:
00:04:16
joyful is not about the absence of pain or sorrow, nor is it
Anita Adams:
00:04:19
just about having more fun. It's about possessing a more
Anita Adams:
00:04:25
empathetic and spiritual state of mind. It's about being
Anita Adams:
00:04:30
present to the here and now acknowledging your own pain,
Anita Adams:
00:04:34
noticing the pain of others feeling compassion, and being
Anita Adams:
00:04:39
compassionate with yourself and others and being engaged in the
Anita Adams:
00:04:45
world. Not locking yourself away in your own pain. This is
Anita Adams:
00:04:50
something we are all capable of doing. And it doesn't take much
Anita Adams:
00:04:55
to bring a bit of joy to others and in turn to your self esteem
Anita Adams:
00:05:00
mile or a kind word is a beautiful place to start. Here
Anita Adams:
00:05:04
are a few other simple daily things you can do to deepen your
Anita Adams:
00:05:07
compassion and to ease your own pain. Reach out and connect with
Anita Adams:
00:05:11
others with the intent to listen. Remove the focus from
Anita Adams:
00:05:15
you and plant it firmly on others offer kind words of
Anita Adams:
00:05:19
support and encouragement. Be kind to everyone who crosses
Anita Adams:
00:05:24
your path. Find ways to help others even the little things
Anita Adams:
00:05:28
count, like holding a door open for a stranger. These seemingly
Anita Adams:
00:05:33
small acts of compassion will make beautiful ripples in your
Anita Adams:
00:05:36
world. They ease the pain of others, they'll ease your pain
Anita Adams:
00:05:41
and they will lead to greater joy in your life. Now I'd like
Anita Adams:
00:05:45
to share with you a guided meditation. It's a beautiful
Anita Adams:
00:05:48
practice that will help deepen your compassion for yourself and
Anita Adams:
00:05:52
others which in turn will bring more joy into your life. If
Anita Adams:
00:05:56
you're not in a safe place to listen to a meditation, then put
Anita Adams:
00:05:59
this recording on pause and come back to it later. All right,
Anita Adams:
00:06:04
let's begin. Find a comfortable seated position with your feet
Anita Adams:
00:06:09
on the ground and your hands in your lap. When you're ready,
Anita Adams:
00:06:13
close your eyes.
Anita Adams:
00:06:16
Inhale deeply through your nose and slowly exhale. Again, inhale
Anita Adams:
00:06:28
deeply and slowly exhale. Imagine a golden orb of light
Anita Adams:
00:06:40
above your head. This light is that divine light of compassion.
Anita Adams:
00:06:47
As you breathe deeply feel that light of compassion enter
Anita Adams:
00:06:52
through the crown of your head. Breathe long, slow, deep breaths
Anita Adams:
00:06:58
and feel that light move down your head, your neck into your
Anita Adams:
00:07:04
shoulders and chest. Take another deep breath and allow
Anita Adams:
00:07:11
that light of compassion to move into your arms. Fingers down
Anita Adams:
00:07:18
your torso into your belly. Another deep breaths as that
Anita Adams:
00:07:25
light slides over your buttock down your legs and into your
Anita Adams:
00:07:30
toes. Wiggle your toes. Your body is full of this warm light
Anita Adams:
00:07:37
of compassion. Take a deep breath. And this time as you
Anita Adams:
00:07:42
exhale expand your light of compassion to every living thing
Anita Adams:
00:07:48
in the room. Your partner, your pet the fly on the windowsill
Anita Adams:
00:07:55
see the globe of golden light expanding and radiating in this
Anita Adams:
00:08:01
room. Take another deep breath and as you exhale expand your
Anita Adams:
00:08:06
light of compassion to embrace your entire home and every
Anita Adams:
00:08:11
living creature under your roof. Another deep breath and expand
Anita Adams:
00:08:19
your light have compassion to your neighborhood. See the
Anita Adams:
00:08:23
golden light radiating over all the homes and the families
Anita Adams:
00:08:28
within. It's as if you are hovering in the sky watching the
Anita Adams:
00:08:34
golden light flow outward and expand from you to the neighbors
Anita Adams:
00:08:40
and the neighborhood below. Breathe in and exhale to expand
Anita Adams:
00:08:48
your light of compassion to your city. Watching that light flow
Anita Adams:
00:08:53
over all the homes, the parks the skyscrapers. Breathe deeply
Anita Adams:
00:09:02
and pull back further to see your light of compassion expand
Anita Adams:
00:09:08
across your country. Pull back again. Take another deep breath.
Anita Adams:
00:09:15
And as you exhale see your light of compassion and golf the
Anita Adams:
00:09:20
planet. Take a moment here with this world view. See your
Anita Adams:
00:09:29
beautiful golden light. Embrace the earth and notice how it
Anita Adams:
00:09:35
feels in your heart. Feel the expansion of love and compassion
Anita Adams:
00:09:45
for this place we call home. Hold on to that feeling as you
Anita Adams:
00:09:53
travel back. See your country, your city you your neighborhood,
Anita Adams:
00:10:01
your home, the room you're sitting in and see yourself
Anita Adams:
00:10:08
radiating this light of compassion. What a beautiful
Anita Adams:
00:10:13
being you are. Breathe in that love and compassion for
Anita Adams:
00:10:19
yourself. Breathe out that love and compassion for your world.
Anita Adams:
00:10:29
And when you are ready, open your eyes. Thank you for joining
Anita Adams:
00:10:34
me today my fellow joyful journeyer sending you much love
Anita Adams:
00:10:39
and compassion. We'll catch you next time
00:00:05
Welcome to the joyful journey podcast. If
Anita Adams:
00:00:08
you're uncertain about what you really want or unsure how to be
Anita Adams:
00:00:12
a force for good, you know this world craves, then this is the
Anita Adams:
00:00:16
show for you. I'm Anita Adams, your host and guide to finding
Anita Adams:
00:00:21
clarity and creating a life you love. Let's tap into our inner
Anita Adams:
00:00:26
wisdom, access our highest self and unleash joy. As we raise our
Anita Adams:
00:00:32
vibration, we heightened the collective consciousness and
Anita Adams:
00:00:35
that, my friends,
Unknown:
00:00:36
is the joyful journey. Let's dive in.
Anita Adams:
00:00:43
Hey, joyful journey or need to Adams here your host
Anita Adams:
00:00:45
of the joyful journey Podcast. Today, I want to talk about
Anita Adams:
00:00:49
compassion as the path through pain and suffering that leads to
Anita Adams:
00:00:53
joy. Please note that this episode ends with a short guided
Anita Adams:
00:00:58
meditation that will help deepen your compassion for yourself and
Anita Adams:
00:01:01
others. So either save listening to this episode to a time when
Anita Adams:
00:01:06
you can safely go into a meditation or put it on pause at
Anita Adams:
00:01:10
the appropriate point and come back to it later. All right.
Anita Adams:
00:01:15
Let's start with the
Anita Adams:
00:01:16
acknowledgement that joy is not the absence of sorrow. The two
Anita Adams:
00:01:22
can and do coexist. great sadness, pain, heartache. These
Anita Adams:
00:01:28
are no strangers to me, nor likely to you I suspect. Yet we
Anita Adams:
00:01:32
are still very capable of feeling great joy and
Anita Adams:
00:01:37
transcending our pain. I recently read a beautiful book
Anita Adams:
00:01:42
called The Book of joy, which was co authored by the Dalai
Anita Adams:
00:01:46
Lama and the recently deceased Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and it
Anita Adams:
00:01:51
has much to say on this topic of transcending pain and suffering.
Anita Adams:
00:01:56
In this book, which is full of delightful banter between these
Anita Adams:
00:02:00
two amazing human beings, the Dalai Lama suggests that the way
Anita Adams:
00:02:04
to heal your pain is by turning to the pain of others. The idea
Anita Adams:
00:02:10
is to take the focus off of oneself, and instead to
Anita Adams:
00:02:14
acknowledge the pain and suffering of other people. This,
Anita Adams:
00:02:17
of course, is acting with compassion. And according to the
Anita Adams:
00:02:22
Dalai Lama, when you stand in this place of compassion, you
Anita Adams:
00:02:25
not only ease the pain and suffering of others, you also
Anita Adams:
00:02:29
ease your own pain and suffering. But a beautiful idea
Anita Adams:
00:02:33
and one worth exploring further. When things go sideways in your
Anita Adams:
00:02:38
life. When you lose someone you love, or lose a job or get sick.
Anita Adams:
00:02:43
It's common to focus on your own pain. Of course it is. And it
Anita Adams:
00:02:47
makes perfect sense to do that. Give yourself permission to
Anita Adams:
00:02:52
grieve for your loss, and then begin to explore the edges of
Anita Adams:
00:02:57
compassion, by removing the focus from you, and looking to
Anita Adams:
00:03:01
ease the pain and suffering of others. I understand this is
Anita Adams:
00:03:06
easier said than done, particularly when your pain is
Anita Adams:
00:03:10
great. It can be done and has been done by many, some of the
Anita Adams:
00:03:16
world's greatest leaders, Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr,
Anita Adams:
00:03:21
Nelson Mandela, to name just a few lead with deep compassion,
Anita Adams:
00:03:27
and we're no strangers to pain or suffering. I would argue to
Anita Adams:
00:03:31
be a great leader, whether you are leading a nation accompany a
Anita Adams:
00:03:36
family or yourself, you must lead with compassion. The Dalai
Anita Adams:
00:03:43
Lama says that by showing compassion and doing small acts
Anita Adams:
00:03:48
of kindness, you bring others joy, and in so doing, you feed
Anita Adams:
00:03:52
your own joy and ease your pain. he elaborates further, the more
Anita Adams:
00:03:58
we turn to others, he says, the more joy we experience, and the
Anita Adams:
00:04:03
more joy we experience, the more joy we can bring to others. He
Anita Adams:
00:04:09
calls this a virtuous cycle. Isn't that beautiful? Being more
Anita Adams:
00:04:16
joyful is not about the absence of pain or sorrow, nor is it
Anita Adams:
00:04:19
just about having more fun. It's about possessing a more
Anita Adams:
00:04:25
empathetic and spiritual state of mind. It's about being
Anita Adams:
00:04:30
present to the here and now acknowledging your own pain,
Anita Adams:
00:04:34
noticing the pain of others feeling compassion, and being
Anita Adams:
00:04:39
compassionate with yourself and others and being engaged in the
Anita Adams:
00:04:45
world. Not locking yourself away in your own pain. This is
Anita Adams:
00:04:50
something we are all capable of doing. And it doesn't take much
Anita Adams:
00:04:55
to bring a bit of joy to others and in turn to your self esteem
Anita Adams:
00:05:00
mile or a kind word is a beautiful place to start. Here
Anita Adams:
00:05:04
are a few other simple daily things you can do to deepen your
Anita Adams:
00:05:07
compassion and to ease your own pain. Reach out and connect with
Anita Adams:
00:05:11
others with the intent to listen. Remove the focus from
Anita Adams:
00:05:15
you and plant it firmly on others offer kind words of
Anita Adams:
00:05:19
support and encouragement. Be kind to everyone who crosses
Anita Adams:
00:05:24
your path. Find ways to help others even the little things
Anita Adams:
00:05:28
count, like holding a door open for a stranger. These seemingly
Anita Adams:
00:05:33
small acts of compassion will make beautiful ripples in your
Anita Adams:
00:05:36
world. They ease the pain of others, they'll ease your pain
Anita Adams:
00:05:41
and they will lead to greater joy in your life. Now I'd like
Anita Adams:
00:05:45
to share with you a guided meditation. It's a beautiful
Anita Adams:
00:05:48
practice that will help deepen your compassion for yourself and
Anita Adams:
00:05:52
others which in turn will bring more joy into your life. If
Anita Adams:
00:05:56
you're not in a safe place to listen to a meditation, then put
Anita Adams:
00:05:59
this recording on pause and come back to it later. All right,
Anita Adams:
00:06:04
let's begin. Find a comfortable seated position with your feet
Anita Adams:
00:06:09
on the ground and your hands in your lap. When you're ready,
Anita Adams:
00:06:13
close your eyes.
Anita Adams:
00:06:16
Inhale deeply through your nose and slowly exhale. Again, inhale
Anita Adams:
00:06:28
deeply and slowly exhale. Imagine a golden orb of light
Anita Adams:
00:06:40
above your head. This light is that divine light of compassion.
Anita Adams:
00:06:47
As you breathe deeply feel that light of compassion enter
Anita Adams:
00:06:52
through the crown of your head. Breathe long, slow, deep breaths
Anita Adams:
00:06:58
and feel that light move down your head, your neck into your
Anita Adams:
00:07:04
shoulders and chest. Take another deep breath and allow
Anita Adams:
00:07:11
that light of compassion to move into your arms. Fingers down
Anita Adams:
00:07:18
your torso into your belly. Another deep breaths as that
Anita Adams:
00:07:25
light slides over your buttock down your legs and into your
Anita Adams:
00:07:30
toes. Wiggle your toes. Your body is full of this warm light
Anita Adams:
00:07:37
of compassion. Take a deep breath. And this time as you
Anita Adams:
00:07:42
exhale expand your light of compassion to every living thing
Anita Adams:
00:07:48
in the room. Your partner, your pet the fly on the windowsill
Anita Adams:
00:07:55
see the globe of golden light expanding and radiating in this
Anita Adams:
00:08:01
room. Take another deep breath and as you exhale expand your
Anita Adams:
00:08:06
light of compassion to embrace your entire home and every
Anita Adams:
00:08:11
living creature under your roof. Another deep breath and expand
Anita Adams:
00:08:19
your light have compassion to your neighborhood. See the
Anita Adams:
00:08:23
golden light radiating over all the homes and the families
Anita Adams:
00:08:28
within. It's as if you are hovering in the sky watching the
Anita Adams:
00:08:34
golden light flow outward and expand from you to the neighbors
Anita Adams:
00:08:40
and the neighborhood below. Breathe in and exhale to expand
Anita Adams:
00:08:48
your light of compassion to your city. Watching that light flow
Anita Adams:
00:08:53
over all the homes, the parks the skyscrapers. Breathe deeply
Anita Adams:
00:09:02
and pull back further to see your light of compassion expand
Anita Adams:
00:09:08
across your country. Pull back again. Take another deep breath.
Anita Adams:
00:09:15
And as you exhale see your light of compassion and golf the
Anita Adams:
00:09:20
planet. Take a moment here with this world view. See your
Anita Adams:
00:09:29
beautiful golden light. Embrace the earth and notice how it
Anita Adams:
00:09:35
feels in your heart. Feel the expansion of love and compassion
Anita Adams:
00:09:45
for this place we call home. Hold on to that feeling as you
Anita Adams:
00:09:53
travel back. See your country, your city you your neighborhood,
Anita Adams:
00:10:01
your home, the room you're sitting in and see yourself
Anita Adams:
00:10:08
radiating this light of compassion. What a beautiful
Anita Adams:
00:10:13
being you are. Breathe in that love and compassion for
Anita Adams:
00:10:19
yourself. Breathe out that love and compassion for your world.
Anita Adams:
00:10:29
And when you are ready, open your eyes. Thank you for joining
Anita Adams:
00:10:34
me today my fellow joyful journeyer sending you much love
Anita Adams:
00:10:39
and compassion. We'll catch you next time
