Daoist 5 Body Compassion Meditation

 

Note: This meditation was written, in theory, for our Body Compassion service. In the end, we did not choose to use this piece, but I still wanted to preserve it here. This meditation is based on the Daoist Five system of QiGong. 

Guided Meditation:

Take a deep breath in, allowing yourself to settle into your body. Feel the support beneath you, the steady presence of the earth holding you. With each inhale, you welcome in awareness. With each exhale, you release tension and soften into yourself.

Breathing into our lungs, we invite the energy of metal, the color white. Feel its strength, its integrity, its clarity. Metal is present in the bones of our earth, in the stones that endure, in the breath that sustains us. As you inhale, feel your lungs flex, expand, and contract, like a bellows filling you with life-giving air. We invoke the beautiful grief being held within us, the grief that reminds us of what we love. As you exhale, release any stagnant air, any heaviness weighing on your chest. Let your breath lighten your load, making space for new air, for renewal, for life.

Breathing into our hearts, we call upon fire, the color red. Fire burns within us, in our passions and our compassions, just as it burns in the sun above. It is both joy and anxiety, the warmth of love and the heat of unease. As you inhale, feel the flames flicker within, steady and strong, filling you with energy. We invoke the beautiful rage being held, the fire that fuels change, the fire that refuses to be extinguished. As you exhale, let go of stagnant fire, of excess heat that no longer serves you, allowing your inner flame to burn hot and pure, neither smothered nor overwhelming, but balanced and bright.

Breathing into our lower bodies, into our right side, we feel the presence of wood, the color green. Wood is the force of growth, the deep roots and the stretching branches. It holds both anger and compassion, the strength to push forward and the tenderness to bend. As you inhale, feel the living wood within you, expanding and unfurling. We invoke the beautiful love being held, the love that nurtures, the love that withstands the storm. As you exhale, release any stagnant wood, allowing the culling that makes room for fresh growth, for new possibilities, for deeper grounding.

Breathing into our lower bodies, into our left side, we invite the energy of earth, the color yellow. Earth moves through us as soil and stone, as mud and dust, shaping us, holding us. It carries both worry and trust, the weight of uncertainty and the stability of faith. As you inhale, feel the swirling, shifting presence of earth within you. We invoke the beautiful trust that lives inside us, the trust in ourselves, in our bodies, in the wisdom we hold. As you exhale, release any stagnant earth, letting go of what no longer grounds you. Allow yourself to stand steady, held by the solid presence of your own being.

Breathing into our lower backs, we feel the energy of water, the color black. Water flows, water shifts, water carves and soothes. It carries both fear and love, the depths of the unknown and the currents of devotion. As you inhale, sense the waters within you, the tides that rise and fall, the rivers that move through your veins. We invoke the beautiful fear that reminds us we are alive, that we are growing, that we are moving forward. As you exhale, release any stagnant water, letting it flow freely once more. Trust in its movement. Trust in your ability to flow with it.

Take a final deep breath in, feeling all the elements within you, metal, fire, wood, earth, water, each a part of you, each offering its wisdom, each holding you in compassion. As you breathe out, let your body soften into itself, knowing it is whole, knowing it is worthy of love, knowing it carries exactly what it needs.

When you are ready, gently bring your awareness back to the space around you, carrying this deep compassion with you as you move forward.