A Welcoming Attitude

When attention turns inward in pratyahara, the meditator is in the realm of sensations, moods, emotions, feelings, instincts, and thoughts of all kinds. To the extent you accept all these and welcome them, you will slip through and find a kind of restfulness-in-the-festival.

The main principle here is hospitality and kindness. Welcome the ever-changing flow of sensations. Welcome the play of emotions. Welcome the journey of attention. This is the process of being with what you love. Always going on a journey then remembering, easily, with love, when you notice you have a choice. Often you will not have a choice because the brain is busy sorting and healing – a very important part of the integrative wisdom within you, so welcome that, too!

The 8 Acceptances

I welcome all parts of myself. Lover, warrior, healer, farmer, mother, father, daughter, son, friend, magician, sage, fool.

I welcome all my senses. Seeing, hearing, feeling, touching, tasting, smelling, balancing, moving.

I welcome all my instincts. Homing, hunting, exploring, socializing, bonding, feeding, resting.

I welcome the dance of emotions. Love, fear, anger, laughter, joy, aversion, hope, sorrow, generosity, sympathy.

I welcome all my rhythms. The pulsing of my heart and breathing, the play and interplay of relaxation and stress, activity and rest.

I welcome the flow of desire. I celebrate my desire for freedom, power, independence, stability, safety, adventure, novelty, status, acceptance, friendship, romance, peacefulness, and expression.

I welcome improvisation and spontaneity. Each moment a new adventure, calling me to meet it with ingenuity.

I welcome my love of the life force.

Begin with accepting, then move towards welcoming and celebrating.

As you get good at the Acceptances, they become SKILLS. You become skillful at handling your inner experiences.

Experiment with saying these statements out loud.

First say "I accept" then go on to "I welcome" and eventually you will rejoice in saying "I celebrate..." them all.

Here is a guided meditation on this practice: