A ladle of self-compassion, from "Mindful Parent, Mindful Child"
Author, teacher, and chef Ed Espe Brown writes about a self-compassion practice that Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh taught his students years ago. As a young monk, Thich Nhat Hanh lived in the jungle in Vietnam, where it was often quite hot. With a half coconut shell attached to a handle, the young monks would scoop rainwater out of a barrel and pour it over their heads to cool down. In the following visualization, we cool strong emotions by filling an imaginary coconut shell with compassion and pouring it over our heads.
Breathe in, relax, and open to compassion. Let your heart feel spacious and light.
Breathe-out and imagine a wooden barrel full of something that looks like rainwater. It's not rainwater, though; it's fresh, bright, nectarlike compassion.
Imagine filling a cup with the nectar and pouring compassion over your head. Like cool, clear rainwater, compassion washes over your head and shoulders, down your body, to your toes.
As compassion moves from your head to your toes, imagine that it washes away negative self-talk, judgment, criticism, and doubt.
