Gentleness

Gentleness:

Gentleness is participation in God’s way of doing things, sustaining all creation with great diversity. We learn to receive the tenderness of God, and then share that with others.

–adapted from Fruits and Gifts of the Spirit, Thomas Keating

A Simple Breath Prayer on Gentleness

Below is a breath prayer I learned a while ago and continue to find it a practice of deep nourishment. It lets us inhale the life essence of a Fruit, and then exhale it into the atmosphere around us.

• Take a few gentle breaths and relax your thoughts, your emotions, and any tension in your body.

• Breathe in gentleness. Allow its energy and presence to fill you. Let this spiritual nutrient into your physical being, as well as your spirit and soul.

• As you breathe in gentleness, feel it nourishing you and feeding you.

• Then breathe out gentleness, letting it fill the atmosphere around you. Feel yourself sharing that goodness with all that is around you.

• Repeat this for several breaths, letting yourself be nourished by gentlness while simultaneously nourishing the world. When you’re ready, rest in stillness for a few moments before returning to your day.

When we breathe in gentleness, we remember we’re held by Divine Gentleness; when we breathe it out, we become a conduit of that same grace.