A Meditation on the South African Greeting Sawubona (“We See You”)

On this guided apply, Shelly Harrell introduces us to a method of seeing others that encourages liberating consciousness, caring connection, and deep acceptance.

In recent times, psychological well being professionals have raised the alarm in regards to the rising epidemic of loneliness. Hundreds of thousands of individuals really feel separated and remoted, even when they’re surrounded by colleagues or 1000’s of social media acquaintances.

In at this time’s guided apply, Shelly Harrell gives one conscious strategy that may counteract this sense of lonely atomization. It’s the South African greeting of Sawubona, which carries an intentional willingness to see and to be seen, in our fullness, vulnerability, mutual belonging, and radiance.

A Meditation on the South African Greeting Sawubona (“We See You”)

A observe from the Conscious Editors: 

Right here at Conscious, we give attention to secular mindfulness and meditation for a lot of causes, chief amongst them being accessibility: We wish anybody to really feel that mindfulness might be for them, no matter background. 

One factor we’ve realized from the fantastic academics we work with is that accessibility typically appears like welcoming other ways of talking about and regarding the apply of mindfulness. Whereas the core meaning of mindfulness is identical, completely different folks have completely different phrases for the sense of present-moment consciousness, self-connection, interconnectedness, and different qualities that come up from the apply. And for some communities, phrases like “spirit” and “soul” shall be a extra useful framing to faucet into these qualities. 

So, within the spirit of accessibility and welcoming numerous methods of being and pondering within the mindfulness area, we’re welcoming a broader, much less strictly secular vocabulary and you may even see this in among the meditations on this collection.

Learn and apply the guided meditation script beneath, pausing after every paragraph. Or take heed to the audio apply.

1. Sawubona is a South African phrase meaning, “We see you.” It’s typically translated as “I see you,” however it’s necessary to grasp that in an African worldview context, that is an prolonged “I” because the self is skilled as collective. When greeted with Sawubona, it’s a communication that you’re seen, accepted, and cared about not simply by the person however by the ancestors and the interconnected neighborhood that we supply with that. Right this moment we’re going to heart on this phrase in our meditation apply.
2. Begin by taking a deep centering breath, inhaling deeply to clear area. Gently sweep the muddle in your thoughts. Open a passageway to that deepest a part of your physique. Then exhale a pleasant, lengthy exhale via your mouth, settling into your self and full presence on this second, with this apply. 
3. Take one other centering breath—a deep inhale, opening your coronary heart area, receiving what you want on this second. Exhale slowly to launch any inside blocks or toxins that don’t serve you. Take one other full clearing inhale, obtain what you want. Open your coronary heart. Exhale once more, releasing, and go right down to that inside river, deciding on the riverbanks of your soul heart. 
4. Let’s begin our Sawubona apply. I invite you now to call to mind an individual or group or neighborhood that you simply care about. It could possibly be somebody going via one thing tough who could also be struggling, struggling, who could really feel unseen and unheard. Compassion begins with a willingness to essentially see, hear, and really feel one other individual. Compassionate motion is energized by love and infused with the reality of one other’s lived and embodied expertise. So visualize this individual, group, or neighborhood in your thoughts’s eye. Really feel them in your coronary heart and soul. 
5. Now think about encountering that individual or crew. Greet them with Sawubona and the intentions of its deepest meanings to see, hear, and really feel one other. Assembly them the place they’re. Assembly them and their reality as you greet them. Ship them the vitality of Sawubona with genuineness, humility, and care. Deliver them into your thoughts’s eye and your coronary heart heart. If you greet them and say Sawubona, you might be saying, “I see you. I see you thru eyes that transcend my very own sight, that transcend the seen and the fabric. I see you past your circumstances and circumstances. I see you behind the partitions you will have put up and the masks you will have placed on. I see you as greater than what you will have accomplished or what has been accomplished to you. I see your humanity and your humanness. I see you at your finest, thriving, hovering, and manifesting your biggest goal and soul’s calling. I see the soul of who you might be. I see you.” 
6. Take one other deep breath, inhaling via your nostril and exhaling via your mouth. Deliver this individual or individuals into your thoughts’s eye. Greet them and say Sawubona. You’re saying, “I hear you. I hear you thru ears tuned into the whisperings of soul and spirit. I hear you behind what has been silenced or muted. I hear you beneath what you say, beneath the phrases you utilize and the language you communicate. I hear you past what I wish to hear. I hear the voice of your deepest longings, your truest intentions, and your highest aspirations. I hear your cries and I hear your celebrations. I hear your music, your story, your reality. I hear the soul of who you might be. I hear you.” 
7. Take one other deep breath. Deliver your individual or individuals into your thoughts’s eye, into your coronary heart. Greet them and say Sawubona. You’re saying, “I really feel you. I really feel you from the vibration of our oneness, the place our souls acknowledge one another. I really feel you behind the seen and invisible obstacles that separate us. I really feel you beneath our variations in that area of our interconnectedness with one another and all life. I really feel the facility of the ancestors flowing via you over generations, throughout area and time. I really feel your rhythm, your circulate, your vitality, your distinctive vibration on the planet. I really feel your vulnerability and your victories, your struggles and your strengths. Your tears and your triumphs. Your regrets and your risings. I really feel your mild and your glow. Your goodness and your love. I really feel the soul of who you might be. I really feel you.” Take a deep breath. Sawubona.
8. Listed here are a couple of ideas for reflection, dialogue, or journaling. I encourage you to think about your subsequent encounter with the individual or group you’ve visualized and picture greeting them with Sawubona and all meaning. In doing that, what is perhaps completely different in your interplay with them? What wouldn’t it appear to be for you if you happen to had been to convey the vitality of Sawubona to the way you work together, meet, greet, and see others? Lastly, how would possibly you convey the vitality of Sawubona to the way you’ll meet, greet, and see your self? Let’s take a closing deep breath collectively. Inhaling deeply, and exhaling slowly via your mouth. Thanks for participating on this apply with me. Sawubona.