Affirmation · Secular practice

Self-kindness

May I be kind to myself. May I be patient with myself. May I begin again.

Three sentences for after a mistake, or a day that went badly. Written for this app, and shaped by loving-kindness practice, but pointed at oneself rather than outward.

This text was written for Japa. It is not a traditional formula, and no tradition teaches it as one.

The count shown here is Japa's suggestion, not a rule of the tradition. Follow the form and number you were taught.

Not counted on beads

How many times

Japa suggests 21 times a day. Follow the number you were taught.

Japa counts this one without a mala: a plain daily number rather than a ring of beads, with the words kept in view while you say them. Counting is unlimited and free.

Open this practice in Japa

Opens a preview of this practice, with an option to add it in Japa 1.6 or later. If you install the app, return here and open the link again.

What the words say

Kindness, then patience, then permission to start again. The order matters: the third line is the one that does something, and it only lands after the first two have made room for it. 'Begin again' is deliberately not 'do better'.

Where it comes from

Written for Japa, with an emphasis on kindness toward oneself. It is not a quotation from a traditional mettā text or a research-based self-compassion protocol.

How it is practised

Said when it is needed. Twenty-one is an optional starting goal.

Keep it, and count it every day.

Japa keeps this text beside a large, calm counter on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch, with a haptic for every bead and an optional bell at the end of each round. Counting is unlimited and free.

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