It’s interesting how life revolves and lessons learned come back to present themselves anew. For example, last year’s meditation was in some ways, is in some ways, what I feel today. But for this meditation, I want to speak of opening the heart. You see, for many years, I thought I had opened my heart to people, relationships, friends. Oh but I hadn’t…it’s easy to fool yourself into thinking you’ve given yourself to another person wholeheartedly. I hadn’t. I had been a clever, cunning actress, fooling myself that I was capable of loving. And then, quite unexpectedly, I found someone with whom everything has come easy; even the hard parts. Opening myself to him, letting myself (my self) be vulnerable was is easy. And it is with this meditation that I want to celebrate that. We just have to learn to let go. Let go, let go, let go.
And so it is with this spirit in mind that I would like to share this meditation with all of you. Namaste.
The six stages of mettā bhāvanā meditation which are most commonly found involves cultivating loving-kindness towards:
- Yourself
- A good friend
- A ‘neutral’ person
- A difficult person
- All four
- and then gradually the entire universe
For #2 avoid choosing someone that you feel sexually attracted to, or that is much younger or much older than yourself, or who is dead. For #3 choose someone that you might come in contact with every day, but who does not give rise to strong positive nor strong negative emotions. For #4 traditionally choose “an enemy”, but avoid choosing a person who has just wrecked your life, unless you are very well grounded in awareness. For #5 treat them as equals, equally deserving of loving-kindness.
The Metta Meditation is attributed as words of the Buddha
(Karaniya Metta Sutta, “Good Will”, Sn 1.8):
This is what should be done
By one who is skilled in goodness,
And who knows the path of peace:
Let them be able and upright,
Straightforward and gentle in speech,
Humble and not conceited,
Contented and easily satisfied,
Unburdened with duties and frugal in their ways.
Peaceful and calm and wise and skillful,
Not proud or demanding in nature.
Let them not do the slightest thing
That the wise would later reprove.
Wishing: In gladness and in safety,
May all beings be at ease.
Whatever living beings there may be;
Whether they are weak or strong, omitting none,
The great or the mighty, medium, short or small,
The seen and the unseen,
Those living near and far away,
Those born and to-be-born —
May all beings be at ease!
Let none deceive another,
Or despise any being in any state.
Let none through anger or ill-will
Wish harm upon another.
Even as a mother protects with her life
Her child, her only child,
So with a boundless heart
Should one cherish all living beings;
Radiating kindness over the entire world.
Spreading upwards to the skies,
And downwards to the depths;
Outwards and unbounded,
Freed from hatred and ill-will.
Whether standing or walking, seated or lying down
Free from drowsiness,
One should sustain this recollection.
This is said to be the sublime abiding.
By not holding to fixed views,
The pure-hearted one, having clarity of vision,
Being freed from all sense desires,
Is not born again into this world.