Settle into a comfortable position,
Seated or lying down.
Let your hands rest easily,
Let the face soften.
Metta,
Often translated as loving-kindness,
Isn't sentimentality and it isn't approval.
It's the deliberate practice of goodwill,
The intention that beings be safe,
Well and free from suffering.
In chaotic,
Divided times,
Metta matters because it keeps your inner life from being shaped entirely by fear,
Outrage and contempt.
We'll train this steady goodwill,
Starting where it's easiest and gradually widening it.
Feel the body supported,
Notice the breath moving on its own.
Begin with yourself,
Repeat quietly or in your own words,
May I be safe,
May I be at ease,
May I be healthy in body and mind,
May I be free from needless fear,
No need to force a feeling,
Your training and intention.
Now bring to mind someone you naturally care about,
See them simply,
Without a storyline.
May you be safe,
May you be at ease,
May you be healthy,
May you be free from suffering.
Notice any warmth that's already present,
However subtle.
Now bring to mind a neutral person,
Someone you've seen but don't really know,
A passerby,
A cashier,
A neighbour in the hallway.
Recognise they too want to be okay.
May you be safe,
May you be at ease,
May you be healthy,
May you be free from suffering.
Now and this is the heart of the practice,
Bring to mind a person who is not easy and not neutral,
Someone you're in conflict with or someone who reliably activates you.
Not the most extreme person you can imagine,
Choose someone you can hold in awareness without being overwhelmed.
And set this boundary clearly,
Metta is not saying their behaviour is okay,
It's not forgetting harm or dropping discernment,
It's refusing to let hatred set up a permanent home in your mind.
Notice what arises as you call them to mind,
Tightness,
Heat,
Judgement,
A looping story.
Let it be seen,
Then if it feels possible,
Offer an honest form of Metta,
One that doesn't pretend.
May you be free from hatred and confusion.
May you meet your pain with wisdom,
May you not cause harm,
May you find the conditions for clarity.
If those phrases feel too strong or too generous,
Soften them,
May you be held in awareness,
May you be free from the forces that make people cruel.
And if even that feels impossible,
That's okay,
In that case,
Practice Metta in the only place you can truly control.
May I be free from hatred,
May I respond wisely,
May I keep my heart intact.
Stay with this for a few breaths.
Notice what changes when you stop feeding the fire,
Just for this moment.
Now widen the lens to the larger atmosphere of the times,
Tension,
Polarisation,
Constant stimulation.
Feel what it's like in the body to live in this era,
And offer Metta not as naïve optimism but as a stabilising force.
May we be free from fear and reactivity,
May we be guided by wisdom,
May we protect what matters without losing our humanity.
Now let the circle expand fully,
Yourself,
Loved ones,
Neutral people,
Difficult people,
Everyone caught in this human condition.
May all beings be safe,
May all beings be at ease,
May all beings be free from suffering and the causes of suffering.
May all beings find peace,
Let the heart be wider than the moment's outrage,
Not passive just spacious.
As we end,
Notice the quality of your mind right now,
Even if the world hasn't changed,
Something has,
Your relationship to it.
When you return to the world,
See if you can carry one quiet intention,
To pause before reacting,
To speak and act from clarity,
To keep your heart human.
When you're ready,
Open your eyes.
