Hello,
I'm Daniel.
Today I'm going to lead a meditation on the four immeasurables.
Sometimes these are called the four divine abodes or the four brahma-viharas.
Those are names that sort of make it seem bigger and further away than it is.
So I call them the four immeasurables,
Which is also a name that's not great in my opinion,
But that's what I call them.
And these are just four things that if we learn how to cultivate them,
Then we will have more harmony and more bliss in our lives because they bring us and other people together.
That's the intention.
It's so that we cultivate love and compassion and kindness instead of making enemies out of the world all the time.
So we're going to do this meditation today.
And this is called four immeasurables practice for your friends.
And so what is it supposed to do?
It's supposed to generate the intention to want our friends to succeed,
To want to help our friends and see them have joy and happiness.
So it's really just intention setting.
These practices can soften some of our hard edges.
So that's the point.
And so what the practice is,
Is we are going to imagine a friend or someone we like a lot.
It doesn't have to be a friend.
It could be a sibling or a parent,
Whatever,
Or even a child,
But somebody you like a lot.
And it could even be a pet,
I suppose.
It could even be a pet.
You're going to imagine someone you like a lot.
And then we are going to mentally recite these phrases.
And that's what we're doing for the four immeasurables.
Equanimity,
Loving,
Kindness,
Compassion,
And joy.
Those are the four immeasurables.
Those are the four things that we're trying to cultivate here.
So we're going to mentally recite these phrases and think of the person that we are directing this intention toward.
Does this,
And some people will ask,
Does this like magically make their world better?
No,
It doesn't.
It's about setting your intention.
It's about making sure you care about other people and you want other people to succeed and increasing those feelings.
That is,
We have those feelings sometimes,
But we want to increase those feelings because if we can take happiness in someone else's success,
Real happiness,
Then we can be happy all the time.
Really.
So I'm going to ring my bell now.
And I want you to sit in a way that's comfortable.
Sit in a way that's comfortable.
You want to have a straight back.
I've always found that when I start to slouch,
I am also daydreaming.
I'm not meditating anymore.
And most people say some version of that.
So sit up as straight as you can.
Close your eyes.
Find a position for your hands.
They can just be resting on your knees or in your lap.
That's called relaxation.
Or you can make a little bowl,
One hand on top of the other,
Thumbs gently touching.
And rest that in your lap either way.
And we'll begin by taking a slow,
Deep breath.
And another one.
And spend a moment just noticing the breath coming into and out of your body.
This is something that is going on all the time,
But we don't really think about it very much.
We don't really think about our breath much unless there's something wrong with it.
So close your eyes if they're not closed already.
And just bring to mind someone that you like a lot.
And again,
It can be a friend,
A relative,
A pet,
Whatever.
Someone that you like a lot and that you want the best for.
And we're going to take some of those feelings that we have already and we're going to try to increase those.
So I'm going to recite these phrases and I want you to just mentally note them and keep picturing your friend or loved one.
Okay?
Equanimity.
May I be free from prefer.
.
.
I started to mess it up.
We're going to say you instead of I because this is not directed at ourselves.
It's directed at our friend.
So allow me to start again.
Equanimity.
May you be free from preference and prejudice.
May you be free from preference and prejudice.
May you know things just as they are.
May you know things just as they are.
May you experience the world knowing you just as you are.
May you experience the world knowing you just as you are.
May you see into whatever arises.
May you see into whatever arises.
Love and kindness.
May you be happy,
Well,
And at peace.
May you be happy,
Well,
And at peace.
May you open to things just as they are.
May you open to things just as they are.
May you experience the world opening to you just as you are.
May you experience the world opening to you just as you are.
May you welcome whatever arises.
May you welcome whatever arises.
Compassion.
May you be free of suffering,
Harm,
And disturbance.
May you be free of suffering,
Harm,
And disturbance.
May you accept things just as they are.
May you accept things just as they are.
May you experience the world accepting you just as you are.
May you experience the world accepting you just as you are.
May you serve whatever arises.
May you serve whatever arises.
Joy.
May you enjoy the activities of life itself.
May you enjoy the activities of life itself.
May you enjoy things just as they are.
May you experience the world taking joy in all that you do.
May you know what to do,
Whatever arises.
May you know what to do,
Whatever arises.
We'll just sit here for another minute or so.
Just sit here quietly being aware of what feelings have come up while you've been doing these phrases,
If any.
And it's okay if none have come up.
But if any feelings have come up,
That will direct your mind to maybe areas you need to work on.
Just really be aware of your feelings right now.
S.
.
.
