Metta,
Or loving kindness meditation,
Is a wonderful heart practice.
By returning to Metta practice day after day,
And week after week,
We can cultivate a boundless,
Warm-hearted feeling that can change the way we relate to ourselves,
To those close to us,
To the people we find difficult,
And to the world at large.
In this meditation,
We will begin by generating Metta for ourselves,
And gently extend the field of loving kindness outwards until it covers the entire planet and all beings living upon it.
Start by sitting in a comfortable and relaxed manner.
Take two or three deep breaths.
Each breath should consist of a long,
Slow inhale and a complete exhalation.
Let go of anything on your mind prior to taking this scene.
This meditation is all you have to pay attention to now.
I invite you to put down whatever tasks you might have to do later today,
And simply be here now.
For a few minutes,
Feel the rising and falling of your chest as you breathe in and out.
Let go.
Visualize a bright golden light shining from your heart,
Pulsing vibrantly as you breathe.
Sitting quietly,
Begin to repeat the following Metta phrases,
Whether silently or out loud.
May I be happy.
May I be well.
May I be safe.
May I be at ease.
May I be happy.
May I be well.
May I be safe.
May I be at ease.
As you continue to repeat these phrases,
Really let the intent behind them sink in.
Connect to the intention of wishing yourself happiness.
You may begin to feel a warmth in your chest,
Or in your mind,
Or you may not.
If you do,
Reach out and connect to this warmth or other unpleasant sensation.
Whether you do or don't,
Simply continue to repeat the phrases.
May I be happy.
May I be well.
May I be safe.
May I be at ease.
Next,
Bring the image of a loved one to mind,
A kindly grandparent,
A child,
Or even a dear pet.
Once this image is verbally established,
Repeat the phrases,
May you be happy.
May you be well.
May you be safe.
May you be at ease.
As you've done with yourself,
Continue to direct the phrases and the intention behind them to your loved one.
Now visualize the neighborhood in which you are currently located.
Maybe this is a subdivision,
A city block or two,
Or even simply a patch of fields and forest.
Imagine with each phrase you repeat that a circle of meta expands from where you sit to fill your local area.
May we all be happy.
May we all be well.
May we all be safe.
May we all be at ease.
With each repetition,
Visualize meta flowing from your heart to warmly contact all beings in your neighborhood.
May we all be happy.
May we all be well.
May we all be safe.
May we all be at ease.
Now,
Expand further,
Picturing the meta that you're generating,
Extending to cover the entire state or region of the country that you reside in.
May we all be happy.
May we all be well.
May we all be safe.
May we all be at ease.
Feel free to get creative with your visualization.
Maybe you picture concentric circles of golden light expanding outwards from your chest with each in-breath and each out-breath.
Perhaps instead you hold the image of a dome or umbrella covering the entire region around you.
This dome can protect the beings beneath it and instead shower down loving kindness in the form of bright golden droplets of light.
May we all be happy.
May we all be well.
Now that you've infused your entire region with meta,
Let's expand even further.
Whatever visualization you're using,
Extend it to cover your entire country from border to border,
South to north,
East to west.
Not one part left out as you repeat.
May we all be happy.
May we all be well.
May we all be safe.
May we all be at ease.
From here,
Feel the power of your meta grow once more,
This time to envelop the entire world.
Picture individual people,
Animals,
Plants,
And critters connected to you and to each other by a golden global web of interdependence and loving kindness.
Picture the light of meta crossing roads and rivers,
Borders and oceans,
Leaving no being untouched or unloved.
May we all be happy.
May we all be well.
May we all be safe.
May we all be at ease.
You may continue to generate meta by repeating the phrases for as long as you wish.
If one particular step of this journey resonated with you,
Return to that step and really feel the impact,
The felt sense of meta acting upon you.
Alternatively,
Simply rest in the warmth of all the loving kindness you've been sending out.
Rest and let the warmth permeate your entire body.
In a few minutes,
I will ring a bell to bring this meditation to a close.
Namaste.
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