Cultivating Deep and Vast Compassion #1 - Foundation Practice
by Ajahn Achalo
This is the first in a series of three practice. In this meditation we do a body sweeping, establish mindfulness upon the breathing, move into Loving-Kindness practice and then establish the quality of Compassion firmly within one's own heart and mind. After this, we move on to include both another 'dear person' and then a 'neutral person.' In the follow up meditations we will train to include more and more beings within the Heart and attitude of Compassion.
Transcript
Developing true,
Deep and vast compassion.
Guided Meditation.
Level 1.
Hi,
This is Ajahnachalo and this is the guided meditation upon the theme of developing compassion.
Please do listen to the two-part introductory talk before doing the meditation,
As this will help prime your mind for the theme and the task.
If you have listened and are returning,
Welcome back.
We need to have generated a sincere interest and a strong feeling of resolve in order to be able to do this meditation effectively.
The words and phrases repeated during the practice will have more meaning if we've done some preparation and developed a noble aspiration.
The meditation begins with a body sweeping practice followed by establishing the awareness upon the feeling of the breathing.
I am aware that many people would like to just dive into the reflective and heart-based section of the meditation more quickly,
But please understand that the preliminaries are here for a good reason.
The restlessness and impatience that you might feel in the preliminary section of the meditation are precisely the kind of energies that we need to settle a little in order to do the compassion meditation properly.
So try to give yourself fully to the task of establishing the mindfulness in the body in the moment,
Then upon the breath,
And then in generating some loving-kindness as a basis.
This will take the first 15 minutes or so.
At the time of composing this meditation,
I have been a monk for more than 20 years,
And I personally meditate for at least four hours per day,
Much more when I can.
I say this not to show off or to intimidate,
But rather to back up the point here,
That I am not presenting this material as a type of spiritual sensuality or refined entertainment.
This is the real deal.
Meditation is a huge part of my life,
And I am sharing this in order to support sincere people to facilitate some very real change and development.
We simply must be willing to invest good time and energy if we want real and lasting results.
Although deep meditation upon the theme of compassion can be very pleasant,
At other times it is challenging.
So settling,
Gathering,
And collecting the mind in order to focus in this delicate heart area is truly supportive to the process.
In a way,
This meditation is more like open-heart surgery than anything else,
So we need to take some proper care and time.
So bringing your attention to the sitting posture.
Aware that you are sitting.
Knowing the felt experience,
Feeling the feeling of your bottom pressing against the mat or the chair or the cushion.
Sitting with an erect posture,
Not too tense,
Not too loose.
Wakeful.
Taking a few deep breaths,
Breathing in deeply a few times,
Filling the lungs.
Breathing in,
Bringing fresh energy into the present moment.
Breathing out,
Putting the past down,
Dropping any tension.
Bringing your awareness now to the top of the head.
Simply aware of any feelings on the surface of the skin.
Moving the awareness down the forehead and face,
Relaxing any tension.
Feeling the sides of the head,
The ears,
Then the back of the head.
Aware of any feelings or sensations at the back of the neck,
Then the front of the neck.
Now aware of the shoulder area,
Relaxing any tension.
Sweeping your mindful awareness down the area of the back,
The upper part of the back,
Over the shoulder blades,
The middle part of the back,
And the lower back,
Over the buttocks.
And once again,
Feeling the weight of the body pressing on the mat,
Becoming grounded,
Aware,
Awake,
Yet relaxed.
Bringing the awareness back up to the shoulder area.
Now moving the awareness down your right arm,
The upper arm,
And over the elbow,
Then down the lower arm,
The wrist area,
The palm of the right hand,
Including the fingers from the base to the tips.
And finally,
Feeling the feelings of the back of the hand resting in the other hand or on your lap.
Simply aware.
Once again,
Bringing the awareness back up to the shoulder area.
Now moving the awareness down your left arm,
The upper arm,
And over the elbow,
Then down the lower arm,
The wrist area,
The palm of the left hand,
Including the fingers from the base to the tips.
And finally,
Feeling the feelings of the back of the left hand resting in the other hand or on your lap.
Simply aware.
Bringing the awareness back up to the shoulder area.
Moving your awareness down over the chest,
Aware of any sensations.
Then down over the stomach area.
No judgements.
Simply aware of the feelings.
And now down over the abdomen,
The lower abdomen,
The groin area.
And once again,
Feeling the body pressing against the floor or the mat or the chair.
Now moving the awareness slowly down your right leg,
Sweeping awareness over the top and lower parts of the thigh,
The knee area,
Front and back.
Now sweeping the awareness down the lower leg,
The shin,
Then over the calf muscle area,
Aware of the ankle,
Bringing the awareness over the top of the foot,
Then include the toes,
Then finally simply being aware of any feelings in the area of the sole of the right foot.
And once again bringing the awareness back to the buttocks area,
Just feeling the body sitting.
Now moving the awareness slowly down your left leg,
Sweeping awareness over the top and lower parts of the thigh,
The knee area,
Front and back.
Now sweeping the awareness down the lower leg,
The shin,
Then over the calf muscle area,
Aware of the ankle,
Sweeping the awareness over the top of the foot,
Then including the toes,
And finally simply being aware of any feelings in the area of the sole of the left foot.
Now gently bringing your awareness to the tip of your nose,
Setting the intention to be aware of the feelings involved with in and out breathing.
Knowing the entire in-breath as it comes in through the nose,
Down through the chest and into the abdomen,
Then the entire out-breath,
Abdomen,
Chest,
Nose.
If it is helpful you can use a mental recitation in conjunction while aware of the feelings.
Breathing in but,
Breathing out do.
Butto,
The Buddha,
Mindful,
Aware,
Awake,
Mindfully knowing.
The feelings of the in and out breath,
The entire in-breath and the entire out-breath.
Practice this breath meditation for the next couple of minutes simply being mindful of the feelings involved in in and out breathing.
Breathing in but,
Aware,
Breathing out do,
Mindfully aware.
Breathing in but,
Aware,
Breathing out do,
Mindfully aware of the feelings involved in in and out breathing.
Before moving on to the compassion section of this meditation where we become more aware of the suffering aspect of conditioned experience,
It is important to establish the heart of loving kindness,
A quality of goodwill,
Of unconditional love.
So while still aware of the breath we will now generate powerful goodwill in the area of the heart.
Breathing in making the sincere wish,
May I be well.
Breathing out wishing may I be happy.
Feeling a warm feeling of loving acceptance to fill the heart area.
Generating kind wishes and deep goodwill.
Breathing in making the sincere wish,
May I be well.
Breathing out wishing may I be happy.
If it is useful you can also visualize metta as golden light filling the heart area while you generate and radiate.
A quality of unconditional love and acceptance which also wishes the very best.
Breathing in making the sincere wish,
May I be well.
The warmth of metta,
The golden light of metta filling the heart.
Breathing out wishing may I be happy.
The golden light spreading,
Filling the chest area.
The warmth of loving kindness,
Metta filling your heart area.
The upper chest and your upper body.
Compassion for oneself.
Having generated some mindful clarity and goodwill in the heart.
We will now continue on to our main theme.
We are going to be mentally reciting a few simple phrases in conjunction with the in and out breath.
May I be free from suffering on the in breath and may I be well on the out breath.
While still being aware of the breath for the next minute or so,
I would like to encourage you in doing a little inner reflection before we pick up these phrases.
It is important to acknowledge the very common human experience of suffering before wishing ourselves to be free from it.
It is also important to recognize deeply that we can ultimately be free from it.
To empower this deep wish with the power of truth.
So just asking yourself sincerely now,
Without any judging at all,
Just making an honest enquiry.
Do I currently have any suffering in my life?
We have to be careful here not to fall into any particular details or the story line.
We are simply trying to connect with the truth of conditioned experience.
So the question we ask ourselves now is,
And what is this suffering like?
How does it feel?
So what I am now asking of you here is to make the sincerest wish from the deepest reservoir of the heart that you can access.
May I be free from suffering.
Without thinking about the details,
Restrain falling into sorrow.
Remembering that at this stage we don't actually need to fix anything.
Be aware of the fact of pain,
Frustration and challenges.
And then wholeheartedly making the wish,
May I be free from suffering.
Now picking up the mental recitation and sincerely meaning this as you gently mentally recite on the in-breath,
May I be free from suffering.
And on the out-breath,
May I be well.
Oftentimes,
We try to avoid these feelings or push away the felt experience.
But many people find that through becoming more aware of these feelings,
This shared human experience,
And opening the heart with this cool,
Compassionate wish,
That a new sense of courage and space can open up in the mind.
While we understand that we might not be able to resolve all of the challenges which we face at present,
On another level we are affirming a deeper potential.
Freedom from all suffering is definitely possible.
It is our deeper potential.
Also,
Responding to pain with this kindest of wishes can feel very supportive.
The pain can be seen,
Known and cared for.
And so while holding this awareness of suffering with true care and with patience,
Not contending,
We are also gently affirming a deeper nature,
And determining to let go of the causes of suffering once we can.
So again,
Being aware of the fact of suffering,
And how this human experience feels,
And then sincerely wishing for freedom.
Breathing in,
May I be free from suffering.
Breathing out,
May I be well.
Understanding the experience with coolness and with deep kindness.
Aware of this human predicament without any judgement.
The heart melts and bathes this pain with loving care,
And the encouraging affirmation of true potential.
May I be free from suffering.
May I be well.
Stay with this for about a minute or so.
Metta.
It can be useful after practicing compassion to return to some loving kindness practice for a couple of minutes,
Re-establishing the warmth of goodwill,
Unconditional love,
And holding this in the heart and chest area,
Before continuing on.
And so simply wishing on the in-breath,
May I be well.
And on the out-breath,
May I be happy.
Enjoying the warmth of loving acceptance,
Of pure goodwill,
Of unconditional love,
To fill your heart.
Wishing on the in-breath,
May I be well.
And on the out-breath,
May I be happy.
Breathing in,
May I be well.
Breathing out,
May I be happy.
Having generated compassion for oneself,
And then re-established loving kindness in the heart,
We are now going to include another person.
A friend or relative or teacher.
One for whom it is easy to feel a kind regard for.
Choose just one person from this category now,
And visualize them before you for a moment.
With the simple recognition and acknowledgement that this dear person,
Like you,
Has challenges and frustrations in life.
We may know some of the details,
Yet of much of the struggle we will be unaware.
Suffice to say,
We wish them well,
From the bottom of our hearts.
After collecting Lord Buddha's example in his final birth,
After his morning meditation each day,
He would scan the world for beings that he could help.
His heart quivering with compassion.
So we also sincerely wish that both our self and this other dear person may have less and less suffering.
Meet with influences that may be truly helpful.
Empowering along the path to complete freedom.
Breathing in,
May I be free from suffering.
Breathing out,
May this other dear person be free from suffering.
The cool love of the sincere altruistic wish radiating inwards on the in-breath,
Like a healing balm.
And radiating outwards on the out-breath.
Finding waves of coolness,
Pacifying the fires of suffering of this dear person.
Breathing in,
May I be free from suffering.
Breathing out,
May this dear person also be completely free from suffering.
May I meet with every helpful and healing influence and receive every support to grow in freedom.
And wishing the same as sincerely as possible for this other being as well.
Breathing in,
May I be free from suffering.
Breathing out,
May this other dear person be free from suffering.
If it is helpful,
You can visualize light in conjunction with the mental recitation.
Whichever color suggests compassion to you.
Perhaps a deep cool blue,
Or as you prefer.
Breathing compassion inwardly on the in-breath and outwards on the out-breath.
Just continuing with this for a minute or so.
Yoshiko Marie Once again,
After practicing compassion,
It can be useful to return to some loving-kindness practice for a couple of minutes,
Re-establishing the warmth of goodwill,
Unconditional love,
And holding this in the heart and chest area before continuing on,
Simply wishing on the in-breath,
May I be well,
And on the out-breath,
May I be happy,
Allowing the warmth of loving acceptance of pure goodwill,
Of unconditional love,
To fill your heart,
Wishing on the in-breath,
May I be well,
And on the out-breath,
May I be happy.
Breathing in,
May I be well,
And on the out-breath,
May I be happy.
Breathing in,
May I be well,
Breathing out,
May I be happy,
Resting in the heart of loving-kindness,
Metta,
Including another,
The neutral person,
Expanding our awareness of the noble truth of suffering and our compassionate response to this to include another fellow human being now,
Simply acknowledging that just like ourselves,
Others are affected by difficult experiences.
From the very beginning of our lives,
Birth is often painful for the mother and child.
Sickness visits all of us at times,
Sometimes mild,
Sometimes very serious.
There is separation from the loved,
And having to associate with that which is not loved.
The pain of unexpected and even expected changes.
The challenges of aging.
These are experiences that we all share.
So bringing to mind now someone who you know,
Not a close friend,
But someone who you see with some frequency,
Someone for whom you feel somewhat neutral about,
Without needing to know all of the details of this person's challenges in life,
But simply because we know that surely there are some,
We will now offer this person the cool,
Caring wish that their suffering may be lessened somehow.
Still aware of the breathing,
Bring to mind the image of this person's face.
On the in-breath you keep generating the cool,
Loving balm of the energy of compassion inwardly,
And on the out-breath you radiate it outwards towards this other person.
Breathing in,
May I be free from suffering.
Breathing out,
May this other person be free from suffering.
Contained in these few potent words can be many other beautiful wishes.
These are the kinds of things we are wishing for when we mentally recite these words.
Whatever difficulty this person has,
May they meet supportive people and circumstances which help them through the challenges.
May they have the financial resources to get by just fine.
May medicines or surgery be entirely successful.
And even more importantly,
Whatever their experience is,
May they maintain well-being and hope.
May they have a spiritual refuge for deep inner solace.
May they maintain a good heart and have a strong mind.
May they meet with the teachings and practices that can liberate them from all suffering.
May they grow in Dhamma and realize the deepest liberating truths.
Breathing similarly for yourself on the in-breath and for this neutral person on the out-breath.
Breathing in,
May I be free from suffering.
Breathing out,
May this other person be free from suffering.
May this other person be free from suffering.
Once again,
After practicing compassion,
It can be useful to return to some loving kindness practice.
Re-establishing the warmth of goodwill,
Loving acceptance,
Unconditional love,
And holding this in the heart and chest area before continuing on.
Using our mental recitation,
Breathing in,
May I be well.
Breathing out,
May I be happy.
Allowing the warmth of loving acceptance,
Of pure goodwill,
Of unconditional love to fill your heart.
Wishing on the in-breath,
May I be well.
And on the out-breath,
May I be happy.
Breathing in,
May I be well.
Breathing out,
May I be happy.
In a few more minutes,
We will end the meditation session.
It is important to close properly.
This goodwill for oneself is the necessary foundation for cultivating true and deep compassion for oneself and eventually all beings.
Healthy self-care and self-interest is not the same as selfishness or self-cherishing.
It is the foundation that supports and inspires the sincere efforts and practices that will liberate from duality and lead to the realization of not-self.
For if we truly care,
We will work in order to better our situation.
And so once again we re-establish this wholesome,
Good heart as a support to our life and practice.
Wishing on the in-breath,
May I be well.
And on the out-breath,
May I be happy.
Using the warmth of metta,
Pure goodwill,
Unconditional love to fill your heart.
Breathing in,
May I be well.
Breathing out,
May I be happy.
Before finishing the meditation,
We will return to the mindfulness of breathing practice.
Brahma-Vihara based practices such as metta and compassion can sensitize the mind considerably.
And so it can be helpful to sharpen the mindfulness now.
Knowing the feelings in the body in more detail,
More clearly,
Can have a pleasant,
Grounding effect upon the mind.
And so bringing our attention to know the feelings involved in in and out breathing.
Try to know the entire in-breath and the entire out-breath.
Be aware of the feelings of the in-breath coming in at the nose,
Down through the chest and into the abdomen.
Bring the feelings of the out-breath out the abdomen,
Chest and nose.
Putting down perceptions of self and other,
And simply knowing feelings associated with the in and out breathing.
You can use buddho if you find this helpful.
Breathing in buddho,
Breathing out do,
Aware of the feelings.
Doing this for a minute or so before we make some final dedications.
How we are engaging our originally gout unstable Practicing meditation in these ways produces wholesome karma or merit.
It is very good to dedicate merits and to make aspirations,
Particularly after a long session of meditation when the mind has more clarity and power.
Since this has been primarily a compassion-based practice,
Let's dedicate the merits to all beings everywhere.
I dedicate the merits of this practice to all beings everywhere.
May we all grow to be completely free from every type of suffering.
It is good to work on the first level of this practice for some time,
Truly learning how to hold compassion in your own heart,
Deeply.
Then,
Sincerely including a couple of others.
After this,
Working through level two,
Regularly and repeatedly,
Holding greater numbers of beings in this cool altruistic heart.
Finally,
We work diligently on the third level,
Which is advanced,
As learning to include all beings,
Especially all of the difficult ones,
Will be very transformative and beneficial to your spiritual cultivation.
We learn to see all beings as equal in the experience of suffering,
And equal in their potential to be free from it.
Eventually,
We will come to see that all beings have the same,
Ultimately empty,
Non-being nature.
And even after this,
We will be even more kind.
Wishing you every success in your cultivation.
Be well.
4.9 (769)
Recent Reviews
Chris
November 16, 2025
Thank you for your kind teaching of compassion. Your guidance for the practice is helpful and inspiring.
Heike
October 18, 2023
Thank you ❤️❤️❤️
Lacey
July 18, 2023
Beautiful practice of altruism love kindness and compassion Thank you for sharing such wisdom
Ray
January 17, 2023
Powerful, ultimately simple, and very well guided. I have been enjoying multiple metta and compassion practices led by Ajahn and this one is wonderful, too. There is shared wisdom in many of these guided meditations, and there are also gems and jewels in each that cannot be heard in others. Thank you for your teaching 🙏🏼
Sepideh
August 6, 2022
I kept asking for a guru for some time now, and I found you! I am practicing with you every day. May you be well. May you be happy. With metta 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰
JoDee
July 23, 2022
Thank. You for providing space and guidance for compassion to grow within.
John
July 17, 2022
A very good introduction followed by very helpful practice.
Chika
June 16, 2022
His guided meditation itself is Dharma teaching. Thank you.
Lori
June 8, 2022
This was so amazing . Every day I start with this practice level one ? Is level 2 Somewhere? Excellent !
Michael
May 2, 2022
Amazing! Thank you Ajahn. May we all be happy. 🙏
Pam
April 18, 2022
Amazing!! Thank you so much for helping me connect to my heart so I can love myself with the out coming being loving my family, friends, humanity and the world better.
Cate
November 1, 2021
How I love this meditation. It always gives me a new heart & ability to share meta & compassion. What a gift. Thank you.
Dennis
May 18, 2021
Deep and vast reverence and appreciation for this kind and methodical teaching. 🙏 May all beings benefit from it.
samantha
March 13, 2021
🙏🏽amazing 🙏🏽
Margot
January 16, 2021
Outstanding guidance by a gifted teacher. Thank you.
Martyn
January 10, 2021
Beautiful. This is the heart of the practice. Sadhu sadhu sadhu. 🙏🙏🙏
Samacitto
December 22, 2020
Deep gratitude Ajahn.
Effie
November 15, 2020
Thank you so much.
Dermot
September 8, 2020
Powerful meditation. Thank you. 🙏
henny
June 21, 2020
thank you 🙏🙏🙏