Hello,
Dear ones.
In the midst of this epidemic and social distancing and a lot of fear along with a lot of love and connection,
I wanted to offer a practice in loving kindness.
This is my version of Metta or Maitri or loving kindness practice.
It's a brief practice for offering compassion to ourselves,
To others,
And to all beings.
So I recommend a comfortable meditation posture but you can do this practice lying down if you like as well.
And eyes can be open or closed.
If you're alone you can repeat these words out loud after me and if you're not alone right now just say them in your own mind.
So first to open our hearts bring to mind someone very dear to you,
Someone who is very easy for you to love.
This could be a person or an animal.
And imagine that they're sitting in front of you and you can see their eyes.
And then repeating out louder in your mind these phrases to this loved one.
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be peaceful and at ease.
May you be healthy and well.
May you be safe from inner harm and outer harm.
May you be happy.
May you be free.
May you be free.
And see the effect on this person or animal in your imagination as they receive the benefits of your offering of loving kindness to them.
And sensing the tenderness in your own heart after doing this practice for this loved one we're going to offer the same phrases to ourselves because truly it is hard to love fully if we do not include ourselves.
So saying to yourself,
May I be filled with loving kindness.
May I be peaceful and at ease.
May I be healthy and well.
May I be safe from inner harm and outer harm.
May I be happy.
And may I be free.
And see yourself benefiting from these kind words how this might soften the ways that you protect and brace and harden yourself.
Let this compassion in.
And now we'll bring to mind someone totally neutral in your world.
Someone who you don't give much thought to but perhaps you see them on a regular basis.
Maybe it's a neighbor or someone that you see at the grocery store.
Allowing this person to matter offering them loving kindness as well repeating after me.
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be peaceful and at ease.
May you be healthy and well.
May you be safe from inner harm and outer harm.
May you be happy.
And may you be free.
And now bringing to mind someone who is difficult for you.
Maybe you're in conflict or estranged from them.
Maybe they've hurt you in some way.
Sensing how they too need loving kindness.
Repeating these words for this person.
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be peaceful and at ease.
May you be healthy and well.
May you be safe from inner harm and outer harm.
May you be happy.
And may you be free.
Perhaps notice any change in this being when you offer them your loving kindness.
And maybe notice any change in you.
And finally we will offer loving kindness for all beings.
So just take a moment to envision all the people of this world.
All the animals,
The birds,
The creatures in the sea,
The insects.
Every single part of the earth.
And envisioning the entire cosmos.
And imagining that the benefits of loving kindness can radiate out from your heart to help the entire universe.
Repeating after me.
May all beings be filled with loving kindness.
May all beings be peaceful and at ease.
May all beings be healthy and well.
May all beings be safe from inner harm and outer harm.
May all beings be happy.
And may all beings be free.
