Loving Kindness By Graeme Lyall AM
The four Divine Abodes, according to the Buddha are Loving Kindness, defined in the Metta Sutta as: “Even as a mother protects with her life Her child, her only child,So with a boundless heart should one cherish all living beings”.
By cultivating such love to all creatures, without exception, one overcomes anger and hatred. This is also known as altruistic love. Boundless Love offered with no thought of reward. To offer love with the intention of reward is not love at all. It is greed and attachment.
Then there is Compassion, Which is the strong wish to take the troubles and suffering of others unto oneself so that the may be happy and peaceful. This is not pity for pity implies the wish that it is better to happen to another than to oneself. True compassion is the strong wish to take another’s troubles and sorrows unto oneself so that the other may be free from suffering.
Next is Sympathetic Joy which is rejoicing in the good fortune of others. It is the opposite of envy and covetousness and it eradicates greed.
And, finally Even-mindedness which is the quality of being unmoved by either happiness or misfortune. One who is even-minded truly understands the transitory nature of all things – that everything is subject to change. One who is even-minded, sees things as they truly are.
It is essential to cultivate these qualities if one is to overcome the Three Poisons of greed, anger and a deluded mind, which are at the source of all of our troubles. Indeed, all problems in the world can be sourced to these three poisons. Look at the recent troubles in the world, the destruction of the World Trade Centre, the Bali bombing and the Iraq war. If you analyse the roots of these disasters you will find that the perpetrators were motivated by these three poisons –greed, hatred and a deluded mind. Have they solved any problems? No! They have created huge loss and sorrow for many thousands of people. The Buddha said:
“Hatreds do not cease by hatreds in this world but by love alone do they cease”.Even the United Nations acknowledges this in the UN Charter of Human Rights which states: “Since wars being in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed.”
So we see that the true weapons of mass destruction are the three poisons of greed, hatred and a deluded mind. If we can eradicate these, we will have a truly peaceful world. How can we eradicate these poisons? By the cultivation of loving kindness and compassion for all creatures.
Loving Kindness and Compassion are inseparable and complimentary. One cannot be practiced without the other.
There is a very nice story from the Jatakas. The Jatakas portray incidents from the Buddha’s former lives.
At one time the Buddha became an ascetic whose main practice was radiating loving kindness to all beings. The ruler of the country in which he lived was a very righteous king who practiced compassion for all of his subjects. Nobody had ever complained to the king so he was unsure of whether the people were too afraid to complain or whether they were happy with his rule. He decided to disguise himself as a commoner and go among his subjects so that he could ascertain their true feelings towards him. As he was wandering along a road, he saw an ascetic sitting under a fruit tree. He asked the ascetic what he was doing there and the ascetic replied that he had been practicing loving kindness meditation there for many years. The ascetic picked some fruit from the tree and offered it to the king to eat. The king said that the particular fruit from that tree were very bitter and not at all pleasant to eat. The ascetic insisted that the king, at least, try the fruit. To the king’s surprise, the fruit was very sweet with a delicious taste. The king was delighted and asked the meditator how come such a fruit, well known for its bitter taste, was so sweet? The ascetic replied that, due to his meditating in that spot for so long, the atmosphere has changed even to the extent of making what was a bitter fruit sweet and edible. He added that there was also another reason that the atmosphere had changed. He said that the country was ruled by a very kind and righteous king and this, also, had helped to purify the atmosphere.
One should never underestimate the power of the radiation of loving kindness it can subdue even the angriest creature. When the Buddha’s jealous cousin, Devadatta, tried to kill the Buddha by having the drunken elephant, Nalagiri, charge him, the Buddha subdued the elephant by radiating loving kindness. In the Jaya Mangala Gatha it says:
“Nalagiri, the king elephant, highly intoxicated, was raging like a forest fire and was terrible as a thunderbolt. Sprinkling the waters of loving kindness, this ferocious beast, did the Lord of Sages subdue.”
Loving kindness is in no way related to the kind of love when one expresses that “I love so and so because of their appearance or their nature or their behaviour” or “I love such and such a thing because it is desirable and satisfies my senses”. This is not loving kindness but is rooted in desire and attachment. When such a person or thing changes, and everything in the world is subject to change, such love can easily change to hate or aversion. Loving kindness is not of this nature. Loving kindness is cultivated through meditation. It is cultivated through mindfulness. Mindfulness discovers it, cultivates it and maintains it and it is a love free from selfishness and desire. This loving kindness is without discrimination.
The Pali word for loving kindness is ‘metta’ and its Sanskrit equivalent is ‘maitri’. Both words have their root in the Pali and Sanskrit words for ‘sun’, Mitta and Mitra. Like the warmth that emanates from the sun one should have a warm feeling towards all others. Just as the sun shines and provides warmth to all objects in the world without discrimination so should our radiation of loving kindness pervade all creatures of the universe without discrimination. Just as the sun dispels darkness, our loving kindness can dispel the darkness of ignorance and hatred within ourselves.
The practice of loving kindness meditation is not merely an intellectual exercise. To let it become purely intellectual is like a doctor devising a medicine to cure a patient’s illness but neglecting to prescribe and apply it to the patient. It is a great theory but, without putting it into practice, its effectiveness can never be verified.
The practice of loving kindness meditation is a safe and effective meditation method that does not require the supervision of an experienced teacher. It can be practiced by anyone and, if practiced conscientiously, it will become second nature. One will naturally speak gently, kindly and in a friendly manner and will maintain calmness even in the most stressful situations.
How does one go about practicing this loving kindness? It may surprise you that the Buddha recommended that you should start with yourself. He said:
“Investigating the whole world with my mind, never did I find anyone dearer than oneself. Since oneself is dearer than others, one who loves oneself should never harm others.”
One should first find a quiet and comfortable place. Quiet and comfortable because one does not want the distractions of noise or bodily discomfort whilst carrying out this practice. Sitting comfortably, one should focus the attention on the breath, just observing the fact of breathing and not worrying about whether the breaths are in or out. Continue this practice trying to eliminate the constant chatter that normally goes on in one’s mind. If the mind should wander, and it inevitably will, just note the wandering of the mind without getting angry about it, and bring it back to the breathing. Just breath naturally – don’t force it. One will, eventually, feel a sense of calm and relaxation. One is now ready to commence the loving kindness practice. Focus on yourself and mentally repeat the words, “May I be well and happy, may I be calm and peaceful”. Don’t just repeat these words mechanically but try to feel calm, peaceful and well and happy. Continue repeating, “May I be well and happy, may I be calm and peaceful”. Recall to your mind someone who is near and dear to you, preferably, a member of your family. One should avoid, at this stage, anyone with whom one is having an intimate relationship otherwise the loving kindness may transform itself into lust and desire, which is not the object of this exercise. Try to visualize them in your mind and strongly concentrate the wish, “May they be well and happy, may they be calm and peaceful”. Continue this practice until you feel that your thoughts of goodwill are really penetrating to this loved one wherever they may be. Next think and visualize another family member or friend and strongly concentrate the wish, “May they be well and happy, may they be calm and peaceful”. Clear all extraneous thoughts from the mind and concentrate your thoughts as if you are sending a radio signal to the person that you are visualizing. Strong thoughts can actually affect the person being thought of. Many people experience the phenomenon called déjà vu, where one thinks of a relative or friend that one hasn’t heard from for a long time and, unexpectedly, the telephone rings and that person is calling you. A possible explanation for this is that you or they have picked up the thought waves and contact is made. The brain is a buzzing mass of electrical energy as can be verified by being connected to an electro-encephalograph. Wherever there is electrical energy, there is a magnetic field. This is how radio and television transmissions occur. It is conceivable that someone who is ‘in tune’ with you, may be affected by your magnetic field. This has not been scientifically verified but I suggest it for your consideration. If there is value in this suggestion, it could account for the fact that the radiation of loving kindness can have a profound effect on the object of your loving thoughts. The Buddha said in the beginning verses of the Dhammapada:
“Mind is the forerunner of all good states. Mind is chief; mind-made are they. If one speaks or acts with a pure mind, because of that, happiness follows one, even as one’s shadow that never leaves.”
It is very similar to the quotation from the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights mentioned earlier:
“Since wars being in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed.”
The mind is very powerful and its power should not be underestimated.
Having radiated your loving kindness to a friend, extend your strong thoughts of loving kindness to all people that you know. Try to visualize them individually and mentally repeat: “May they be well and happy, may they be calm and peaceful”
Then extend these thoughts to all people in your vicinity mentally repeating “May they be well and happy, may they be calm and peaceful”.
Gradually extend these thoughts to all people in your city. Then expand these thoughts to embrace everybody in your country.
I found a very interesting and beautiful slogan on the noticeboard of Saint Josephs Primary school at Enfield. It said: “We should all love our country but why stop at the border?”
Why, indeed stop at the border? We should now extend our thoughts of loving kindness to all continents – Asia, Europe, Africa, North and South America. Next focus on those people who live on islands. Concentrate your thoughts of loving kindness to them repeating mentally, “May they be well and happy, may they be calm and peaceful”.
The Metta Sutta suggests that these thoughts of loving kindness should be extended to all creatures, visible and invisible, in the ten directions – East, West, North, South, the four intermediate directions as well as above and below.
Once one has embraced all living creatures throughout the universe with these thoughts of boundless loving kindness, one should bring the mind to focus on oneself repeating: “May I be well and happy, may I be calm and peaceful”. Like pouring water from a jug, pour these thoughts of loving kindness into oneself until they overflow and spread around you.
Through this practice one will be always calm and peaceful and will be surrounded with an atmosphere of peace, sweetness and goodwill just like the country where the ascetic meditated under the formerly bitter tree. One will be well on the way of destroying, once and for all time, those weapons of mass destruction – greed hatred and a deluded mind.
A Contribution to the Buddhist Community by Graeme Lyall
There is no such thing as a "Human Being" - there is only a "Human Becoming" Everything is subject to change
Killing in the name of a religion is NOT A RELIGIOUS ACT - It carries serious Karmic consequences.
Throughout its history of more than 2500 years, not one drop of blood has been spilt in propagating Buddhism.
Buddhism does not have terrorists but it does have Theravadins.
The Weapons of Mass Destruction are Greed, Anger and a Deluded Mind - Find them and Destroy them Now!
The beautiful sounds of the "Chant of Metta" can be heard and viewed HERE or HERE
Living in a Grateful World --- Be grateful to those who have hurt or harmed you, for they have enforced your determination -
Be grateful to those who have deceived you, for they have deepened your insight. -
Be grateful to those who have hit you, for they have reduced your karmic obstacles. -
Be grateful to those who have abandoned you, for they have taught you to be independent. -
Be grateful to those who have made you stumble, for they have strengthened your ability. -
Be grateful to those who have denounced you, for they have increased your wisdom and concentration. ---
Be grateful to those who have made you firm and resolute and helped in your achievement
From Ven. Master Chin Kung
Professor Lewis Lancaster from UCLA, Berkeley, Has given a brilliant lecture, "Buddhism in a Global Age of Technology".
It is well worth watching.
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Buddhism, as we have learnt from the wonderful writings of Schopenhauer especially, contains much stronger elements of it. The religion of the future will he a cosmic religion. It should transcend a personal God and avoid dogmas and theology. Covering both the natural and the spiritual, it should he based on a religious sense arising from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual and a meaningful unity. Buddhism answers this description. If there is any religion that would cope with modern scientific needs it would be Buddhism.
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