METHODS OF METTA MEDITATION
Metta meditation is one of the most recognized and practiced forms of meditation both in and outside of Buddhism. Metta is the sincere wish and cultivation of loving-kindness toward ourselves and all living beings.
There are a few different ways or phrases of metta, because metta meditation is simply mentally reciting a phrase: “May I be happy. May I be well. May I be free from suffering.” There are a few variations between different Buddhist traditions, but that is the general direction of metta recitation.
The metta phrase is taken from the Metta Sutra where the Buddha said, “Wishing: In gladness and in safety, May all beings be at ease. Whatever living beings there may be; Whether they are weak or strong, omitting none, The great or the mighty, medium, short or small, The seen and the unseen, Those living near and far away, Those born and to-be-born—May all beings be at ease!”
To begin the metta meditation, we want to get into our normal meditation pose and seating. The first part of metta meditation is to focus and recite for yourself. You can either visualize yourself, or simply focus on your breathing as you recite. After a few full, deep breaths, mentally recite:
May I be happy.
May I be safe.
May I be healthy.
May my mind be at ease.
Repeat this phrase three times or as many times as you wish. The next part is to direct your metta toward a loved one (a parent, spouse, sibling, friend, etc.). It is better to visualize and focus on people individually, but you may also do it in a “group.” Then recite:
May you (they) be happy.
May you (they) be safe.
May you (they) be healthy.
May your (their) mind be at ease.
Again, you can repeat this as many times as you like.
Next, focus your metta on a neutral person. Someone you neither like nor dislike. Perhaps a neighbor, co-worker, the mailman, or anyone else you have in mind. This might not always be as easy, as we tend to judge people as either being “positive” or “negative” in our lives. Once you’ve focused on someone, you’ll repeat the same phrase as above.
Moving on, we continue our metta practice by focusing on someone we dislike. The whole goal of metta meditation is to wish all beings to be happy and free, so even if we dislike someone, we should still wish them freedom from suffering. Though we might feel like someone might not deserve happiness, doing this can actually feel empowering. Once you’ve focused on someone, again, you will repeat the phrase above.
Lastly, we want focus our metta toward all living beings universally:
May all beings be happy.
May all beings be safe.
May all beings be healthy.
May all beings’ mind be at ease.
Metta meditation can help tremendously in the long run and not just give us momentary good feelings. Research shows that metta meditation increased people’s experiences of positive outcomes. Research showed that metta helped people grow emotionally and better able to ward off depression and be more satisfied with life. Metta is a meditation of care, concern, loving-kindness, and a feeling of warmth toward oneself and others. The meditation helps soften the mind and heart, and allows for a deeper level of kindness and love.
Loving kindness is without any desire to possess another. It is not a sentimental feeling of goodwill, not an obligation, but comes from a selfless place. It does not depend on relationships, on how the other person feels about us. The process is first one of softening, breaking down barriers that we feel inwardly toward ourselves, and then those that we feel toward others.