Can anyone practice metta?
What are your suggestions to arise metta? Please share useful dhamma talks/links etc
The following is a YouTube playlist by Bhante Sujato.
In the playlist notes it says:
This series of 10 Dhamma Talks by Bhante Sujato, given during the rains retreat in Santi Forest Monastery in NSW, Australia in 2007 is the most detailed description of Ajahn Mahachatchaiâs Metta Meditation technique I have ever come across on the internet.
and Ajahn Chatchaiâs book here:
Here is a study guide of suttas from Ajahn Thanissaro:
https://www.dhammatalks.org/ebook_index.html#sublimeAttitudes
When I first learned metta we were taught to use slogans like: âMay I be well, may I be happy, may I be free from sufferingâ.
Overcome the 5 hindrances, get pamojja, either spread pamojja in all directions or develop it into piti or sukha and spread that in all directions.
Reverends, the ascetic Gotama teaches his disciples like this: âCome, mendicants, give up these five hindrances, corruptions of the heart that weaken wisdom, and meditate spreading a heart full of love to one direction, and to the second, and to the third, and to the fourth. In the same way above, below, across, everywhere, all around, spread a heart full of love to the whole worldâabundant, expansive, limitless, free of enmity and ill will. Meditate spreading a heart full of compassion to one direction, and to the second, and to the third, and to the fourth. In the same way above, below, across, everywhere, all around, spread a heart full of compassion to the whole worldâabundant, expansive, limitless, free of enmity and ill will. Meditate spreading a heart full of rejoicing to one direction, and to the second, and to the third, and to the fourth. In the same way above, below, across, everywhere, all around, spread a heart full of rejoicing to the whole worldâabundant, expansive, limitless, free of enmity and ill will. Meditate spreading a heart full of equanimity to one direction, and to the second, and to the third, and to the fourth. In the same way above, below, across, everywhere, all around, they spread a heart full of equanimity to the whole worldâabundant, expansive, limitless, free of enmity and ill will.â
Metta in its highest expression is a view that sees beings in their ultimate form, that is subject to suffering. This is contrasted with the conventional and deluded view of everyday life. As such it arises through insight when you do things which are more dramatic than normal, provided the mind is properly directed:
âI tell you, monks, awareness-release through good will has the beautiful as its excellenceââSamyutta Nikaya 46.54
Metta on its own, has nothing to do with the path. Just like jhana, itâs only when it is combined with Ariyan right view that itâs used for discernment.
Non-ariyan metta:
Firstly, a person meditates spreading a heart full of love to one direction, and to the second, and to the third, and to the fourth. In the same way above, below, across, everywhere, all around, they spread a heart full of love to the whole worldâabundant, expansive, limitless, free of enmity and ill will. They enjoy this and like it and find it satisfying. If they abide in that, are committed to it, and meditate on it often without losing it, when they die theyâre reborn in the company of the gods of BrahmÄâs Host. The lifespan of the gods of Brahmaâs Host is one eon. An ordinary person stays there until the lifespan of those gods is spent, then they go to hell or the animal realm or the ghost realm. But a disciple of the Buddha stays there until the lifespan of those gods is spent, then theyâre extinguished in that very life. This is the difference between an educated noble disciple and an uneducated ordinary person, that is, when there is a place of rebirth.
- AN 4.125
Metta with Ariyan right view:
Firstly, a person meditates spreading a heart full of love to one direction, and to the second, and to the third, and to the fourth. In the same way above, below, across, everywhere, all around, they spread a heart full of love to the whole worldâabundant, expansive, limitless, free of enmity and ill will. They contemplate the phenomena thereâincluded in form, feeling, perception, choices, and consciousnessâas impermanent, as suffering, as diseased, as a boil, as a dart, as misery, as an affliction, as alien, as falling apart, as empty, as not-self. When their body breaks up, after death, theyâre reborn in the company of the gods of the pure abodes. This rebirth is not shared with ordinary people.
- AN 4.126
The Path to Peace: A Buddhist Guide to Cultivating Loving-Kindness
by Ayya Khema
The Venerable Ayya Khema was beloved for her crystal-clear presentation, the extremely practical guidance she always gave, and the open-hearted quality of her teachings. In The Path to Peace, she presents a complete course in the active and intentional process to cultivate peace through metta, unconditional love. Peace is the sum of many parts, namely the fifteen wholesome qualities the Buddha himself noted in the Metta Sutta, including usefulness, mildness, humility, contentment, receptivity, and others. Ayya Khema expertly guides us through each individual condition, along with ten guided visualization meditation practices, using her trademark humor and personal narrative to help each reader shape their own path to self-transformation.
PAGES: 176
ISBN: 9781611809503
Partly correct. Metta is a component of the second link of the noble eightfold path (right thought), and with right view makes an essential contribution to eliminating the three unwholesome roots. It opposes the emotional defilement of anger.
"These two qualities have a share in clear knowing. Which two? Tranquillity (samatha) & insight (vipassana).
"When tranquillity is developed, what purpose does it serve? The mind is developed. And when the mind is developed, what purpose does it serve? Passion is abandoned.
âWhen insight is developed, what purpose does it serve? Discernment is developed. And when discernment is developed, what purpose does it serve? Ignorance is abandoned.ââAnguttara Nikaya 2.30
Hi , could you clarify , are you saying every buddhists that follows N8FP do practice mettabhavana or 4BV ?
Not as an isolated practice, but in the sense that the Buddha-to-be investigated & overcame sensuality, ill-will, and harmfulness to proceed to awakening, and any other serious practitioner must follow in his footsteps. Majhima Nikaya 19 explains how he did that, he had a reason for developing non-ill will:
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with ill will arose in me. I discerned that âThinking imbued with ill will has arisen in me; and that leads to my own affliction or to the affliction of others or to the affliction of both. It obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding.â
"As I noticed that it leads to my own affliction, it subsided. As I noticed that it leads to the affliction of others⊠to the affliction of both⊠it obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding, it subsided. Whenever thinking imbued with ill will had arisen, I simply abandoned it, dispelled it, wiped it out of existence.
[âŠ]
âWhatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness⊠If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with non-ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with non-ill will.â
I would like to take an example of empty glass where glass is empty of sensuality , ill-will & harmfulness , then that empty glass hasnt yet fill with metta or other three components of 4BV , so , isnt that one has to practice 4BV in order to fulfill the second component of N8FP if the right thought is metta , karuna & mudita ?
Since metta is the second of the four Brahmaviharas, hereâs a discussion that evolves into some posts that might shed more light on your question:
thanks all for sharing valuable resources
Hi! I would like to share this video by Bhante Vimalaramsi about how to practice Metta meditation Hope you enjoy it.
The Pali prefix a- can convey a reversative (or contrary) meaning as well as a negative and a privative one.
And so in the case of avyÄpÄda, if the prefix is taken in its negative sense we get ânot-maliceâ or ânon-maliceâ. In its privative sense we get âfreedom-from-maliceâ or âabsence-of-maliceâ. In its reversative sense we get âopposite-of-maliceâ, which is mettÄ.
Similarly with avihiáčsÄ âŠ
Negative: non-cruelty.
Privative: absence-of-cruelty.
Reversative: opposite-of-cruelty, which is karuáčÄ.
Your empty glass simile assumes the privative sense to be the correct and only way to construe the words avyÄpÄda and avihiáčsÄ. The Pali commentators, however, while treating all three as acceptable, seem to especially favour the reversative sense.
The practice of contemplation involves the selection of a theme and persisting with it. Practitioners have a certain aspect of dhamma they are currently interested in, and they pursue that theme of contemplation daily.
"âBut what quality is most helpful for exertion? We ask Master Gotama about the quality most helpful for exertion.â
âContemplating is most helpful for exertion, Bharadvaja. If one didnât contemplate, one wouldnât make an exertion. Because one contemplates, one makes an exertion. Therefore, contemplating is most helpful for exertion.â
[âŠ]
âHearing the Dhamma, he remembers it. Remembering it, he penetrates the meaning of those dhammas. Penetrating the meaning, he comes to an agreement through pondering those dhammas. There being an agreement through pondering those dhammas, desire arises. With the arising of desire, he becomes willing. Willing, he contemplates (lit: âweighs,â âcomparesâ). Contemplating, he makes an exertion.ââMajhima Nikaya 95
This sutta shows how the removal of ill will results in a mind of good will. Once ill will is removed, spatial radiation of the mind is achieved:
Having abandoned ill will & anger, he becomes one with a mind of no ill will.
"That disciple of the noble ones, headman â thus devoid of covetousness, devoid of ill will, unbewildered, alert, mindful â keeps pervading the first direction [the east] with an awareness imbued with good will, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth.
" when the awareness-release through good will is thus developed, thus pursued, any deed done to a limited extent no longer remains there, no longer stays there."âSamyutta Nikaya 42.8
The factors for fulfilling right thought are renunciation, non-ill will, and non-harmfulness. These operate with right view to oppose the three unwholesome roots, right view and right thought together comprising the wisdom group in sila/samadhi/panna. Renunciation opposes the emotive defilement of greed, and non-ill will and non-harmfulness that of hatred.
And the factors for fulfilling those is Yoniso Manasikara, so without truly understanding what that means, one could never overcome the 5 hindrances and achieve proper ariyan (noble) âmettaâ. Personally I think verbal affirmations like âmay all beings be happyâ doesnât have much to do with yoniso manasikara. I think understanding dependent origination is required for achieving yoniso manasikara.
I say, bhikkhus, that ignorance has a nutriment; it is not without nutriment. And what is the nutriment for ignorance? It should be said: the five hindrances. The five hindrances, too, I say, have a nutriment; they are not without nutriment. And what is the nutriment for the five hindrances? It should be said: the three kinds of misconduct. The three kinds of misconduct, too, I say, have a nutriment; they are not without nutriment. And what is the nutriment for the three kinds of misconduct? It should be said: non-restraint of the sense faculties. Non-restraint of the sense faculties, too, I say, has a nutriment; it is not without nutriment. And what is the nutriment for non-restraint of the sense faculties? It should be said: lack of mindfulness and clear comprehension. Lack of mindfulness and clear comprehension, too, I say, has a nutriment; it is not without nutriment. And what is the nutriment for lack of mindfulness and clear comprehension? It should be said: careless attention. Careless attention, too, I say, has a nutriment; it is not without nutriment. And what is the nutriment for careless attention? It should be said: lack of faith. Lack of faith, too, I say, has a nutriment; it is not without nutriment. And what is the nutriment for lack of faith? It should be said: not hearing the good Dhamma. Not hearing the good Dhamma, too, I say, has a nutriment; it is not without nutriment. And what is the nutriment for not hearing the good Dhamma? It should be said: not associating with good persons.
- AN 10.61
The root here is âhearing the true dhammaâ, and what is the core dhamma? dependent origination (which covers 4NT) and dependently originated phenomena (which covers anicca, dukkha, anatta).
Therefore in my opinion yoniso manasikara = attention on 3 poisons (mind states) and arising/ceasing of 5 aggregates â no-self â dispassion â vossaga (letting go) â overcoming 5 hindrances â pamojja â piti & sukha â ariyan metta