Krista: I wondered if you just do a quick and dirty loving-kindness meditation with us.  Take us through just the idea of the Metta practice, of a loving-kindness meditation.

Synthia: Oh, we'll do it! I'm thrilled that I get to tell it to everyone.

Okay, so I have to give you a one-minute explanation of what this is.  The Buddha taught mindfulness meditation which is a practice of paying attention moment-to-moment in a balanced way. He also gave instructions to, at all times, cultivate a loving heart.

There's a particular sermon called the sermon on impartial love - sometimes it's called the sermon of the Buddhist teaching on kindness and it says that towards everyone we should wish "May all beings be at ease." In Some translations it says "May all beings be happy" but "may all beings be at ease." Whatever living beings there may be. And then it goes through all the categories of living beings far and near and those you know and those you don't know.

And I've done it as a practice now for 25 years and I teach it, mostly, because I like it very much. And over the years I've come to appreciate that it sounds like, very much like, a prayer for people "may these people be well" and "these and these and these" and it is indeed, but I actually think it's most crucially a prayer for my own well-being. Because there is no time that I feel safer or happier than when I'm in touch with my own kindness or benevolence. It's a blessing practice essentially. In the mode of blessing there can't be any negativity. Negativity cannot exist in a blessing mind. It would be like driving your car in forward and reverse at the same time, it can't happen. So it's actually the the antidote to any negativity. And so we could do a very short, um, Reader's Digest version [laughter] of of a Metta practice, but it'll be fine. It will work anyway.

If you like you could close your eyes. It's perfectly all right to have your eyes open if you'd rather not. But since I'm going to ask you to imagine somebody who might not be here you might have an easier time imagining with your eyes closed.

So you don’t have to sit in a special way, but if you want to, close your eyes and just take two deep breaths: in and out, in and out, in and out. Take a long breath in — and out.

And in again — and out.

And feel yourself sitting here.

Feel yourself sitting here.

Feel yourself surrounded by all these people.

Feel yourself, I hope, happy and content.

And think in your mind, a blessing for yourself. The Metta practice, lovingkindness practice, always begins with a blessing for yourself. So think, for yourself:

"May I feel safe." Think those words in your mind. "May I feel content. May I feel strong. May I live with ease."

Bring into your mind someone that you love tremendously a parent a partner or child a sibling. Someone you love enormously. That thinking of them brings delight into your mind. You probably have more than one. Pick one just for this moment imagine them right in front of you. Imagine that they can feel you wishing for them. So, you make this wish in your mind, for your person.

"May you feel safe. May you feel content. May you feel strong. May you live with ease."

Think about another person that you love a lot. Imagine them. And wish for them:

"May you feel safe. May you feel content. May you feel strong. May you live with ease."

Let your body stay relaxed and easy. I often tell people to smile when their blessing makes their whole body more relaxed.

Think of someone that you rarely think about but that you'd recognize if you met. I always think about Paula who's been cutting my hair for 10 years. I like her very much, but I normally don't think about her in-between. So I love to think about her sometimes in the middle of blessing because my relationship with her becomes a little dearer. Think of a person that's a familiar stranger and wish for them.

"May you feel safe. May you feel content. May you feel strong. May you live with ease."

Think about, past the people that you recognize in the world — familiar strangers — all the unfamiliar strangers near and far. All around us here and stretching out all around the whole world all around this whole globe.  All people just like us, with lives, who want just as we do, to live in safety and contentment, to be able to feel strong, to have lives of ease. Wish for all those people, all beings near and far: May you feel safe. May you feel content. May you feel strong. May you live with ease.

Think about, past the people that you recognize in the world — familiar strangers — all the unfamiliar strangers near and far. All around us here, and stretching out all around the whole world. All around this whole globe. All people just like us. With lives. Who want, just as we do, to live in safety and contentment. To be able to feel strong and to have lives of ease. Who share with us the same wishes and hopes and dreams that we have as human beings. To come home to their family. To be able to take care of their family. Celebrate another birthday. Wish for all those people. All beings near and far.

"May you feel safe. May you feel content. May you feel strong. May you live with ease. May all of us, everywhere, feel safe and content and strong and live with ease."

Before you open your eyes now. Think of the person to your right. To your left. And back of you and in front of you. And see if as you say these phrases of blessing in your mind can actually feel that you are radiating out these blessings of well wishing to them. May you feel safe. May you feel content. May you feel strong. May you live with ease.

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