Mettā Bhāvanā

The Practice of Lovingkindness


2013.05 "Yes" Mettā

This one grew out of Dr. Jeff Brantley's "Yes" Practice.

May we be safe . . . yes!
May we be happy . . . yes!
May we be healthy . . . yes!
May we live with ease . . . yes!


2011.05 Flying Trapeze Mettā

This one speaks to the haunting strains of The International Silver String Submarine Band.

May we be safe.
May we be happy.
May we be healthy.
May we fly through the air with the greatest of ease.


2011.04 Clean Hands Mettā

This one comes to us from the wall of the IMS Forest Refuge kitchen; it addresses the CDC suggestion that we wash our hands for at least 20 seconds to avoid spreading germs.

May I be free from peril.
May I be free from pain.
May I be free from sorrow.
May I live in harmony with my life.

May all beings be free from peril.
May all beings be free from pain.
May all beings be free from sorrow.
May all beings live in harmony with their lives.


2011.03 Massachusetts Mettā Redux

This one is for my Mom, who, if there's anything to what the Tibetans say about reincarnation, just might be a little, one-year-old baby as we speak.

May you be safe.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
Now eat your peas. . .


2010.10 Colombian Mettā

This one, written in Google Spanish, is for the Lizard, who loves the Republic of Colombia.

Puedo estar seguro.
Puedo ser feliz.
Puedo estar sano.
Puedo vivir con facilidad.


2010.05 Freedom Mettā

This one speaks to the possibility of freedom from the Seven Deadly Sins.

May I be safe.
May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May I be free. . .
             free from pride,
             free from avarice,
             free from envy,
             free from wrath,
             free from lust,
             free from gluttony,
             free from sloth.


2010.02 Martin's Mettā

This one is for Dr. Martin Luther King.

May we be safe.
May we be happy.
May we be healthy.
May we be free.


2010.01 Massachusetts Mettā

This one is for my Mom, who died in 2010, on the Feast of the Epiphany; in my heart, I picture her as a nineteen-year-old WAVE from Brockton with long, curly black hair.

May your life be simple and good.

May it unfold with grace and ease.

May you be gentle and kind,
                 strong and brave.

May you be happy and healthy,
                 safe and protected.

May you be free from suffering, and the causes of suffering;
                 free from fear, and the causes of fear;
                 free from grief, and the causes of grief.

                 And, at the end of your days,
                 may the air that you breathe
                 be as sweet as your
                 Snickerdoodles.


2009.12 Brahmavihāra

The four brahmavihāra practices cultivate loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy and equanimity, powerful antidotes to the three poisons: attachment, aversion and ignorance.

May all mother sentient beings, boundless as the sky,
have happiness and the causes of happiness.

May they be liberated from suffering,
and the causes of suffering.

May they never be separated from the happiness,
which is free from sorrow.

May they rest in equanimity,
free from attachment and aversion.


2009.08 Montauk Mettā

This one speaks to the death of our friend Andy Kessler, a man of rare grace and ease.

May your life be simple and good, may it unfold with grace and ease.

May you be free from suffering, and the causes of suffering;
                 free from fear, and the causes of fear;
                 free from grief, and the causes of grief.

And at the end of your days,
may the waves that you ride
be sweet...
and cool.


2009.06 Left Coast Mettā

This one speaks to the unforgettable smell of Night Blooming Jasmines.

May your life be simple and good, may it unfold with grace and ease.

May you be free from suffering, and the causes of suffering;
                 free from fear, and the causes of fear;
                 free from grief, and the causes of grief.

And at the end of your days,
may the air that you breathe
be sweeter than
Night Blooming
Jasmine.


2009.03 Basic Mettā

This one is sweet and simple, the essence of loving kindness.

May we be safe.
May we be happy.
May we be healthy.
May we live with ease.


2008.12 Marine Corps Mettā

This one is for all the Marines over in Iraq, who hold a special place in my heart.

May your lives be simple and good,
may they unfold with grace and ease.

May you be free from suffering, and the causes of suffering;
                 free from fear, and the causes of fear;
                 free from grief, and the causes of grief.

And, at the end of your days,
may the air that you breathe
be sweet...
and cool.

OoRah.


2008.05 Louisiana Mettā

This one is for my Dad, who died in 1987, two days shy of Pearl Harbor Day; in my heart, I picture him as a freckle-faced farm boy from Louisiana with a full head of curly, black hair.

May your life be simple and good.

May it unfold with grace and ease.

May you be gentle and kind,
                 strong and brave.

May you be happy and healthy,
                 safe and protected.

May you be free from suffering, and the causes of suffering;
                 free from fear, and the causes of fear;
                 free from grief, and the causes of grief.

                 And, at the end of your days,
                 may the air that you breathe
                 be as sweet
                 as Tupelo
                 honey.