Metta Bhāvanā is the art of nourishing unconditioned, unbounded loving and caring for all. This art of loving enables us to accept the undesirable side in ourselves as well as in others therefore we can live with a tolerant heart and an open mind without discrimination. Loving kindness also helps us to break the barrier of a narrow and contractive mind caused by like and dislike, love and hate, good and bad, etc., which are often very artificial and subjective feelings. Cultivation of loving-kindness should start from oneself or from a dear (but not the dearest[i]) and respectable person who one knows. It is a kind of protective meditation recommended to everybody for safeguarding oneself as well as for nourishing relationships. This practice is especially recommendable for the hating character, for it helps such a person to see and feel in a different way to the effect that it softens his/her hardened heart. To a heated heart, metta cools it down. However, it is also good for an indifferent character to try to warm his or her cooling heart.
To begin, the practitioner should repeat in her mind for few minutes the following thoughts:
- May I be well and happy;
- May I be freed from physical pains and mental disturbances;
- May I be freed from enmities (within one’s mind as well as from others);
- May I be able to maintain happiness and prosperity.
Then shift your attention to a dear and lovable or respectable person with the same wishes. Note that you must know this person yourself and be able to recall his or her goodness and admirable or loveable qualities.
May s/he be well and happy; May s/he be freed from physical pains and mental disturbances; May s/he be freed from enmities; May s/he be able to maintain happiness and prosperity.These loving thoughts should be extended to all your loved ones, to friends and acquaintances, to your neighbors, etc, until you feel your heart is soft and tender to every creature that you turn your thoughts to.
Alternatively, one can develop loving-kindness by way of space expanding as follows:
May everybody in this house or building be well and happy; May everybody in this house or building be freed from suffering; May everybody in this house or building be freed from enmities; May everybody in this house or building be able to maintain happiness and prosperity. May all living beings in this town or city or village be well and happy; May they be freed from suffering; May they be freed from enmities; May they be able to maintain happiness and prosperity. May all creatures in this country (or in this universe) be well and happy; etc. May the good as well as the bad people be well and happy; may all beings be freed from suffering and enmity; may all of them be able to sustain their well being and prosperity.Only when you feel that warm, tender and cheerful feelings are powerful in your heart, then can you turn your thoughts to a person who is your enemy. Wish s/he the same things that you wish for the beloved ones. If resentful feelings arise when you think about the person or people who you detest, try to be mindful of this feeling, then recall his or her good qualities instead of the bad ones which could cause aversion. Understand in your mind that people are not always good or bad: dependent on some conditions, they are good, in certain circumstance, they are bad. They might be bad with you but they are good with others therefore, there is no absolute good or bad person as we artificially label them. Or consider that if they are really bad, they are indeed pitiful because they are accumulating bad karma, and surely, they will go to bad destinations, to some harmful companionship and they will reap the bitter fruits of their evil actions. Or “to what am I really angry? Is it his/her hair that causes my anger? Is it his/her nails…? Is it his/her bones…? Is it his/her stomach…? Is it his/her intestines…? Is it his/her blood or tears, etc., that cause me to be angry? By analysis of the physical parts of the person, one can see that it is absurd to hate such a combination that we call a person, to consider them as enemy.
In this way, the practitioner will overcome his /her discrimination and be able to treat everybody with a more open heart and a kind concern equally.
[i] Loving thoughts, when being focused on a dearest person, often cause attachment, craving or lust to arise. Attachment and lust are not metta, they are the indirect enemy of metta.
On the contrary, if one hastens to develop metta towards an enemy, one is likely to fail because hate would arise when one turns one’s thoughts to an enemy. Resentment and hatred is the direct enemy of metta. At the starting point, loving thought also does not easily boost up if it is directed to the object that normally one has a neutral or indifferent feeling with.
In a formatted form, Metta Bhāvanā is present as follows:
Ahaṃ avero homi May I be freed from enmity
Abyāpajjho homi -------------------mental suffering,
Anīgho homi ------------------ physical suffering
Sukhī-attānaṃ pariharāmi- May I be able to keep my well-being and prosperity.
Mama mātāpitu May my father and mother,
Acariyā ca as well as my teacher
Ñātimitta ca friend and all noble farers
Sabrahma-carino ca
Averā hontu May they be freed from enmity
Abyāpajjhā hontu May they be freed from all kinds of trouble
Anīghā hontu May they be healthy
Sukhī-attānaṃ pariharantu- May they be able to keep their well-being and prosperity.
Imasmiṃ ārāme sabbe yogino May all practitioners in this compound
Avera hontu be freed from enmity
Abyāpajjhā hontu be freed from all kinds of trouble
Anīghā hontu be healthy, and be able to keep
Sukhī-attānaṃ pariharantu. their well- being and prosperity.
Imasmiṃ ārāme sabbe bhikkhu-nī May all monks (nuns) in this compound
Sāmaṇerā ca upāsaka-upasikāyoca-Novices and lay-followers (men and women)
Avera hontu be freed from enmity
Abyāpajjhā hontu be freed from all kinds of trouble
Anīghā hontu be healthy, and be able to keep
Sukhī-attānaṃ pariharantu. their well- being and prosperity.
Amhākaṃ catupaccaya-dāyakā May my supporters and donors
Avera hontu be freed from enmity
Abyāpajjhā hontu be freed from all kinds of trouble
Anīghā hontu be healthy, and be able to keep
Sukhī-attānaṃ pariharantu. their well- being and prosperity.
Amhākaṃ ārakkha devatā May all angels who protect me
Imasmiṃ vihāre ( āvāse, ārāme) and this monastery, this place
Avera hontu be freed from enmity
Abyāpajjhā hontu be freed from all kinds of trouble
Anīghā hontu be healthy, and be able to keep
Sukhī-attānaṃ pariharantu. their well- being and prosperity.
Sabbe sattā, sabbe pāṇā May all living beings, all breathing-lives
Sabbe bhūtā, sabbe puggalā All sentient beings, all individuals
Sabbe attabhāva-pariyāpannā and all who are seeking life
Sabbā itthiyo, Sabbe purisā All women, all men,
Sabbe ariyā, sabbe anariyā All noble people and not noble
Sabbe devā, Sabbe manussā all deities, all human beings
Sabbe vinipātikā all lives that are in deprived states.
Avera hontu May they be freed from enmity
Abyāpajjhā hontu be freed from all kinds of trouble
Anīghā hontu be healthy, and be able to keep
Sukhī-attānaṃ pariharantu. their well - being and prosperity.
Dukkhā muccantu May all those who suffering be free from suffering!
Yathā-laddha-sampattito May they reach happiness and prosperity!
Māvigacchantu kammassakā. May fortune not desert them!
Puratthimāya disāya May (all living beings) in the East,
Pacchimāya disāya May (all living beings) in the West
Uttāra disāya May (all living beings) in the North
Dakkhināya disāya May (all living beings) in the South
Puratthimāya anudisāya … May (all living beings) in the Eastern
Pacchimāya anudisāya… May (all living beings) in the Western
Uttāra anudisāya… May (all living beings) in the Northern
Dakkhināya anudisāya… May (all living beings) in the Southern
Hetthimāya disāya... May (all living beings) live below
Uparimāya disāya… May (all living beings) live above
Sabbe sattā, sabbe pāṇā May all living beings, all breathing-lives
Sabbe bhūtā, sabbe puggalā All sentient beings, all individuals
Sabbe attabhāva-pariyāpannā and all who are seeking life
Sabbā itthiyo, Sabbe purisā All women, all men,
Sabbe ariyā, sabbe anariyā All noble people and not noble
Sabbe devā, Sabbe manussā all deities, all human beings
Sabbe vinipātikā all lives that are in deprived states.
Avera hontu May they be freed from enmity
Abyāpajjhā hontu be freed from all kinds of trouble
Anīghā hontu be healthy, and be able to keep
Sukhī-attānaṃ pariharantu. their well-being and prosperity.
Dukkhā muccantu May all those who suffering be freed from sufferings!
Yathā-laddha-sampattito May they reach happiness and prosperity!
Māvigacchantu kammassakā. May fortune not desert them.
Uddhaṃ yāva bhavaggā ca Up to the highest realm of existence
Adho yāva avīccito Down to the lowest level of hell
Samantā cakkavālesu in the entire solar system and encompassing this universe
Ye sattā pathavīcirā living beings from all walks of life
Abyāpajjhā niverā ca May they be without enmity and trouble
Nidukkhā ca nupaddavā. May they be happy and freed from misfortune.
Uddhaṃ yāva bhavaggā ca Up to the highest realm of existence
Adho yāva avīccito Down to the lowest level of hell
Samantā cakkavālesu in the entire solar system and encompassing this universe
Ye sattā udakecarā Those who live in the water
Abyāpajjhā niverā ca May they be without enmity and trouble
Nidukkhā ca nupaddavā. May they be happy and freed from misfortune.
Uddhaṃ yāva bhavaggā ca Up to the highest realm of existence
Adho yāva avīccito Down to the lowest level of hell
Samantā cakkavālesu in the entire solar system and encompassing this universe
Ye sattā ākāsecarā Those who live in the sky
Abyāpajjhā niverā ca May they be without enmity and trouble
Nidukkhā ca nupaddavā. May they be happy and freed from misfortune.
Dukkhā muccantu May all those who suffering be freed from sufferings!
Yathā-laddha-sampattito May they reach happiness and prosperity!
Māvigacchantu kammassakā. May fortune not desert them.
- Meditation on Loving kindness (Metta Bhāvanā) can reach the highest level of third jhāna (mental absorption) when joy and happiness pervade one’s mind in a state of pure and serene blissful being. This is the Brahma-vihara, a noble abiding deserved among highly developed beings (Brahma).
- Metta Bhāvanā is said to be successful when it helps one to transcend all boundaries usually we call dear or not dear, friends or enemies, etc. Metta helps one to be without enmity among the hating or heated environment. Metta helps one to break through self-centered tendencies or self-imprisonment among the cool-hearted or indifferent characters. Metta warms up our hearts, not allow suspiciousness and depression to creep in. Metta not only transforms one’s character from negative to positive, it helps to transform others as well. When metta is well developed, it improves our relationships in every aspect. For these qualities, loving thoughts and compassionate concerns are named Ariya-iddhi, the wonders or miracles of the noble ones.
- Metta should be cultivated in one’s mind (mettaṃ mano kammaṃ) and expressed in one’s words (mettaṃ vācī kammaṃ) and deeds (mettaṃ kāya kammaṃ) in private as well as in public place (MN, Kosambiya sutta & Cūla Gosinga sutta).
· There are 11 benefits of developing loving-kindness according to Mettasuttam (AN) as follows:
“Mettaya, bhikkhave, cetovimuttiya asevitaya bhavitaya bahulikataya yanikataya vatthukataya anutthitaya paricitaya susamaraddhaya ime ekadasanisamsa patikankha”ti. – Monks, when Metta is practiced continuously, frequently and earnestly, it yields abundant of fruits such as the liberation of the mind and eleven advantages are to be expected. What are eleven?
1. Sukham supati, easy sleeping;
2. sukham patibujjhati, waking up in an easy mood;
3. na pāpakam supinam passati, not having bad dreams;
4. manussanam piyo hoti, loved by human beings;
5. amanussanam piyo hoti, loved by non human beings;
6. devata rakkhanti, get protection from the deities;
7. nassa aggi va visam va sattham va kamati, not harmed by fire, arrows, and weapons;
8. tuvatam cittam samadhiyati, the mind is easily concentrated;
9. mukhavanno vippasidati, endowed with a bright face;
10. asammulho kalam karoti, not confused at the time of death;
11. uttari appativijjhanto brahmalokupago hoti, even though there is no further attainment, one is sure to reach brahma world.
* Texts on Metta are found at: D III.191 (mettena kāya--kammena etc.), 245 (°ŋ vacī--kammaŋ); D I.227 (mettaŋ+cittaŋ), perhaps also at Sn 507. mettā ceto--vimutti D I.251; S II.265; A IV.150; It 20; D I.250; II.186; III.49 sq., 78, 223 sq.; S V.115; A I.183; II.129; IV.390; V.299, 344; explained in detail at Visuddhimagga 308
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét