Metta
This week I've been thinking and meditating about metta. Metta is a Pali word which means "loving kindness." It is the first of the brahma-viharas (the heavenly abodes) which are the four virtues which the Buddha says we should spend the rest of our lives developing. The four brahma-viharas are: metta (loving kindness), karuna (compassion), muddhita (sympathetic joy) and upeksha (equanimity). This week I've been teaching and meditating on metta.
There are several phrases that we can repeat in our meditations which help to cultivate the quality of loving kindness. They can be said in different ways but generally they go something like this:
May I be happy.
May I be safe.
May I be at peace.
May I live with ease.
Then as you are meditating you bring to mind someone you love, and you repeat in silence the prayer:
May they be happy.
May they be safe.
May they be at peace.
May they live with ease.
Then you bring to mind someone who you are neutral towards; say the person who checks your groceries at Whole Foods, or someone who you've seen at the yoga studio, but you've never talked to:
May she/he be happy.
May she/he be safe.
May she/be be at peace.
May she/he live with ease.
Then we think of someone who is challenging us. And again we go:
May they be happy.
May they be safe.
May they be at peace.
May they live with ease.
Lastly you bring to mind the whole planet, all the inhabitants, all sentient beings, everything and everyone:
May we be happy.
May we be safe.
May we be at peace.
May we live with ease.
Like that.
I've been doing that in private as well as guiding my students in the group classes. Personally I find metta practices to be incredibly powerful in the way they transform the texture of my heart. Right now there's a friend who's challenging me with her judgmental manner and as soon as I bring her to mind and say the prayers for her, I notice how there's a huge part of me that's not angry at her at all, a part of me that loves her unconditionally. I notice when I come out of my meditation that they way I hold all these people in my heart becomes more tender, and I am more curious as to why they are the way they are and why they behave the way they do, instead of closing my heart to them... What a great practice to do!
Theme: Loving Kindness
Focus: Opening the heart, shoulder loop
Warm ups
Suryas
Garudasana to Warrior 1
Warrior 2 to Reverse Warrior
Vasisthasana
Jumping into Handstands
Malasana to Bakasana
Eka Pada Galavasana prep to the arm balance
Trikonasana to Half Moon
Pigeon #1 Prep with thigh stretch
Partner cobra with a strap (to open the heart)
Urdhva Dhanurasana
Baby Kapinjalasana
Triangamukhaikapada Pashimottanasana
Krounchasana
Bharadvajasana 2
Baddha Konasana
Metta meditation
Savasana
Anusara Poster Project Pose:
Have started the Level 2 syllabi. Am on Reverse Warrior 2!
started reading golden compass yesterday!
also... can i link to this post??
thanks
emma
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