
                                 METTA
             The Philosophy and Practice of Universal Love

                                   by
                         Acharya Buddharakkhita

                   The Wheel Publication No. 365/366

                           ISBN 955-24-0036-8

                Copyright 1989 by Acharya Buddharakkhita
                                          
  
                      BUDDHIST PUBLICATION SOCIETY
                      KANDY              SRI LANKA


                                 * * *


                         DharmaNet Edition 1995

              Transcription & Proofreading: Jane Yudelman
                        Formatting: John Bullitt

        This electronic edition is offered for free distribution
            via DharmaNet by arrangement with the publisher.

                        DharmaNet International
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                              Introduction
  
  
  The Pali word //metta// is a multi-significant term meaning 
  loving-kindness, friendliness, goodwill, benevolence, fellowship, 
  amity, concord, inoffensiveness and non-violence. The Pali 
  commentators define metta as the strong wish for the welfare and 
  happiness of others (//parahita-parasukha-kamana//). Essentially metta 
  is an altruistic attitude of love and friendliness as distinguished 
  from mere amiability based on self-interest. Through metta one refuses 
  to be offensive and renounces bitterness, resentment and animosity of 
  every kind, developing instead a mind of friendliness, 
  accommodativeness and benevolence which seeks the well-being and 
  happiness of others. True metta is devoid of self-interest. It evokes 
  within a warm-hearted feeling of fellowship, sympathy and love, which 
  grows boundless with practice and overcomes all social, religious, 
  racial, political and economic barriers. Metta is indeed a universal, 
  unselfish and all-embracing love.
  
    Metta makes one a pure font of well-being and safety for others. 
  Just as a mother gives her own life to protect her child, so metta 
  only gives and never wants anything in return. To promote one's own 
  interest is a primordial motivation of human nature. When this urge is 
  transformed into the desire to promote the interest and happiness of 
  others, not only is the basic urge of self-seeking overcome, but the 
  mind becomes universal by identifying its own interest with the 
  interest of all. By making this change one also promotes one's own 
  well-being in the best possible manner.
    
    Metta is the protective and immensely patient attitude of a mother 
  who forbears all difficulties for the sake of her child and ever 
  protects it despite its misbehavior. Metta is also the attitude of a 
  friend who wants to give one the best to further one's well-being. If 
  these qualities of metta are sufficiently cultivated through 
  //metta-bhavana// -- the meditation on universal love -- the result is 
  the acquisition of a tremendous inner power which preserves, protects 
  and heals both oneself and others.
    
    Apart from its higher implications, today metta is a pragmatic 
  necessity. In a world menaced by all kinds of destructiveness, metta 
  in deed, word and thought is the only constructive means to bring 
  concord, peace and mutual understanding. Indeed, metta is the supreme 
  means, for it forms the fundamental tenet of all the higher religions 
  as well as the basis for all benevolent activities intended to promote 
  human well-being.
    
    The present booklet aims at exploring various facets of metta both 
  in theory and in practice. The examination of the doctrinal and 
  ethical side of metta will proceed through a study of the popular 
  //Karaniya Metta Sutta//, the Buddha's "Hymn of Universal Love." In 
  connection with this theme we will also look at several other short 
  texts dealing with metta. The explanation of metta-bhavana, the 
  meditation on universal love, will give the practical directions for 
  developing this type of contemplation as set forth in the main 
  meditation texts of the Theravada Buddhist tradition, the 
  //Visuddhimagga//, the //Vimuttimagga// and the //Patisambhidamagga//.
  
  
  
                                 * * *
                                          
                                          
                                   1.
                        The Karaniya Metta Sutta
                         Hymn of Universal Love
  
  
       1
                                          
       Karaniyam atthakusalena
       Yan tam santam padam abhisamecca
       Sakko uju ca suju ca
       Suvaco c'assa mudu anatimani
  
                 Who seeks to promote his welfare,
                 Having glimpsed the state of perfect peace,
                 Should be able, honest and upright,
                 Gentle in speech, meek and not proud.
  
       
       2
       
       Santussako ca subharo ca
       Appakicco ca sallahukavutti
       Santindriyo ca nipako ca
       Appagabbho kulesu ananugiddho
                 
                 Contented, he ought to be easy to support,
                 Not over-busy, and simple in living.
                 Tranquil his senses, let him be prudent,
                 And not brazen, nor fawning on families.
                 
                                          
       3
                                          
       Na ca khuddam samacare kinci
       Yena vinnu pare upavadeyyum
       Sukhino va khemino hontu
       Sabbe satta bhavantu sukhitatta
       
                 Also, he must refrain from any action
                 That gives the wise reason to reprove him.
                 (Then let him cultivate the thought:)
                 May all be well and secure,
                 May all beings be happy!
    
                                          
       4
                                          
       Ye keci panabhut'atthi
       Tasa va thavara va anavasesa
       Digha va ye mahanta va
       Majjhima rassakanukathula
       
                 Whatever living creatures there be,
                 Without exception, weak or strong,
                 Long, huge or middle-sized,
                 Or short, minute or bulky,
                 
    
       5
                                          
       Dittha va yeva adittha
       Ye ca dure vasanti avidure
       Bhuta va sambhavesi va
       Sabbe satta bhavantu sukhitatta
       
                 Whether visible or invisible,
                 And those living far or near,
                 The born and those seeking birth,
                 May all beings be happy!
                 
                 
       6
       
       Na paro param nikubbetha
       Natimannetha katthacinam kanci
       Byarosana patighasanna
       Nannamannassa dukkham iccheyya
       
                 Let none deceive or decry
                 His fellow anywhere;
                 Let none wish others harm
                 In resentment or in hate.
                 
                 
       7
       
       Mata yatha niyam puttam
       Ayusa ekaputtam anurakkhe
       Evampi sabbabhutesu
       Manasam bhavaye aparimanam
       
                 Just as with her own life
                 A mother shields from hurt
                 Her own son, her only child,
                 Let all-embracing thoughts
                 For all beings be yours.
                 
                 
       8
       
       Mettan ca sabba-lokasmim
       Manasam bhavaye aparimanam
       Uddham adho ca tiriyanca
       Asambadham averam asapattam
       
                 Cultivate an all-embracing mind of love
                 For all throughout the universe,
                 In all its height, depth and breadth -- 
                 Love that is untroubled
                 And beyond hatred or enmity.
                 
                 
       9
       
       Titthan caram nisinno va
       Sayano va yavat'assa vigatamiddho
       Etam satim adhittheyya
       Brahmam etam viharam idhamahu
                 
                 As you stand, walk, sit or lie,
                 So long as you are awake,
                 Pursue this awareness with your might:
                 It is deemed the Divine State here.
                 
                 
       10
       
       Ditthinca anupagamma silava
       Dassanena sampanno
       Kamesu vineyya gedham
       Na hi jatu gabbhaseyyam punar eti'ti
   
                 Holding no more to wrong beliefs,
                 With virtue and vision of the ultimate,
                 And having overcome all sensual desire,
                 Never in a womb is one born again.
                 
                 
                 
                 
                                 * * *
                 
                 
                 
                  2. The Background to the Metta Sutta
  
  
  The historical background which led the Buddha to expound the 
  //Karaniya Metta Sutta// is explained in the commentary written by 
  Acariya Buddhaghosa, who received it from an unbroken line of Elders 
  going back to the days of the Buddha himself.
    
    It is told that five hundred monks received instructions from the 
  Buddha in the particular techniques of meditation suitable to their 
  individual temperaments. They then went to the foothills of the 
  Himalayas to spend the four months of the rains' retreat by living a 
  life of withdrawal and intensive meditation. In those days, a month or 
  two before the rains' retreat started, monks from all parts of the 
  country would assemble wherever the Buddha lived in order to receive 
  direct instruction from the Supreme Master. Then they would go back to 
  their monasteries, forest dwellings or hermitages to make a vigorous 
  attempt at spiritual liberation. This was how these five hundred monks 
  went to the Buddha, who was staying at Savatthi in Jeta's Grove in the 
  monastery built by Anathapindika.
    
    After receiving instructions they went in search of a suitable 
  place, and in the course of their wandering they soon found a 
  beautiful hillock at the foothills of the Himalayas. This, according 
  to the commentary, "appeared like a glittering blue quartz crystal: it 
  was embellished with a cool, dense, green forest grove and a stretch 
  of ground strewn with sand, resembling a pearl net or a silver sheet, 
  and was furnished with a clean spring of cool water." The bhikkhus 
  were captivated by the sight. There were a few villages nearby, and 
  also a small market-town ideal as alms-resort. The monks spent a night 
  in that idyllic grove and the next morning went to the market-town for 
  alms.
    
    The residents there were overjoyed to see the monks, since rarely 
  did a community of monks come to spend the retreat in that part of the 
  Himalayas. These pious devotees fed the monks and begged them to stay 
  on as their guests, promising to build each a hut near the grove on 
  the sandy stretch so that they could spend their days and nights 
  plunged in meditation under the ancient boughs of the majestic trees. 
  The bhikkhus agreed and the devotees of the area soon built little 
  huts in the fringe of the forest and provided each hut with a wooden 
  cot, a stool and pots of water for drinking and washing.
    
    After the monks had settled down contentedly in these huts, each 
  one selected a tree to meditate under, by day and by night. Now it is 
  said that these great trees were inhabited by tree-deities who had a 
  celestial mansion built, appropriately using the trees as the base. 
  These deities, out of reverence for the meditating monks, stood aside 
  with their families. Virtue was revered by all, particularly so by 
  deities, and when the monks sat under the trees, the deities, who were 
  householders, did not like to remain above them. The deities had 
  thought that the monks would remain only for a night or two, and 
  gladly bore the inconvenience. But when day after day passed and the 
  monks still kept occupying the bases of the trees, the deities 
  wondered when they would go away. They were like dispossessed 
  villagers whose houses had been commandeered by the officials of 
  visiting royalty and they kept watching anxiously from a distance, 
  wondering when they would get their houses back.
    
    These dispossessed deities discussed the situation among themselves 
  and decided to frighten the monks away by showing them terrifying 
  objects, by making dreadful noises and by creating a sickening stench. 
  Accordingly, they materialized all these terrifying conditions and 
  afflicted the monks. The monks soon grew pale and could no longer 
  concentrate on their subjects of meditation. As the deities continued 
  to harass them, they lost even their basic mindfulness, and their 
  brains seemed to become smothered by the oppressing visions, noise and 
  stench. When the monks assembled to wait upon the seniormost Elder of 
  the group, each one recounted his experiences. The Elder suggested: 
  "Let us go, brethren, to the Blessed One and place our problem before 
  him. There are two kinds of rains' retreat -- the early and the late. 
  Though we will be breaking the early one by leaving this place, we can 
  always take upon ourselves the late one after meeting the Lord." The 
  monks agreed and they set out at once, it is said, without even 
  informing the devotees.
    
    By stages they arrived at Savatthi, went to the Blessed One, 
  prostrated at his feet, and related their frightful experiences, 
  pathetically requesting another place. The Buddha, through his 
  supernormal power, scanned the whole of India, but finding no place 
  except the same spot where they could achieve spiritual liberation, 
  told them: "Monks, go back to the same spot! It is only by striving 
  there that you will effect the destruction of inner taints. Fear not! 
  If you want to be free from the harassment caused by the deities, 
  learn this sutta. It will be a theme for meditation as well as a 
  formula for protection (paritta).
    
    Then the Master recited the //Karaniya Metta Sutta// -- the Hymn of 
  Universal Love -- which the monks learned by rote in the presence of 
  the Lord. Then they went back to the same place.
    
    As the monks neared their forest dwellings reciting the //Metta 
  Sutta//, thinking and meditating on the underlying meaning, the hearts 
  of the deities became so charged with warm feelings of goodwill that 
  they materialized themselves in human form and received the monks with 
  great piety. They took their bowls, conducted them to their rooms, 
  caused water and food to be supplied, and then, resuming their normal 
  form, invited them to occupy the bases of the trees and meditate 
  without any hesitation or fear.
    
    Further, during the three months of the rains' residence, the 
  deities not only looked after the monks in every way but made sure 
  that the place was completely free from any noise. Enjoying perfect 
  silence, by the end of the rainy season all the monks attained to the 
  pinnacle of spiritual perfection. Every one of the five hundred monks 
  had become an Arahat.
    
    Indeed, such is the power intrinsic in the //Metta Sutta//. Whoever 
  with firm faith will recite the sutta, invoking the protection of the 
  deities and meditating on metta, will not only safeguard himself in 
  every way but will also protect all those around him, and will make 
  spiritual progress that can be actually verified. No harm can ever 
  befall a person who follows the path of metta.
    
    
    
                                 * * *
                                          
                                          
                                          
                       3. Three Aspects of Metta
  
  
  The //Metta Sutta// consists of three parts, each of which focuses on 
  a distinct aspect of metta. The first part (lines 3 to 10) covers that 
  aspect which requires a thorough and systematic application of 
  loving-kindness in one's day-to-day conduct. The second part (lines 11 
  to 20) expresses loving-kindness as a distinct technique of meditation 
  or culture of mind leading to //samadhi// -- higher consciousness 
  induced by absorption. And the third part (lines 21 to 40) underlines 
  a total commitment to the philosophy of universal love and its 
  personal, social and empirical extensions -- loving-kindness through 
  all bodily, verbal and mental activities.
    
    Metta has been identified as that specific factor which "ripens' 
  the accumulated merit (//punna//) acquired by the ten ways for the 
  acquisition of merit (//dasapunna-kiriyavatthu//), such as the 
  practice of generosity, virtue, etc. Again, it is metta which brings 
  to maturity the ten exalted spiritual qualities known as "perfections" 
  (//paramita//).
    
    The practice of metta thus can be likened to bringing into being a 
  great tree, from the time the seed is sown to the time the tree is 
  heavily laden with luscious fruits and sends forth its sweet odor far 
  and wide, attracting myriads of creatures to it to enjoy its tasty and 
  nutritious bounty. The sprouting of the seed and the growth of the 
  plant are, as it were, brought about by the first part of the sutta. 
  In the second part the tree, robust and developed, is fully covered 
  with fragrant and beautiful flowers, riveting all eyes upon it.
    
    As a pattern of behavior, the first aspect of metta makes one's 
  life grow like a tree, useful, generous and noble. Metta, as 
  meditation, effects that spiritual efflorescence whereby one's entire 
  life becomes a source of joy for all. The third part envisages in this 
  imagery the fruition of that process of spiritual development whereby 
  one brings about an all-embracing application of spiritual love which 
  can powerfully condition society as a whole and lead one to the 
  heights of transcendental realization.
    
    The human mind is like a mine holding an inexhaustible storehouse 
  of spiritual power and insight. This immense inner potential of merit 
  can be fully exploited only by the practice of metta, as is clear from 
  the description of metta as that "maturing force" which ripens the 
  dormant merits. In the //Mangala Sutta// it is said that only after 
  one has effected an elevating interpersonal relationship (by resorting 
  to good company, etc.) does one choose the right environment for the 
  merits of the past to find fruition. This finding of fruition is 
  exactly what metta does. Mere avoidance of wrong company and living in 
  a cultured environment is not enough; the mind must be cultivated by 
  metta. Hence the allusion to the fruition of past merit.
                                          
                                          
                                          
                                 * * *
                                          
                                          
                                          
  
                         4. The Ethics of Metta
  
  
  Ethics, in the Buddhist context, is right conduct, which brings 
  happiness and peace of mind, and never gives rise to remorse, worry or 
  restlessness of mind. This is the immediate psychological benefit. 
  Right conduct also leads to a happy rebirth, enabling an aspirant to 
  progress further on the onward path to spiritual liberation. It is 
  also the basis for progress in Dhamma here and now. In other words, 
  right speech, right action and right livelihood of the Buddha's Noble 
  Eightfold Path constitute right conduct in the best sense.
  
    Buddhist ethics is twofold: fulfillment of certain virtues 
  (//caritta//), and precepts of abstinence (//varitta//). Caritta, as 
  found in the Metta Sutta, is as follows:
  
       [He] Should be able, honest and upright,
       Gentle in speech, meek and not proud.
       Contented, he ought to be easy to support,
       Not over-busy, and simple in living.
       Tranquil his senses, let him be prudent,
       And not brazen, nor fawning on families.
  
  Varitta is covered by the next gatha:
  
       Also, he must refrain from any action
       That gives the wise reason to reprove him.
  
  Caritta and varitta are thus practiced through metta expressed in 
  bodily and verbal action; the resultant inner happiness and altruistic 
  urge is reflected by the aspirant's metta of mental action, as found 
  in the conclusion of the stanza:
  
       May all be well and secure,
       May all beings be happy!
  
    The ethics of metta thus provides not only subjective well-being, 
  or the opportunity to progress in Dhamma here and now and to enjoy a 
  happy rebirth in the future, but it means the giving of fearlessness 
  and security -- //abhayadana// and //khemadana//.
    
    An analysis of the behavior-pattern and traits commended by the 
  Metta Sutta for meaningful interaction, both with reference to persons 
  individually and to society as a whole, provides ample insight into 
  the great implications of the sutta for mental health.
    
    Ability is not just mere efficiency or skill, but means doing a 
  thing well, out of consideration for others, so that one may not cause 
  inconvenience to others. As an able man can become very conceited, the 
  practitioner is advised to be "honest and upright," while being 
  "gentle in speech, meek and not proud" -_ indeed a perfect synthesis 
  and an equilibrium of traits.
    
    He who is //contented// is "easy to support." Frugality, from 
  consideration of others, is a noble trait. To the extent that one's 
  own needs are cut down as an example to others and as a means not to 
  inconvenience them, to that extent one shows refinement. The more 
  gross and materialistic a person becomes, the more his needs increase. 
  The yardstick to judge the mental health of a given society is thus 
  the diminution of needs, that is to say, the element of satisfaction.
    
    A materialistic and egocentric life is characterized not only by an 
  increase in wants but also by //restlessness//, showing itself in 
  being over-busy and overactive and lacking in moderation and 
  self-restraint. Metta, which promotes the well-being of all, naturally 
  has to be built on such qualities of sober humanism as are reflected 
  in having a few meaningful and select tasks which conduce to the 
  maximum well-being of all concerned.
    
    Living a //simple life// as an expression of metta involves a 
  reorientation of one's outlook and conduct, even in our competitive, 
  pleasure-seeking and possession-minded world. A man of simple living 
  is gentle, yet efficient and effective, and has restraint over his 
  sense-faculties, being moderate, frugal and controlled. Mental culture 
  through meditation for such a person becomes natural and effortless: 
  hence the attribute "tranquil in his senses."
    
    Metta in conduct includes the exercising of //prudence//, that is 
  to say, practical wisdom. It is only a sagacious and wise person who 
  can really practice metta in all its varied forms in daily life, and 
  through all modes of human relationship. Self-righteousness, arising 
  from a sense of being better or more devout than others, can be (and 
  often is) a masquerade of spiritual practice. To be "not brazen, nor 
  fawning on families" thus is a pointer for the person of metta not to 
  indulge in self-righteousness of any form.
    
    Further, the practitioner of metta is advised //to refrain from any 
  action//, even social conventions, //for which a wise man may reprove 
  him// as lacking in prudence or propriety. It is not good enough that 
  one should be good, but one should also appear to be good, in 
  consideration not only of one's own well-being but also of others' 
  well-being. An exemplary life is to be lived for the benefit of all, 
  for the welfare of society.
    
    A person living thus now plunges into the cultivation of the 
  all-embracing mind of metta through definite techniques of meditation 
  as envisaged in the remaining part of the sutta.
    
    Metta is also called a //paritta// -- a spiritual formula capable 
  of safeguarding one's well-being, protecting one against all dangers, 
  and rescuing one from mishaps and misfortunes.
    
    When the monks could not stay and meditate in that beautiful forest 
  provided with all facilities because the deities were hostile to them, 
  they had to leave the place. And when they were armed with the 
  protection of the Metta Sutta, which they recited and meditated upon 
  throughout their journey, by the time they reached the place, the 
  deities were full of friendly feelings and already waiting for them. 
  Hostility had been turned into hospitality.
    
    The protection of paritta works both subjectively and objectively. 
  Subjectively, as metta cleanses and strengthens the mind, it also 
  awakens the dormant potentials, resulting in the spiritual 
  transmutation of the personality. Transformed by metta, the mind is no 
  longer haunted by greed, hatred, lust, jealousy and those other 
  mind-polluting factors which are one's real enemy and source of 
  misfortune.
    
    Objectively, metta as a thought-force is capable of affecting any 
  mind anywhere, developed or undeveloped. The radiation of metta can 
  not only calm a person or remove the darts of hate from within him, 
  but in some cases can even cure him of severe illness. It is a common 
  experience in Buddhist countries to see how people are cured from all 
  sorts of diseases and freed from misfortunes through the recitation of 
  paritta. Thus metta is a real healing power. In this way does metta  
  act as a paritta, a healing formula affording safeguards.
    
                                          
                                          
                                 * * *
                                          
                                          
                                          
                       5. The Psychology of Metta
  
  
  The Pali commentaries explain:
  
       One loves all beings:
  
       (a) by the non-harassment of all beings and thus avoids 
           harassment;
       
       (b) by being inoffensive (to all beings) and thus avoids 
           offensiveness;
       
       (c) by not torturing (all beings) and thus avoids torturing;
       
       (d) by the non-destruction (of all life) and thus avoids 
           destructiveness;
       
       (e) by being non-vexing (to all beings) and thus avoids vexing;
       
       (f) by projecting the thought, "May all beings be friendly and 
           not hostile";
       
       (g) by projecting the thought," May all beings be happy and not 
           unhappy";
       
       (h) by projecting the thought, "May all beings enjoy well-being 
           and not be distressed."
   
    In these eight ways one loves all beings; therefore, it is called 
  universal love. And since one conceives (within) this quality (of 
  love), it is of the mind. And since this mind is free from all 
  thoughts of ill-will, the aggregate of love, mind and freedom is 
  defined as //universal love leading to freedom of mind//.
    
    From the above passage it will be seen that metta implies the 
  "outgrowing" of negative traits by actively putting into practice the 
  correlative positive virtues. It is only when one actively practices 
  non-harassment towards all beings that one can outgrow the tendency to 
  harass others. Similarly, it is with the other qualities of 
  inoffensiveness, non-tormenting, non-destroying and non-vexing in 
  deed, word and thought that one can outgrow the negative traits of 
  being offensive, of tormenting others, of destructiveness and of 
  vexatiousness. Over and above such positive conduct and principled way 
  of life, one further cultivates the mind through that specific 
  technique of meditation called //metta-bhavana//, which generates 
  powerful thoughts of spiritualized love that grow boundless, making 
  consciousness itself infinite and universal.
    
    Thoughts that wish all beings to be friendly and never hostile, 
  happy and never unhappy, to enjoy well-being and never be distressed, 
  imply not only sublimity and boundlessness, but also utter freedom of 
  mind. Hence the appropriateness of the expression "universal love 
  leading to freedom of mind."
    
    As for the meanings of the five aspects opposed by metta, 
  //harassment// is the desire to oppress or damage; //offensiveness// 
  is the tendency to hurt or injure; //torturing// is a synonym of the 
  sadistic tendency to torment, subjecting others to pain or misery; 
  //destructiveness// is to put an end to or to finish, the trait of the 
  extremist and the iconoclast; //vexing// is to tax, trouble or cause 
  others worry and strain. Each of these tendencies is rooted in 
  antipathy and malevolence, and provides a contrast with metta, both as 
  a mode of conduct and as a psychological state or attitude of mind.
    
    The substitution of a negative trait by the opposed positive course 
  implies a very developed and mature approach to life. The ability to 
  remain non-harassing, inoffensive, non-torturing, non-destructive and 
  non-vexing means a very refined, beautiful and loving mode of behavior 
  in a world where interaction between human beings creates so much 
  tension and misery.
    
    According to the //Visuddhimagga//, metta is a "solvent" that 
  "melts" not only one's own psychic pollutants of anger, resentment and 
  offensiveness, but also those of others. Since it takes the approach 
  of friendship, even the hostile one turns into a friend.
    
    Metta is characterized as that which "promotes welfare." Its 
  function is to "prefer well-being" rather than ill. It manifests as a 
  force that "removes annoyance" and its proximate cause is the tendency 
  to see the good side of things and beings and never the faults. Metta 
  succeeds when it loves, and it fails when it degenerates into worldly 
  affection.
    
    It will be clear from this analysis that only when one tends to see 
  the good in people, and prefers the welfare of others, and accordingly 
  is inoffensive (to remove any annoyance or hurt) and actively promotes 
  well-being, does metta function as a solvent. It is said that the 
  ultimate purpose of metta is to attain transcendental insight, and if 
  that is not possible, it will at least effect a rebirth in the sublime 
  sphere of the Brahma world, apart from bringing inner peace and a 
  healthy state of mind here and now. Hence the Buddha's assurance in 
  the //Metta Sutta//:
  
       Holding no more to wrong beliefs,
       With virtue and vision of the ultimate,
       And having overcome all sensual desire,
       Never in a womb is he born again.
    
    Love wards off ill-will, which is the most damaging of emotions. 
  Hence it is said: "For this is the escape from ill-will, friends, that 
  is to say, the freedom of mind wrought by universal love" (Digha 
  Nikaya, III. 234).
    
    In the practice of metta it is important to understand the emotions 
  which nullify metta either by being similar or being dissimilar. The 
  //Visuddhimagga// calls them "the two enemies -- the near and the 
  remote." Greed, lust, worldly affection, sensuality -- all these are 
  said to be the "near enemies" because they are similar in tendencies. 
  The lustful also sees the "good side" or "beauty," and therefore gets 
  involved. Love should be protected from it lest the masquerades of 
  these emotions deceive the meditator.
    
    Ill-will, anger and hatred, being dissimilar emotions, therefore 
  constitute the "remote enemy." The remote enemy can easily be 
  distinguished so one need not be afraid of it, but one should overcome 
  it by projecting a higher force, that of love. But one has to be wary 
  of the near enemy because it creates self-deception, which is the 
  worst thing that can happen to an individual.
    
    It is said that metta begins only when there is zeal in the form of 
  a desire to act. Having commenced through earnest effort, it can be 
  continued only when the five mental hindrances -- sensual desire, 
  ill-will, sloth and torpor, restlessness and worry, and doubt -- are 
  put down. Metta reaches consummation with the attainment of absorption 
  (//jhana//).
                                          
                                          
                                          
                                 * * *
                                          
                                          
                                          
                         6. Meditation on Metta
  
  
  There are various ways of practicing metta-bhavana, the meditation on 
  universal love. Three of the principal methods will be explained here. 
  These instructions, based on canonical and commentarial sources, are 
  intended to explain the practice of metta-meditation in a clear, 
  simple and direct way so that anyone who is earnest about taking up 
  the practice will have no doubts about how to proceed. For full 
  instructions on the theory and practice of metta-bhavana the reader is 
  referred to the //Visuddhimagga//, Chapter IX.
  
  
                                METHOD 1
  
    Sit down in a comfortable posture in a quiet place -- a shrine 
  room, a quiet room, a park, or any other place providing privacy and 
  silence. Keeping the eyes closed, repeat the word "metta" a few times 
  and mentally conjure up its significance -- love as the opposite of 
  hatred, resentment, malevolence, impatience, pride and arrogance, and 
  as a profound feeling of good will, sympathy and kindness promoting 
  the happiness and well-being of others.
    
    Now visualize your own face in a happy and radiant mood. Every time 
  you see your face in the mirror, see yourself in a happy mood and put 
  yourself in this mood during meditation. A person in a happy mood 
  cannot become angry or harbor negative thoughts and feelings. Having 
  visualized yourself in a happy frame of mind, now charge yourself with 
  the thought; "May I be free from hostility, free from affliction, free 
  from distress; may I live happily." As you suffuse yourself in this 
  way with the positive thought-force of love, you become like a filled 
  vessel, its contents ready to overflow in all directions.
    
    Next, visualize your meditation teacher, if living; if not, choose 
  some other living teacher or revered person. See him in a happy frame 
  of mind and project the thought: "May my teacher be free from 
  hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may he live 
  happily."
    
    Then think of other people who are to be revered, and who are also 
  living -- monks, teachers, parents and elders, and intensely spread 
  towards each one of them the thought of metta in the manner mentioned 
  already: "May they be free from hostility, free from affliction, free 
  from distress; may they live happily."
    
    The visualization must be clear and the thought-radiation must be 
  "willed" well. If the visualization is hurried or the wishing is 
  performed in a perfunctory or mechanical way, the practice will be of 
  little avail, for then it will be merely an intellectual pastime of 
  //thinking about// metta. One must clearly understand that to //think 
  about// metta is one thing, and to //do// metta, to actively project 
  the will-force of loving-kindness, is quite another.
    
    Note that only a living person is to be visualized, not a dead one. 
  The reason for this is that the dead person, having changed form, will 
  be out of the focus of metta-projection. The object of metta always is 
  a living being, and the thought-force will become ineffective if the 
  object is not alive.
    
    Having radiated thoughts of metta in the order already mentioned -- 
  oneself, the meditation teacher and other revered persons -- one 
  should now visualize, one by one, one's dear ones beginning with the 
  members of one's family, suffusing each one with abundant rays of 
  loving-kindness. Charity begins at home: if one cannot love one's own 
  people one will not be able to love others.
    
    While spreading metta towards one's own family members, care should 
  be taken to think of a very dear one, like one's husband or wife, at 
  the end of this circle. The reason for this is that the intimacy 
  between husband and wife introduces the element of worldly love which 
  defiles metta. Spiritual love must be the same towards all. Similarly, 
  if one has had a temporary misunderstanding or quarrel with any family 
  member or relative, he or she should be visualized at a later stage to 
  avoid recalling the unpleasant incidents.
    
    Next, one should visualize neutral people, people for whom one has 
  neither like nor dislike, such as one's neighbors, colleagues in one's 
  place of work, bare acquaintances, and so on. Having radiated loving 
  thoughts on everyone in the neutral circle, one should now visualize 
  persons for whom one has dislike, hostility or prejudice, even those 
  with whom one may have had a temporary misunderstanding. As one 
  visualizes disliked persons, to each one must mentally repeat: "I have 
  no hostility towards him/ her, may he/she also not have any hostility 
  towards me. May he/she be happy!"
    
    Thus, as one visualizes the persons of the different circles, one 
  "breaks the barrier" caused by likes and dislikes, attachment and 
  hatred. When one is able to regard an enemy without ill-will and with 
  the same amount of goodwill that one has for a very dear friend, metta 
  then acquires a sublime impartiality, elevating the mind upward and 
  outward as if in a spiral movement of ever-widening circles until it 
  becomes all-embracing.
    
    By //visualization// is meant "calling to mind" or visualizing 
  certain objects, such as a person, a certain area or a direction or a 
  category of beings. In other words it means imagining the people 
  towards whom thoughts of love are to be projected or spread. For 
  instance, you imagine your father and visualize his face in a very 
  happy and radiant mood and project the thought towards the visualized 
  image, mentally saying: "May he be happy! May he be free from disease 
  or trouble! May he enjoy good health." You may use any thought which 
  promotes his well-being.
    
    By //radiation// is meant, as explained above, the projection of 
  certain thoughts promoting the well-being of those persons towards 
  whom one's mind is directed. A metta-thought is a powerful 
  thought-force. It can actually effect what has been willed. For 
  wishing well-being is willing and thus is creative action. In fact, 
  all that man has created in different fields is the result of what he 
  has willed, whether it is a city or a hydro-electric project, a rocket 
  going to the moon, a weapon of destruction, or an artistic or literary 
  masterpiece. Radiation of thoughts of metta, too, is the development 
  of a willpower that can effect whatever is willed. It is not a rare 
  experience to see diseases cured or misfortunes warded off, even from 
  a great distance, by the application of the thought-force of metta. 
  But this thought-force has to be generated in a very specific and 
  skillful way, following a certain sequence.
    
    The formula for radiating metta that is used here has come down 
  from the ancient //Patisambhidamagga//: "May they be free from 
  hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they live 
  happily" (//avera hontu, abyapajjha hontu, anigha hontu, sukhi attanam 
  pariharantu//). The commentarial explanation of these terms is highly 
  significant. "Free from hostility" (//avera//) means absence of 
  hostility whether aroused on account of oneself or others, or on 
  account of oneself because of others or of others because of oneself 
  or others. One's anger towards oneself might take the form of 
  self-pity, remorse or a gripping sense of guilt. It can be conditioned 
  by interaction with others. Hostility combines anger and enmity. "Free 
  from affliction" (//abyapajjha//) means absence of pain or physical 
  suffering. "Free from distress" (//anigha//) means the absence of 
  mental suffering, anguish or anxiety, which often follows upon 
  hostility or bodily affliction. It is only when one is free from 
  hostility, affliction and distress that one "lives happily," that is, 
  conducts oneself with ease and happiness. Thus all these terms are 
  interconnected.
    
    By //order// is meant visualizing objects, one after the other, by 
  taking the path of least resistance, in a graduated sequence, which 
  progressively widens the circle and therewith the mind itself. The 
  //Visuddhimagga// is emphatic about this order. According to Acariya 
  Buddhaghosa, one must start the meditation on metta by visualizing 
  oneself, and thereafter a person for whom one has reverence, then 
  one's dear ones, then neutral people, then hostile persons. As one 
  radiates thoughts of love in this order, the mind breaks all barriers 
  between oneself, a revered one, a dear one, a neutral one and a 
  hostile one. Everyone comes to be looked upon equally with the eye of 
  loving-kindness.
    
    In the //Visuddhimagga// Acariya Buddhaghosa gives a very apt 
  analogy for the breaking of the barriers: "Suppose bandits were to 
  come to the meditator who is sitting in a place with a respected, a 
  dear, a neutral, and a hostile or wicked person and demand, 'Friend, 
  we want one of you for the purpose of offering human sacrifice.' If 
  the meditator were to think, 'Let him take this one or that one,' he 
  has not broken down the barriers. And even if he were to think, 'Let 
  none of these be taken, but let them take me,' even then he has not 
  broken down the barriers since he seeks his own harm, and metta 
  meditation signifies the well-being of all. But when he does not see 
  the need for anyone to be given to the bandits and impartially 
  projects the thought of love towards all, including the bandits, it is 
  then that he would break down the barriers."
  
  
  
                                METHOD 2
  
  The first method of practicing meditation on metta employs the 
  projection of loving thoughts to specific individuals in order of 
  increasing remoteness from oneself. The second method presents an 
  //impersonal// mode of radiating metta which makes the mind truly 
  all-embracing, as suggested by the Pali term //metta-cetovimutti//, 
  "the liberation of mind through universal love." The unliberated mind 
  is imprisoned within the walls of egocentricity, greed, hatred, 
  delusion, jealousy and meanness. As long as the mind is in the grip of 
  these defiling and limiting mental factors, for so long it remains 
  insular and fettered. By breaking these bonds, metta liberates the 
  mind, and the liberated mind naturally grows boundless and 
  immeasurable. Just as the earth cannot be rendered "earthless," even 
  so the mind of metta cannot be limited.
    
    After completing the radiation of metta towards selected persons, 
  when the mind breaks the barriers existing between oneself and revered 
  ones, beloved ones, friends, neutral ones and hostile ones, the 
  meditator now embarks on the great voyage of impersonal radiation, 
  even as an ocean-worthy ship voyages through the vast, measureless 
  ocean, nevertheless retaining a route and a goal as well. The 
  technique is as follows.
    
    Imagine the people residing in your house as forming an aggregate, 
  then embrace all of them within your heart, radiating the metta 
  thoughts: "May all those dwelling in this house be free from 
  hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they live 
  happily." Having visualized one's own house in this manner, one must 
  now visualize the next house, and all its residents, and then the next 
  house, and the next, and so on, until all the houses in that street 
  are similarly covered by all-embracing loving-kindness. Now the 
  meditator should take up the next street, and the next, until the 
  entire neighborhood or village is covered. Thereafter extension by 
  extension, direction-wise, should be clearly visualized and spread 
  with metta-rays in abundant measure. In this way the entire town or 
  the city is to be covered; then the district and the entire state 
  should be covered and radiated with thoughts of metta.
    
    Next, one should visualize state after state, starting with one's 
  own state, then the rest of the states in the different directions, 
  the east, south, west and north. Thus one should cover the whole of 
  one's country, geographically visualizing the people of this land 
  regardless of class, race, sect or religion. Think: "May everyone in 
  this great land abide in peace and well-being! May there be no war, no 
  strife, no misfortune, no maladies! Radiant with friendliness and good 
  fortune, with compassion and wisdom, may all those in this great 
  country enjoy peace and plenty."
    
    One should now cover the entire continent, country by country, in 
  the eastern, southern, western and northern directions. Geographically 
  imagining each country and the people therein according to their 
  looks, one should radiate in abundant measure thoughts of metta: "May 
  they be happy! May there be no strife and discord! May goodwill and 
  understanding prevail! May peace be unto all!"
    
    Thereafter one should take up all the continents -- Africa, Asia, 
  Australia, Europe, North and South America -- visualizing country by 
  country and people by people, covering the entire globe. Imagine 
  yourself at a particular point of the globe and then project powerful 
  rays of metta, enveloping one direction of the globe, then another, 
  then another and so on until the whole globe is flooded and thoroughly 
  enveloped with glowing thoughts of universal love.
    
    One should now project into the vastness of space powerful beams of 
  metta towards all beings living in other realms, first in the four 
  cardinal directions -- east, south, west and north -- then in the 
  intermediary directions -- northeast, southeast, southwest, northwest 
  -- and then above and below, covering all the ten directions with 
  abundant and measureless thoughts of universal love.
    
  
  
                                METHOD 3
  
  According to the cosmology of Buddhism there are numberless world- 
  systems inhabited by infinitely varied categories of beings in 
  different stages of evolution. Our earth is only a speck in our 
  world-system, which again is a minute dot in the universe with its 
  innumerable world-systems. Towards all beings everywhere one should 
  radiate thoughts of boundless love. This is developed in the next 
  method of practice, the //universalization// of metta.
   
    The universalization of metta is effected in these three specific 
  modes:
  
       l. generalized radiation (//anodhiso-pharana//),
       2. specified radiation (//odhiso-pharana//),
       3. directional radiation (//disa-pharana//).
       
    According to the //Patisambhidamagga//, the generalized radiation 
  of metta is practiced in five ways, the specified radiation in seven 
  ways, and the directional radiation in ten ways. These ten directional 
  ways may be combined with the five categories of general radiation and 
  with the seven categories of specified radiation, as we will show. In 
  each of these modes of practice, any of the four phrases of the 
  standard metta formula -- "May they be free from hostility, free from 
  affliction, free from distress; may they live happily" -- may be used 
  as the thought of radiation. Thus four types of thought applied to 
  five, seven, and 120 objects of metta amount to 528 modes of 
  radiation. Any of these can be used as a vehicle for attaining 
  absorption (//jhana//) through the technique of metta-bhavana. (See 
  Vism. IX, 58.)
  
  
  
  Generalized Radiation
  
  The five ways of generalized radiation are as follows:
  
       l. "May all beings (//sabbe satta//) be free from hostility, free 
           from affliction, free from distress; may they live happily."
       
       2. "May all those that breathe (//sabbe pana//) be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       3. "May all creatures (//sabbe bhuta//) be free from hostility, 
           free from affliction. free from distress; may they live 
           happily."
       
       4. "May all those with individual existence (//sabbe puggala//) 
           be free from hostility, free from affliction, free from 
           distress; may they live happily."
       
       5. "May all those who are embodied (//sabbe 
           attabhavapariyapanna//) be free from hostility, free from 
           affliction, free from distress; may they live happily."
  
  
  
  Specified Radiation
  
  The seven ways of specified radiation are as follows:
  
       1. "May all females (//sabba itthiyo//) be free from hostility, 
           free from affliction, free from distress; may they live 
           happily."
       
       2. "May all males (//sabbe purisa//) be free from hostility, free 
           from affliction, free from distress; may they live happily."
       
       3. "May all the Noble Ones (//sabbe ariya//) be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       4. "May all worldlings (//sabbe anariya//) be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       5. "May all gods (//sabbe deva//) be free from hostility, free 
           from affliction, free from distress; may they live happily."
       
       6. "May all human beings (//sabbe manussa//) be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       7. "May all those in states of woe (//sabbe vinipatika//) be free 
           from hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may 
           they live happily."
  
  
  
  Directional Radiation
  
  The ten ways of directional radiation involve sending thoughts of 
  metta to all beings in the ten directions. This method, in its basic 
  form, is applied to the class of //beings// (//satta//), the first of 
  the five generalized objects of metta. But it can be developed further 
  by extending metta through each of the five ways of generalized 
  radiation and the seven ways of specified radiation, as we will see.
  
       I. 1. "May all beings in the eastern direction be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       2. "May all beings in the western direction be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       3. "May all beings in the northern direction be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       4. "May all beings in the southern direction be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       5. "May all beings in the northeastern direction be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       6. "May all beings in the southwestern direction be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       7. "May all beings in the northwestern direction be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       8. "May all beings in the southeastern direction be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       9. "May all beings below (in the downward direction) be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       10. "May all beings above (in the upward direction) be free from 
           hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may they 
           live happily."
       
       II. 1-10. "May all those that breathe life in the eastern 
           direction ... above be free from hostility, free from 
           affliction, free from distress; may they live happily."
       
       III. 1-10. "May all creatures in the eastern direction ... above 
           be free from hostility, free from affliction, free from 
           distress; may they live happily."
       
       IV. 1-10. "May all those with individual existence in the eastern 
           direction ... above be free from hostility, free from 
           affliction, free from distress; may they live happily."
       
       V. 1-10. "May all those who are embodied in the eastern direction 
           ... above be free from hostility, free from affliction, free 
           from distress; may they live happily."
       
       VI. 1-10. "May all females in the eastern direction .. . above be 
           free from hostility, free from affliction, free from 
           distress; may they live happily."
       
       VII. 1-10. "May all males in the eastern direction ... above be 
           free from hostility, free from affliction, free from 
           distress; may they live happily."
       
       VIII. 1-10. "May all Noble Ones in the eastern direction ... 
           above be free from hostility, free from affliction, free from 
           distress; may they live happily."
       
       IX. 1-10. "May all worldlings in the eastern direction ... above 
           be free from hostility, free from affliction, free from 
           distress; may they live happily."
       
       X. 1-10. "May all gods in the eastern direction ... above be free 
           from hostility, free from affliction, free from distress; may 
           they live happily."
       
       XI. 1-10. "May all human beings in the eastern direction ... 
           above be free from hostility, free from affliction, free from 
           distress; may they live happily."
       
       XII. 1-10. "May all those in states of woe in the eastern 
           direction ... above be free from hostility, free from 
           affliction, free from distress; may they live happily."
    
  
  Explanation
  
  In this technique of universalizing metta, each of the five categories 
  of //generalized radiation// refers to the total dimension of animate, 
  sentient, or organic existence, belonging to the three mundane 
  spheres, namely, the //kamaloka//, the sphere of sensory existence 
  where desire is the primal motivation; the //rupaloka//, the realm of 
  the radiant Brahma gods with subtle form; and the //arupaloka//, the 
  realm of the formless beings with pure mental life. Whether it is a 
  "being," or that which "breathes," or a "creature," or that which has 
  "individual existence," or that which "is embodied" -- all refer to 
  the totality of animate existence, the distinction being that each 
  term expresses comprehensively a certain aspect of life in its 
  entirety.
    
    While visualizing each category one should keep in mind the 
  specific aspect expressed by its designation. If one trains the mind 
  in the manner of a "mental drill" after having exercised it with the 
  first two methods, the meaning of the five unspecified or generalized 
  terms will become clear. By the time one has completed the two 
  methods, the consciousness will be sufficiently developed and 
  all-embracing. And with such a consciousness, when each of these 
  universal concepts is grasped, the universalization becomes 
  effortless. It may be pointed out that visualization of each of these 
  is no longer of individual objects, but of a concept which is total 
  and all-embracing. The radiation in this case becomes a "flowing out" 
  of love in abundant measure towards the conceptualized mental object 
  -- all beings, all creatures, etc.
    
    Each of the seven categories of //specified radiation// comprehends 
  a part of the total range of life, and in combination with the others 
  expresses the whole. //Itthi// refers to the female principle in 
  general, incorporating all females among the devas, human beings, 
  animals, demons, spirits and denizens of hell. //Purisa// means the 
  male principle evident in all the spheres of existence, and both itthi 
  and purisa together comprehend the entirety. Again, from another 
  angle, the //ariyas// or the spiritually transformed seers, and the 
  //anariyas// or worldlings bound to the wheel of becoming, comprehend 
  the totality. Ariyas are those who have entered the transcendental 
  path; they are to be found in the human world and the celestial worlds 
  and therefore they constitute the tip of the pyramid of sentient 
  existence. Worldlings are in all the spheres of existence and 
  constitute the body of the pyramid from the base to the tip, so to 
  say. Likewise, the three categories of //deva//, //manussa// and 
  //vinipatika// -- gods, human beings, and those fallen into states of 
  woe -- comprehend the totality in terms of cosmological status. Devas, 
  the radiant celestial beings, comprise the upper layer, human beings 
  the middle layer, and vinipatikas the lower layer of the cosmological 
  mound.
    
    The "mental drill" in terms of //directional radiation//, the 
  radiation of metta to the above twelve categories of beings in the ten 
  directions, makes the universalization of metta a most exhilarating 
  experience. As one mentally places oneself in a particular direction 
  and then lets love flow out and envelop the entire region, one 
  literally transports the mind to the sublimest heights leading to 
  samadhi, concentrated absorption of the mind.
    
    When one projects this total wish for others to dwell happily, free 
  from hostility, affliction and distress, not only does one elevate 
  oneself to a level where true happiness prevails, but one sets in 
  motion powerful vibrations conducing to happiness, cooling off enmity, 
  relieving affliction and distress. It will be seen, therefore, that 
  universal love simultaneously infuses well-being and happiness and 
  removes the mental and physical suffering caused by the mental 
  pollutants of hostility, enmity and anger.
                                          
                                          
                                          
                                 * * *
                                          
                                          
                                          
                       7. The Blessings of Metta
  
  
       Monks, when universal love leading to liberation of mind is 
       ardently practiced, developed, unrelentingly resorted to, used as 
       one's vehicle, made the foundation of one's life, fully 
       established, well consolidated and perfected, then these eleven 
       blessings may be expected. What eleven?
       
       One sleeps happily; one wakes happily; one does not suffer bad 
       dreams; one is dear to human beings; one is dear to non-human 
       beings; the gods protect one; no fire or poison or weapon harms 
       one; one's mind gets quickly concentrated; the expression of 
       one's face is serene; one dies unperturbed; and even if one fails 
       to attain higher states, one will at least reach the state of the 
       Brahma world.
       
       Monks, when universal love leading to liberation of mind is 
       ardently practiced, developed, unrelentingly resorted to, used as 
       one's vehicle, made the foundation of one's life, fully 
       established, well consolidated and perfected, then these eleven 
       blessings may be expected.
   
                                     Anguttara Nikaya, 11:16
  
  
  //Metta cetovimutti// -- universal love leading to liberation of mind 
  -- signifies the attainment of samadhi, absorption based upon 
  meditation on metta. Since metta liberates the mind from the bondage 
  of hatred and anger, selfishness, greed and delusion, it constitutes a 
  state of liberation. Every time one practices metta, for however short 
  a period, one enjoys a measure of freedom of mind. Measureless freedom 
  of mind, however, is to be expected only when metta is fully developed 
  into samadhi.
    
    The various applications of metta, as indicated by the terms 
  "practiced, developed," etc., signify a well-structured force brought 
  about not only by specific hours of meditation, but also by converting 
  all one's deeds, words and thoughts into acts of metta.
    
    By "practiced" (//asevita//) is meant the ardent practice of metta, 
  not as a mere intellectual exercise, but by committing oneself 
  wholeheartedly to it and making it life's guiding philosophy, 
  something which conditions one's attitudes, outlook and conduct.
    
    By "developed" (//bhavita//) is implied the various processes of 
  inner culture and mental integration effected by the practice of 
  meditation on universal love. Since meditation brings about 
  unification of mind by integrating the various faculties, it is called 
  development of mind. The Buddha taught that the entire mental world is 
  developed by the practice of meditation on universal love, leading to 
  mind's liberation and the transformation of the personality.
   
    "Unrelentingly resorted to" (//bahulikata//) emphasizes repeated 
  practice of metta all through one's waking hours, in deed, word and 
  thought, and maintaining the tempo of metta-awareness throughout. 
  Repeated action means generation of power. All the five spiritual 
  powers, namely, faith, vigor, mindfulness, concentration and wisdom, 
  are exercised and cultivated by the repeated practice of metta.
    
    "Used as one's vehicle" (//yanikata//) signifies a "total 
  commitment" to the ideal of metta as the only valid method for the 
  solution of interpersonal problems and as an instrument for spiritual 
  growth. When metta is the only "mode of communication," the only 
  vehicle, life automatically is a "divine abiding" as mentioned in the 
  Metta Sutta.
    
    "Made the foundation of one's life" (//vatthikata//) is making 
  metta the basis of one's existence in all respects. It becomes the 
  chief resort, the haven, the refuge of one's life, making one's refuge 
  in the Dhamma a reality.
    
    "Fully established" (//anutthita//) refers to a life that is firmly 
  rooted in metta, has anchorage in metta under all circumstances. When 
  metta is effortlessly practiced, not even by error does one violate 
  the laws of universal love.
    
    "Well consolidated" (//paricita//) means one is so habituated to 
  metta that one remains effortlessly immersed in it, both in meditation 
  as well as in one's day-to-day conduct.
    
    "Perfected" (//susamaraddha//) indicates a mode of completeness 
  through total adherence and development, leading to that fully 
  integrated state in which one enjoys perfect well-being and spiritual 
  felicity, indicated by the passage detailing the eleven blessings of 
  metta.
    
    The benefits of metta are indeed great and comprehensive. For a 
  follower of the Buddha this is one supreme instrument that can be 
  wielded with advantage everywhere.
                                          
                                          
                                          
                                 * * *
                                          
                                          
  
                         8. The Power of Metta
  
  The subjective benefit of universal love is evident enough. The 
  enjoyment of well-being, good health, peace of mind, radiant features, 
  and the affection and goodwill of all are indeed great blessings of 
  life accruing from the practice of metta-meditation. But what is even 
  more wonderful is the impact which metta has on the environment and on 
  other beings, including animals and devas, as the Pali scriptures and 
  commentaries illustrate with a number of memorable stories.
    
    Once the Buddha was returning from his almsround together with his 
  retinue of monks. As they were nearing the prison, in consideration of 
  a handsome bribe from Devadatta, the Buddha's evil and ambitious 
  cousin, the executioner let loose the fierce elephant Nalagiri, which 
  was used for the execution of criminals. As the intoxicated elephant 
  rushed towards the Buddha trumpeting fearfully, the Buddha projected 
  powerful thoughts of metta towards it. Venerable Ananda, the Buddha's 
  attendant, was so deeply concerned about the Buddha's safety that he 
  ran in front of the Buddha to shield him, but the Buddha asked him to 
  stand aside since the projection of love itself was quite sufficient. 
  The impact of the Buddha's metta-radiation was so immediate and 
  overwhelming that by the time the animal neared the Buddha it was 
  completely tamed as though a drunken wretch had suddenly become sober 
  by the magical power of a spell. The tusker, it is said, bowed down in 
  reverence in the way trained elephants do in a circus.
    
    The //Visuddhimagga// records the case of one landlord of 
  Pataliputra (modern Patna), Visakha by name. It seems he had heard 
  that the island of Sri Lanka was a veritable garden of Dhamma with its 
  innumerable shrines and stupas adorning the isle. And blessed with a 
  favorable climate, the people were highly righteous, following the 
  Teaching of the Buddha with great fervor and sincerity.
    
    Visakha decided to visit Sri Lanka and spend the rest of his life 
  there as a monk. Accordingly, he made over his great fortune to his 
  wife and children and left home with a single gold coin. He stopped 
  for some time at the port town of Tamralipi (modern Tamluk) waiting 
  for a ship, and during that time engaged himself in business and made 
  a thousand gold coins.
    
    Eventually he reached Sri Lanka and went to the capital city of 
  Anuradhapura. There he went to the famous Mahavihara and asked the 
  abbot's permission to enter the Sangha. As he was led to the chapter 
  house for the ordination ceremony, the purse containing the thousand 
  gold coins dropped out from under his belt. When asked, "What is it?" 
  he said, "I have a thousand gold coins, sir." When he was told that a 
  monk cannot possess any money, he said, "I don't want to possess it 
  but I wanted to distribute it among all who come for this ceremony." 
  Accordingly he opened his purse and strewed the entire yard of the 
  chapter house, saying, "Let no one who has come to witness Visakha's 
  ordination depart empty-handed."
    
    After spending five years with his teacher, he now decided to go to 
  the famous Cittalapabbata forest, where a good number of monks with 
  supernatural powers lived. Accordingly, he went to the 
  jungle-monastery of Cittalapabbata. On his way he came to a fork in 
  the road and stood wondering which way to turn. Since he had been 
  practicing metta-meditation assiduously, he found a certain deva 
  living in the rock there, holding out a hand pointing the road to him. 
  After reaching the Cittalapabbata jungle-monastery, he occupied one of 
  the huts.
    
    Having stayed there for four months, as he was thinking of leaving 
  the next morning, he heard somebody weeping, and when he asked, "Who 
  is that?" the deva living in the manila tree at the end of the walkway 
  said, "Venerable sir, I am Maniliya (i.e. belonging to the manila 
  tree)."
    
    "Why are you weeping?"
    
    "Because you are thinking of going away from here."
    
    "What good does my living here do you?"
    
    "Venerable sir, so long as you live here, the devas and other 
  non-human beings treat each other with kindness. When you are gone, 
  they will again start their wrangling and quarrels."
    
    "Well, if my living here makes all of you live at peace, it is 
  good." And so he stayed on for another four months. It is said that 
  when he again thought of going, again the deity wept. So this Elder 
  stayed on permanently and attained Nibbana there. Such is the impact 
  of metta-bhavana on others, even among invisible beings.
    
    There is also the famous story of the cow. It seems that a cow was 
  giving milk to her calf in a forest. A hunter wanting to kill her 
  flung a spear which, when it struck her body, bounced off like a palm 
  leaf. So mightily powerful is metta -- lovingkindness. This is not the 
  case of one who has developed //metta-samadhi//. It is a simple case 
  of the consciousness of love for the offspring.
    
    Indeed, the power of metta can never be told enough. The 
  commentaries to the Pali Canon are replete with stories, not only of 
  monks, but also of ordinary people who overcame various dangers, 
  including weapons and poison, through the sheer strength of metta -- 
  selfless love.
    
    But let not metta be mistaken as a mere sentiment. It is the power 
  of the strong. If the leaders from different walks of life were to 
  give metta a fair trial, no principle or guideline to action would be 
  found to possess greater efficiency or fruitfulness in all spheres.
    
    In everything man is the ultimate unit. If man decides to 
  substitute metta as a policy of action for aggression and ill-will, 
  the world will turn into a veritable abode of peace. For it is only 
  when man shall have peace within himself, and boundless goodwill for 
  others, that peace in the world will become real and enduring.
   
                                          
                            * * * * * * * *
                                          
                                          
                                          
                            About the Author
  
  Ven. Acharya Buddharakkhita is founder and president of the Maha Bodhi 
  Society in Bangalore, India. In 1956 he was a member of the editorial 
  board of the Sixth Buddhist Synod in Rangoon, which brought out a 
  complete edition of the Pali Canon. Since then he has written numerous 
  books and translations of Buddhist texts, which have been published in 
  many countries. Best known is his classic English rendering of the 
  Dhammapada, published by the BPS under the title //The Dhammapada: The 
  Buddha's Path of Wisdom//. He also edits and publishes a monthly 
  magazine, //Dhamma//.
    
    An internationally recognized meditation master, he has lived and 
  taught abroad, and founded the Buddhayoga Meditation Society in the 
  United States. He has also taught Buddhology at the Nalanda Pali 
  Postgraduate Institute, Bihar University. Firmly committed to putting 
  Buddhist principles into practice, he has achieved distinction for 
  multi-faceted humanitarian activities in his native India.
                                          
                                          
                                          
                            * * * * * * * *


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                         DISTRIBUTION AGREEMENT
                         ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 TITLE OF WORK: Metta: The Philosophy and Practice of Universal Love
                (Wheel Publication No. 365/366)
 FILENAME: WHEEL365.ZIP
 AUTHOR: Acharya Buddharakkhita
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