Meditation course, MCI 3/4, introduction, Metta Bhavana

Meditation course, MCI 3/4, introduction, Metta Bhavana by Suvannavira

Overview
Review last week – the Breath, how did the week go, did we use the breath to change our state?
Today’s practice

Meaning of metta

warm attitude,

open attitude

friendly

intention to help

desire for happiness

with awareness

understanding

gratitude

forgiveness

Rejoicing in merits

unattached, wanting nothing in return

universal but not equal

Putting ourselves in the shoes of others

Kindness

See what is good and bad, person as a whole, dear to someone, bad as poisons to overcome

Mother’s love for only child

Very strong positive emotion

Benefits? Your thoughts. Surprising
-Self view, feel good about yourself
-No enemies, not in such a relation to others, not trying to harm, not being harmed
-Energy, not blocked, not trying to forget, make abstract, ignore
-Reality, not stories, identity, real communication, strong bond, stable relations

Resistances
Hindrances and antidotes
Dangers and misconceptions, nagas vs. ideas about ourselves

Stages of practice – explain them
The how
-Words, intention
-Pleasant physical sensations, energies, attraction
-Images, of kindness, love (mention sex?)
-Memories, inc gratitude, moving words, happy times
-In place of the other, imagination
No effort of will / connection to body / be creative

Developing intention

Develping by practice

What we give attention to we become
Repeat stages we do in more detail

DO PRACTICE in 2/3 parts (cover in two weeks?),

Discuss experience
Favorite stage?
Question for reflection
Practice during the week
Outside formal practice
Set up for next week

Notes on teaching the Metta Bhavana meditation

Notes on teaching the Metta Bhavana meditation

About me; meditation 1990, OM in Triratna 1994, teaching 2002

Practice of meditation; like a musical instrument, states of mind and qualities, enlightenment

-- Capable of new experience we can’t now imagine, we often limit ourselves, need faith, intention

-- And need to be rooted in current experience, discover who we really are,

Hidden by; controlling our emotions, avoiding pain, ideas about ourselves, external activity

Working on yourself; means how we change;

Developing an emotionally and positive concentrated state of mind not by wilful suppression of unpleasant emotions and escaping unpleasant feelings but by:

-- Choosing to focus on the positive not the negative

Developing our awareness to be able to make those kinds of choices.

Not on autopilot.

Means we can take responsibility for our mental and emotional states.

Not blame others for what we feel.

-- Leads to states of openness, receptivity, love and compassion

Which allow positive, creative communication and improved relations

In conflicts capable of keeping positive states, aware and concentrated

Thinking quickly to make good decisions

Why continue coming?

How to practice in everyday life, how our everyday lives support our meditation

Единомышленники, spiritual friendship, support

Hindrances arise over time, after a few months and 10 years ….

Spiritual development is a long path, many stages, different needs later

Highest development of meditation is E, path to E is called the Dharma, essence of Buddhism

Triratna; international Buddhist community practising together

While meditating;

What happens to the experience of your body, your feelings, emotions, thoughts while meditating

What are the effects, changes

We can share experiences afterwards

Tip, don’t spend the while meditation thinking about it

Emphasis, exploring experience and discovering change

Записки: развитие доброты: 09.04.17

Развитие доброты:


WELCOME

Theme – developing awareness and kindness by means of meditation, this week it is kindness.


INTRODUCTION

Our name, why we came, one sentence, I am Suvannavira, Buddhist name, I am a Buddhist

No religion, I wanted to make these classes accessible to all.


INTRODUCTION

Many different types of meditation in the world, forget your preconceptions?

We teach meditation in terms of Western culture, so no Eastern words.

Meditation is a practice, we need to do it regularly to get results.

We do it to transform ourselves (in the end) completely.

Sometimes it is difficult, sometime easy and very pleasant, in both cases we just need to keep going.

It is a tool for us to work on ourselves, on our mind with our mind.

--Every time like the first time, if you have been meditating for years. It will help your practice.

--Go beyond your limits.


PREPARATION

Preparation is very important, it starts the process of meditation, and good to have time to set down at the end.

If we want to be in touch with genuinely positive emotions, a relaxed and broad base of awareness of ourselves is needed.

So we start by developing a broad base of awareness of ourselves and relaxation.

BROAD BASE OF EXPERIENCE means all the different aspects of ourselves, be open and honest, requires self confidence.

SOUNDS: starting with a broad experience outside ourselves, the sounds in the room and beyond.

BODY: the whole of our body sitting here, pleasant and painful feelings, and the rhythm of the breath in the body.

FEELINGS AND EMOTIONS: just let us feel what we are feeling, pleasant and unpleasant. Don't worry, everything is normal. This is particularly important for developing kindness.

THOUGHTS: people often think meditation is 'not thinking'. OK, now we can watch thoughts thoughts, how they come and go, doesn't mean start thinking about something. Thinking can be a doorway to deeper concentration. ALL TOGETHER


DEVELOPMENT OF KINDESS

As well as no religion, try not to use foreign words, so development of kindness, but really we are taking about Metta.

Meaning Kindness and other positive emotions like:

1/ friendliness

2/ desire to help (when you have the chance)

3/ love

4/ wishing beings well

5/ sensitivity to them

6/ sense of connection

7/ awareness of them

8/ interest in them

A/ When helping, disinterested, doesn't look to get something in return.

B/ Directed not just to those who are close but to all living beings.

C/ So not something we can develop in a day.

D/ But we start close to home, with ourselves and a good friend, meaning not a lover, child, parent, or someone who has died. Friendship as a powerful emotion, the seed of metta.


1st STAGE We develop kindness to ourselves. If we are not kind to ourselves, we can't be truly kind to others.

We start simply repeating the words to yourself MAY I BE HAPPY, MAY I BE WELL.

It is very simple, something we can all do, if you don't know what to do, do this.

Establish first a broad awareness of the body and your feelings and emotions, just as they are.

Maybe repeat the words in rhythm with your breathing. But don't do it mechanically, be open, aware, responsive.

Leave a pause between phrases, let emotions emerge in response to your words, notice responses, focus on them,

If we feel sadness, anger or other negative emotions, it is ok, don't need to avoid them,

just be aware of them and continue wishing yourself well.

Maybe other words or phrases will touch our deeper emotions, ok we can use other words, as long as they are positive.

2nd STAGE To a good friend. Bring them to mind and repeat these words. MAY THEY BE HAPPY, MAY THEY BE WELL

We develop kindness through keeping our mind concentrated on the positive emotions that we experience.

PRINCIPLE What we give our attention to grows.

Сейчас вы'берите хорошего друга или хорошую подругу вспомните его / её лицо и голос.

Внимательно почувствуйте свои эмоции к ним / ней такими, как они есть и повторите про себя:


MORE DEVELOPED PRACTICE.

In the first stage we develop kindness to ourselves again in various ways:

-Again using words, may I be happy, may I be free from suffering.

-Or are the emotions already there, can just focus on them.

-Bringing to mind our positive qualities, what others have said about us, what you want others to have said or noticed.

-Remembering a time when we were especially happy. Why were we so happy? Or very interested in something, or did it to a very high standard, or totally engaged.

In the second stage again to our friend:

-By continuing to use words.

-Maybe we already have positive emotions, then just focus on them.

-Bring to mind their positive qualities, intelligent, kind, beautiful, what is attractive, capture it in words, how to be like them.

-Reasons to be grateful, what they have done for us, given us.

-Radiate rays of kindness from your heart, rays of warm red light.

Notice the feeling that come up then concentrate on the positive ones.


FURTHER TEACHING Explain full practice, next few weeks doing first two stages then one more, looked at in more detail.

ALL SENTIENT BEINGS. GOAL To feel an uninterrupted flow of positive emotion to all that lives.

Normal fifth stage ends with the development of kindness to all living beings.

Someone once said, I love humanity, it is people I can't stand. It is not that.

HOW CAN WE DO THIS?

1/ Start with spreading out from us to the whole world.

2/ Words: may we be happy, may we be well.

3/ Traditional method: we radiate rays of kindness in all directions, rays of light.

Излучать доброту во всех направлениях.

4/ Bring to mind the different countries in the world, or the continents, where you have been and not.

Those that are attractive and not, rich and poor, cultured and not, stable and at peace and at war.

5/ Reflect that every being wants to be happy, to avoid pain, just like you do.

Just as intensely as you do, it is just as important to them as it is to you.

Look at someone and ask yourself how would I feel if that was what I looked like, if that was what my life was like,

if that was what I did. Exchanging self for other.


PRACTICE AT HOME

Try to meditate every day, or 3-4 times a week; 10, 20 or 30 minutes a day.

Start with самонаблудение, then development of kindness, can choose how many minutes for each, and for each stage.

Helps to find a regular place and time to meditate, for it to be calm around you, switch off your phone.

Leave time free before and after, otherwise jarring. Sometimes difficult, keep on, notice state of mind at beginning and end.

Repetition is key to success in meditation, come again, you haven't remembered everything.

Next week other practice, development of awareness, then come once a month to keep up the connection.


HOW TO PRACTICE IN EVERYDAY LIFE? AWARENESS of self and other, POSITIVE EXPRESSION for self and other

--PASSIVE We can be more aware of our feelings and emotions, get into the habit of самонаблудение.

--PASSIVE Be more aware of the people around us, take time to look at them, take time to feel them, be aware of their emotions, be aware of them as separate beings, what do they think and feel.

--ACTIVE Dwell on the positive in others and ourselves

--ACTIVE Rejoice in the merits of others and ourselves, practice putting peoples good qualities into words and tell them.

--ACTIVE Be more generous. --ACTIVE Be aware of our good qualities, what others say about us