This month, we’ve been focusing on lovingkindness as a practical way of practicing Ahimsa — the first of the five Yamas (moral/ethical guidelines of yoga). Ahimsa means ‘non-harming’. The absence of violence. It goes beyond physical violence. It’s a principle of ‘first do no harm’ that we should all apply to our lives when thinking about ourselves and others. It can be as simple as not gossiping or meeting an unkind person with kindness and grace; knowing that their unkindness is probably more about them than it is about us.
Ahimsa is an obligation to be kind to ourselves and others. Ahimsa is such an important practice in my own life that I’ve tattooed it onto my left forearm — a daily reminder to always take a step back before reacting in a way that may hurt someone else.
Meditation teaches us to sit in stillness and examine our inner workings — especially repeated patterns (thoughts/behaviors) that may be causing us harm.
Lovingkindness, or Metta meditations, help us redirect negative thoughts and actions towards ourselves and others and turn them into positive thoughts/actions.
To practice a Metta meditation, find yourself a comfortable seat — and remember that there is no wrong way to sit for meditation. Take a moment to connect to your breath, sweeping your awareness head to toe and releasing tension with each exhale as you settle into stillness and let the outside distractions fall away. In class, we often silently repeat the following phrases to ourselves, but it can be even more powerful to recite them aloud:
With your eyes gently closed, picture yourself exactly as you are in the present moment. Imagine yourself in your minds eye as you cultivate lovingkindness to yourself: May I be happy. May I be healthy. May I be free from inner and outer dangers.
With your eyes gently closed, picture someone you love or simply care about. Perhaps someone who has had a positive influence in your life. With your minds eye, imagine them as clearly as if they’re standing in front of you. Their facial features, the way they dress, how they wear their hair, their smile. Cultivate lovingkindness to them as you say: May you be happy. May you be healthy. May you be free from inner and outer dangers.
With your eyes gently closed, picture someone who is challenging. Maybe someone who has been unkind to you or simply don’t enjoy being around. Take a moment to know that these are often the people who need our lovingkindness the most. As you picture this person cultivate lovingkindness toward them by saying: May you be happy. May you be healthy. May you be free from inner and outer dangers.
Finally, with your eyes gently closed, imagine the greater world: your community, your state, your country, the world as a whole. With your minds eye, imagine yourself as a microscopic piece of the whole. Cultivating lovingkindness toward all living beings by saying: May we all be happy. May we all be healthy. May we all be free from inner and outer dangers.
This meditation can take a fair amount of time, so I often focus studio classes on one portion of this. We took the first full week of February to explore lovingkindness toward ourselves, the second week towards someone we care about, and the last full week to cultivate lovingkindness toward all living beings.
End your practice with this mantra:
Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu
May all beings everywhere be happy and free, and may the thoughts, words, and actions of my own life contribute in some way to that happiness and to that freedom for all.