Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Intention: Cultivating Lovingkindness

 

RIGHT INTENTION
Cultivating Lovingkindness

Whatever you intend, whatever you plan, and whatever you have a tendency toward, that will become the basis on which your mind is established. (SN 12.40) Develop meditation on lovingkindness, for when you develop meditation on lovingkindness, all ill will will be abandoned. (MN 62)  The manifestation of lovingkindness is the removal of annoyance. (Vm 9.93)

Reflection

Only one experience occurs at a time. Each one replaces the one before it and is itself replaced by the next. This happens in rapid succession as the stream of consciousness flows on. It feels like a continuous event, much as the still images displayed rapidly in a movie theater merge into a flowing story, but in fact, each mind moment is organized around a single object, with a single emotional response.

Daily Practice

This means that when you are feeling kindly or benevolent toward a particular person or in a particular situation, you cannot at the same time feel ill will or anger or annoyance. The beauty of lovingkindness is that it replaces negative emotions in the mind. Next time you feel even slightly annoyed by someone or something, try conjuring up an attitude of kindness toward something and watch the annoyance disappear.

Tomorrow: Refraining from False Speech
One week from today: Cultivating Compassion

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Via Daily Dharma: Loving Through Attention

 You could describe the whole process [of mindful attention] as love. You could say, “I’m giving attention to my breath,” or “I’m giving attention to painting the windows.” But it’s equally, “I’m learning how to love this in-breath, learning how to love this brushstroke.” The spareness drops away.

Martin Aylward in conversation with James Shaheen and Sharon Salzberg, “Coming Back to Embodiment”

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