An Essential Practice for Uncertain Times
Every day, and especially in times of stress, meditation brings equanimity. Numerous types of meditation and other mindfulness practices help relieve stress, clear the mind, and allow us to live more presently and without judgment in the moment. But simply living in the moment at this time in our history may be anything but calming. As we grapple with the fears and sorrows associated with the Coronavirus pandemic, we may need something more, something different, to bring comfort and cultivate compassion. There may be no better time than now to begin a loving-kindness meditation practice.
In the best of times, everyone needs to receive and offer loving kindness. But these days, when the people of the world are experiencing a collective anxiety yet coping with it largely in isolation—when we feel entirely out of control and helpless—it may be more important than ever. Some of you are already experiencing trauma, and the added emotional burdens of the pandemic and social isolation may be crushing. You need loving kindness. Your family members who miss you need it. Individuals on the front lines—healthcare professionals, first responders, hospital staff of all kinds from maintenance people to administrators, who not only are facing fear, and, sometimes, hopelessness, but also compassion fatigue—need it. Grocery store workers and delivery people need it. Everyone needs it.
Loving-kindness meditation, also called metta meditation, is a way of offering love and acceptance unconditionally to oneself and all other beings. There are many types of loving-kindness meditations, but each is essentially similar. You begin by sitting in a comfortable position in a quiet spot. Close your eyes, relax your body, and take some deep breaths. Then you’ll repeat a series of phrases offering loving kindness, directing them first toward yourself. You might say: May I be happy. May I be healthy. May I be free from harm. May I live with ease. Then you’ll gradually broaden the practice to embrace others with loving kindness. You might think of someone you love and hold their image in your mind as you offer them loving kindness: May you be happy. May you be healthy. May you be free from harm. May you live with ease. Then you’ll similarly offer those wishes for someone you have neutral feelings about. Then to someone from whom you’re estranged or with whom you have a difficult relationship. Finally you’ll open wider and include your neighbors, your community, the earth, and, ultimately, the universe.
It’s a practice that enhances your ability to develop acceptance, forgiveness, empathy, compassion, and—even though you must be physically distant—your capacity to feel connection to others. But it has additional benefits. Researchers have found that loving-kindness meditation may reduce pain and anxiety, increase positive emotions, decrease depression, alleviate self-criticism, and improve one’s ability to resolve conflicts. Best of all in a time of quarantine, it can increase perceptions of social connection.
Get an introduction to the practice in the video below, with a guided meditation from Jack Kornfield, an author, Buddhist practitioner, and leading mindfulness teacher. And look on our home page for a video by Sharon Salzberg, another leading mindfulness teacher. To learn more about loving-kindness meditation and find additional guided meditations, search Google and YouTube for Kornfield, Salzberg, and as well as renowned teachers Tara Brach and Jon Kabat-Zinn.
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