After completing my first course I rarely practice metta. I almost always had a gross painful sensation somewhere in my body at the end of a sit, and to be honest, I was usually ready to get up when my timer went off. It took me about 6 months to really get my daily practice going and much longer for these sittings to become routine. Even after several years, spending 5 more minutes on the cushion after an hour meditation wasn’t happening.
Over the last few weeks, I’ve been trying to make a concerted effort to practice metta after every sitting. Even if it’s only for a minute, I’ve been trying to realign my focus to share some love with the world. While it hasn’t been that hard to establish my metta practice once I committed to it, that additional committment was too much for a long time.
Metta is helping me engage the world as a meditator. It’s helping me connect with people in the present moment regardless of the situation. Those few minute of metta after sitting help set up my state of mind for the day. It’s a simple reminder to love myself and to love the people around me.
I’m not sure how helpful practicing metta daily two years ago would have been because I was working through so much tumultuous stuff inside that practicing metta would have felt fake. No that my mind is much cleaner, metta helps me put everything in perspective. It helps me be a more genuine me. Time to meditate.
