The Tao Te Ching tells us:
Follow the Tao,
Cultivate its ways,
And find yourself at peace.
And yet, sometimes peace is hard to cultivate, hard to find. This week I've been shocked and saddened by all the disheartening violence in the news. There is so much suffering in our world today. It can make us wonder what we can do, how we can cultivate the peace we long for.
The prayer of St. Francis asks us to be "instruments" of divine peace. We can begin by tuning our instruments to a higher key with a metta or loving kindness meditation.
To try this, put your hand on your heart and take a long, deep breath, slowly releasing it. Continue to breathe slowly and deeply as you say silently to yourself:
May I be filled with loving kindness.
May I be well.
May I be peaceful and serene.
May I be happy.
Now send metta to someone you love, visualizing that person as you say silently:
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be well.
May you be peaceful and serene.
May you be happy
You may choose to send metta to a difficult person in your world. If you do, visualize this person as you say silently:
May you be filled with loving kindness.
May you be well.
May you be peaceful and serene.
May you be happy
Then reach out to send metta to all sentient beings, saying silently:
May all beings be filled with loving kindness.
May all be well.
May all be peaceful and serene.
May all be happy
Feel the peace flow from your heart in a powerful ripple effect to begin healing the world, for as the Tao tells us:
Cultivated in your soul,
The Tao brings peace to your life.
Cultivated in your home,
It brings peace with those you love.
Spreading to friends and neighbors,
It brings peace to your community.
Spreading through your communities,
It brings peace to your nation.
Spreading through the nations,
The Tao brings peace throughout the world.
How do I know this?
Because it begins with you and me.
Tao Te Ching, Chapter 54