The Buddha's Metta Prayer

[bobby1933]

Comments

[madman101]

Happy Birthday, Bobby!

Thanks for being a faithful LJ friend. Good luck and keep up the good work.

mm101

[bobby1933]

Thank you, my friend.

[nerthus]

My son used to say the metta prayer almost daily, one version of it or another; he of course had alcoholism in his last years and as he grew sicker his meditations and prayers dwindled to almost none; he still had a lot of anger toward this Being known as God and was never sure if he believed in Him at all really. Toward the end of his life he began to go to church mainly to placate his very Christian grandmother, as I know he sensed death was near and he wanted her to rest easy in her mind after his passing. She was convinced he would burn in Hell if he didn't renounce Buddhism, you see. I think he was finding SOME sort of inner peace or way to combat his anger and fears there at the end, but he told me while he greatly admired Jesus, his particular soul still resonated to Buddhist vibes. I just hope he still has his being and found his 'salvation' and peace wherever his soul may be now; sometimes he wasn't even sure such things as souls exist, either. But I do know the metta prayer of peace and no suffering for all beings was one of

[bobby1933]

Thank you for the birthday greeting.

Thank you also for writing about your son and trusting me with that memory. I am sure your pain is still there and always will be; but i believe it will be processed into a kinder feeling.

I don't know if i ever shared with you that my son is An alcoholic. He is now 61 and we are friends; but sometimes i grieve a little over the life he might have had as someone who had found recovery.

The Metta Prayer is probably my favorite prayer. The version i most like takes about a year to complete properly, so i take a lot of shortcuts but it still nourishes me and keeps me mindful.