Maitri

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While meditating on Maitri, all thoughts of enmity, ill-will and hostility must be put away and given a final burial. It is with the object of separating the heart from enmity, the evil of which is fully recognized and of uniting the heart with forbearance, the advantage of which is fully appreciated, that the meditation on Metta is to be begun.

All beings desire happiness and therefore we have to seek the happiness of all and cultivate the spirit of friendliness towards all. There are some people whom we love as relations, friends, comrades and neighbours. It is not difficult to have loving attitude towards them.

All we need to safeguard in these relationships is that our love does not turn into infatuation. It does not become exclusive. It is also not difficult to gradually extend the sphere of love and embrace in it the entire world, nay the entire universe.

Love your Enemies

It would be, however, found difficult to extend our love to those who had harmed us and had done us some mortal harm. We may be able to forget and forgive petty annoyances and inconveniences but some injuries are so grievous that it is really difficult for a person to command sufficient fund of generosity to forgive those who had done him mortal harm.

If this difficulty besets us, we will have to pray fervently and sincerely and we will soon discover that it would enable us to forgive even those men who had done us mortal harm.

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