Cattāri Brahmavihārā

It’s almost absurdly simple when you reflect on the fact that something as simple as a smile can be the doorway into happiness for both oneself and others. For some time now I have taken up the practice of purposefully holding a smile on my face while reciting the word “metta” through one round of my 108 bead mala. The mala is pretty much extraneous (I could achieve the same thing with the use of a timer but I do have an affinity for malas and working with them for years now has conditioned the mind into settling more quickly with their use) and the word “metta” helps to keep my purpose in mind but it is really the smile which has reinvigorated my metta bhavana practice.

Being of the overly analytical sort, I often found myself worrying about the mechanics of the meditation, concerning myself with the etiology og metta, how it might impact upon self and others and its origins…all fruitless endeavors when taken to extremes but I was usually unable to get a feeling for the warmth and energy which are supposed to characterize metta.

Over the years I have used a variety of visualizations, reflections, experimented with the metta formulas as if the were mantras and all of them were somewhat successful at times but every technique I tried still relied primarily on my intellectual faculties. What I needed was a technique that would evoke the felt sensation of metta and, as much as I was loath to admit it, this required actually feeling it in my body. Strangely enough, the idea of the enormous potency of a smile is something I encountered during my first forays into Buddhism many years ago when I was reading the works of Thich Nhat Hanh. Over time I grew to distrust what I perceived as the syrupy sentimentality of his works and forgot completely the power of the smile.

Now, almost 15 years after I read my first Thich Nhat Hanh book, I have come full circle and understand, for the first time it seems, just how important a smile can be. I owe this realization largely to Ven. Vimalaramsi and would recommend his technique highly to anyone stuck in a rut. Here is the link: http://www.dhammasukha.org/Study/metta.htm#S-METTA-BASIC-U.mp3

Sukhitaa hontu!