Cattāri Brahmavihārā

I have been reading some commentary on the Eight Verses for Training the Mind and one thing one teacher had repeated is the off heard maxim to make all of like your practice. As always, I have puzzled over the exact meaning here since so much of what we do send to be adhamma at worst or simply irrelevant to the practice. And yet, as I began answering customer emails this morning (most of which were problems) my attention went immediately to my heart and the center of my chest. I realized I could answer out of irritation and disdain or with kindness and empathy.

I think, if only for me, that this is exactly where the river can meet the road and we can turn all we do, think and say into practice here. It reminds me of a talk by one of the bhikkus at Abhayagiri who was asked where he puts his mind when studying our doing anything else for that matter. And his answer: right in the heart.

May all of life be lived with kindness and compassion so that we do not waste a moment and devote all we do to the practice.