Author: Michael Tino

“Justice is what love looks like in public.” -Cornel West

How do you express love for others publicly, through your actions and words to make justice?

In the Buddhist tradition, one cultivates metta, or lovingkindness. It is a practice of wishing yourself and others freedom from suffering as well as happiness and peace. It is a practice of centering yourself on love and care for all beings.

Practice a brief metta meditation today:
May I be happy. May I be well. May I be peaceful and at ease.
May you be happy. May you be well. May you be peaceful and at ease.
May all beings be happy. May all beings be well. May all beings be peaceful and at ease.

 

Unconditional love for all beings is agape love. It is the love that drives us to connect with others, the love that asks us to work for the liberation of all people, and the love most often associated with the divine by people whose belief systems include that.

How do you cultivate unconditional love for all beings?

Rough patches of life are inevitable. Can we learn to love them? Can we learn to love through them? Can we learn to appreciate the smooth parts more for having them?

How have you learned to love a rough patch in your life?

Like the potter learning to center their clay on a wheel, or the figure skater learning to center their spins on a point, the work of placing love at the center of our lives and communities will take practice. It will involve many mistakes, but when we get it right, it will be beautiful.

What is something you have practiced over and over again to be better at?