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Originally Posted by Molearner
Gem,
Do unto others as you would have them do to you? Or is this 'metta' distinguished by emphasis on intent as opposed to action(doing)?
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Hi Molearner,
There is Buddhist text called the Metta Sutta which is kind of like a prayer, but Buddhist don't pray to a God, rather, they are affirming the true pure intent of their own hearts. You can google the sutta if you like. It's very short.
Buddhists do have a 'golden rule' of sorts, though it is usually worded in the negative like, do not do to others what you don't want others to do to you.
In the reality of practice (at least in the school I'm familiar with) the meditation is a purification process. It, in effect, removes 'impurities' from the mind and 'blockages' from the body.
The mode of practice is what I'm calling conscious awareness with equanimity, or pure awareness, which means to observe without personal reactivity. Buddha described it something like 'with ardent awareness, having removed craving and aversion toward the world'. It is like, 'this' is happening, and I'm OK with it'. Thus the stronger elements of dislike and hatred are quelled - as are the stronger cravings of greed.
The mind starts settling down because it isn't so agitated by circumstance, and you become more open to whatever is going with you. This allows the old junk in you to be there, so ideas about 'healing' and so forth seem less relevant, but because you allow it to be 'as it is', it is free. The old emotion which we hold inside starts to come out, but unlike before, this time we don't react, we are no longer adverse to the feeling, and our aversion to the initial traumatic events begin to wane. Where this usually involves a grudge where we were hurt by others, forgiveness starts to replace the hard feelings. After a while you might find yourself recalling that offender and realise you now only want them to be happy. That wish or disposition, 'may all beings be happy', when realised as true of your heart, is metta.