Liberation Through The Four Immeasurables

·28 min·2 clips

When Sharon Salzberg explained Western self-hatred to the Dalai Lama, he couldn't understand the concept.

The episode begins with a membership appeal and acknowledgments before the main talk. The speaker opens by referencing the temple's recent 'Ongo' intensive practice period, which had the theme 'Lotus in the Fire,' and connects it to the ongoing need to practice in a 'burning world.' The core subject is introduced as the Four Immeasurables, also known as the Brahma Viharas, which are recited in daily liturgy: loving kindness (metta), compassion (karuna), sympathetic joy (mudita), and equanimity (upekkha). The speaker states the Buddha taught these in the Tevija Sutra as essential for liberation, to be cultivated within the framework of morality, concentration, and wisdom. The talk traces these teachings into the Mahayana tradition, mentioning their place in the Lamrim (stages on the path) under the 'great scope' of generating Bodhicitta. A practical framework is established: these are not vague ideals but 'technologies' for positioning the mind, starting authentically from where one actually feels these qualities—like love for music or compassion for a pet. The focus then narrows to loving kindness (metta). The speaker explains the standard metta meditation progression: starting with oneself or a unconditionally loved being, then moving to neutral people, difficult people, enemies, and finally expanding boundlessly. A key anecdote is shared: when Sharon Salzberg tried to explain Western self-hatred to the Dalai Lama, he couldn't understand the concept, highlighting a cultural difference in approaching self-love. The practice is described as aspirational, not affirmational, requiring patience (paramita) to encounter barriers. The barriers are analyzed: each immeasurable has a 'far enemy' (e.g., hatred for love) and a more subtle 'near enemy' (e.g., attachment for love). Attachment is explored in depth, illustrated by an example of students turning on a Zen teacher due to devotional attachment. The talk briefly touches on compassion, noting its challenge in facing pain directly, with cruelty as its far enemy and despair as its near enemy. Equanimity is presented as underlying the other three practices. The episode concludes with the reading of Naomi Shihab Nye's poem 'Kindness,' which speaks to the relationship between sorrow and kindness, followed by a dedication of merit and closing announcements.

As heard by us

A metta teaching that begins with self-criticism and widens toward ordinary people.

Moving out from Ongo's Lotus in the Fire theme, the piece frames the four immeasurables as a practice for staying steady in a burning world. It traces metta from oneself or someone already loved to neutral people met in a coffee shop or on a bus, which gives the teaching an…

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You get metta for a burning world, with temple housekeeping up front.

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