The purpose of this meditation is to generate the sincere belief that we have given pure lasting happiness to all living beings, and then to meditate on this wish in light of the dangers of self cherishing.

I began by calming my mind by doing breathing meditation, and then moving on to the main topic when I had achieved a clear, settled and still mind.

I began by thinking about how all living beings cannot find true happiness. I thought of some people I saw today in my local sports centre. They were playing six-a-side football, and I thought about how it was like life in some ways. They were all looking at the ball, wanting the ball, but there was only one ball, so most of the time most of them were unsatisfied. Then, when they got the ball, they were restless, and others were trying to take it off them. Finally the act of shooting and scoring was the only pleasure to be had, and that was fleeting – and ironically involved letting go of the thing that they had been trying so hard to acquire!

I thought about how, in these ways at least, the game was like the search of all living beings for happiness. They run and search, but they cannot find the happiness they seek.

I thought – how wonderful it would be for them to find happiness – may they find happiness – I myself will help them – I myself will give them pure happiness.

I felt a great welling up inside me of pure light, and I imagined that rays of this light emanated from my body and spread throughout samsara, touching all living beings and instantly giving them pure lasting happiness. I focused on this feeling for the rest of the meditation.

After a while I thought about what this means in light of the disadvantages of self-cherishing. Once again, it was clear to me that giving is an opponent to self-cherishing, in that with a mind focused on giving pure happiness to others, there is no room in our mind for self-cherishing – it does not appear. With this freedom from self-cherishing noted, I returned to the feeling of giving others pure happiness for the rest of the meditation.

Dedication

May all living beings overcome self-cherishing through the practice of giving, and quickly become enlightened beings for the benefit of all.

Practice in the Mediation Break

I will try to imagine light rays emanating from my body to others throughout the day, and that this light stays in their heart guiding them to virtuous paths until they attain the enlightened state of a Buddha.