Loving kindness, also known as "Metta" practice, is one of the most widely used forms of heart centred practice and a perfect counterbalance to practices that focus on high concentration or deconstructing experience. It's typically done by intentionally cultivating a warm, pleasant feeling in the body, and repeating a set of phrases. These phrases and the positive feelings are first directed to yourself, then towards other people in your life, and eventually to all beings.
This practice works in subtle ways. It’s a pleasant practice in itself, but with consistent practice, the feelings of warmth and goodness will colour your day to day experience. Over time, it influences how you perceive people and situations, as they’re all experienced from a more loving and expansive place.
The resources below offer guidance from a few different teachers but the practice is generally the same, so you can explore and find a teacher or style you connect with most.
This is one of the most widely recommended resources for Metta or loving kindness practice. It has a variety of lectures about working with the heart, and 5 different long form guided sessions. If you want to jump straight into the practice, click the second link below.
This series by Annaka Harris includes an introduction, and 5 guided sessions, with each session directing the feeling of Metta towards a different category of people in your life.
This practice focuses on feelings of equanimity, loving kindness, compassion, and joy. Ken has included all the phrases, and detailed instructions on how to guide your own meditation session.
In this guided meditation Tara Brach takes a more somatic approach to the practice. Rather than using phrases, she focuses on finding the sense of a “smile” and spaciousness, and carrying that quality throughout your entire body.