This is an AI-generated transcript from auto-generated subtitles for the video What Do the Suttas Actually Have to Say About the Brahma Viharas with Leigh Brasington (2 of 2). It likely contains inaccuracies, especially with speaker attribution if there are multiple speakers.

What Do the Suttas Actually Have to Say About the Brahma Viharas (2 of 2) - Leigh Brasington

The following talk was given by Leigh Brasington at The Sati Center in Redwood City, CA on March 01, 2026. Please visit the website www.audiodharma.org for more information.

What Do the Suttas Actually Have to Say About the Brahma Viharas (2 of 2)

Introduction

Thank you, Rob. Thanks for all of your work making all these Sati Center events happen. This is just such a rich jewel for the sangha, and it's really nice to be here.

I'm going to share my screen. I think this is where we got to last week. I believe I mentioned that in my notes I have the four Brahma Viharas¹ with eight translations of the mettā² practice by various teachers and translators, and I will put the link in the chat. If you didn't download the notes last week, you can download them this week. What's here should be familiar, and the next section covers the four Brahma Viharas with the original Pali.

Simile of the Cloth (Majjhima Nikāya 7)

Following that, I have a sutta that has all four Brahma Viharas in it. It's an interesting sutta that shows some of the context of the teachings. This is the Simile of the Cloth, an important sutta from the Majjhima Nikāya (MN 7).

"A cloth that was dirty and soiled, no matter what dye is applied, would look poorly dyed and impure in color. Why is that? Because of the impurity of the cloth. In the same way, when the mind is corrupt, a state of misery, a bad destination—literally going badly—is to be expected. If the cloth is pure and clean, no matter what dye is applied, it looks good. That's because when the mind isn't corrupt, a good destination, going well, is to be expected."

And what are the corruptions of the mind? The upakkilesas. This is actually a pretty interesting list of where we go when we're not heading in a good direction: covetousness and immoral greed, ill will, anger, acrimony, disdain, contempt, jealousy, stinginess, deceit, deviousness, obstinacy, aggression, conceit, arrogance, vanity, and negligence. These are usually summed up as greed, hatred, and delusion. You can very easily put each one of these under either greed, hatred, or delusion. Of course, greed and hatred are just manifestations of delusion. If we could get rid of the delusion, we'd also get rid of the greed and hatred.

"One who understands these corruptions of mind gives them up. When they have understood these corruptions of mind for what they are and have given them up, they have experienced confidence in the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha."

Confidence in the Three Jewels is one of the things that happens at stream entry. In the suttas, stream entry also involves morality that's dear to the noble ones, and the overcoming of the first three fetters: the belief in a self, the belief in the efficacy of rites and rituals, and doubt. I don't know whether this sutta is actually referring to stream entry or not, but it's pretty useful on the path.

"When they have discarded, eliminated, released, given up, and relinquished to this extent, they find inspiration in the meaning and the teaching, and they find joy (pāmojja) connected with the teaching. When they're joyful, pīti (rapture) springs up. When the mind is full of pīti, the body becomes tranquil. When the body is tranquil, they feel sukha (happiness). When they feel sukha, the mind becomes immersed in samādhi³."

This is the jhāna⁴ summary, at least that's how I refer to it. Pīti is the primary factor of the first jhāna. To get into it, you're going to need some pleasure to trigger it, and that's what pāmojja (gladness or worldly joy) is for. And then pīti springs up. When the mind is full of pīti, the body becomes tranquil. Actually, the body doesn't become fully tranquil until the pīti goes down, but tranquility is mentioned as an important factor of the second jhāna. Once you're tranquil, you feel the sukha. When you feel the sukha, your mind becomes quite concentrated, especially when you can let go of the sukha and drop into the equanimity of the fourth jhāna.

So basically, what the Buddha is saying here is: clean up your act. Get rid of all the greed, hatred, and delusion, and all their manifestations. Once you've done that, it puts you in a pretty happy state of mind. You'll be able to enter the jhānas and become immersed in samādhi. And then you can do the Brahma Viharas.

"Meditate with a heart full of love to each of the directions. Above, below, across, everywhere, all around, one spreads a heart full of love to the whole world—abundant, expansive, limitless, free of enmity and ill will." And then one does the same for compassion (karuṇā)⁵, appreciative joy (muditā)⁶, and equanimity (upekkhā)⁷.

Often we hear about using the Brahma Viharas as access to the jhānas, and yes, that does work quite well. But more often in the suttas, we find Brahma Vihara practice recommended after having been in the jhānas. Having played with that myself, it's quite nice. It can be very intense, but it's intensely nice to be hanging out with a heart full of love.

"Knowing and seeing like this, one's mind is freed from the defilements of sensuality, becoming, and ignorance."

Overcoming the āsavas⁸ is synonymous with full awakening. So basically, what this sutta is saying is: if you can clean up your act, concentrate your mind, and use your concentrated mind to do the Brahma Viharas, that will take you to full awakening.

"When they are freed, they know they are freed. They understand: birth is ended, the spiritual journey has been completed, what had to be done has been done, there is nothing further here."

This is called "one who is bathed with the inner bathing." The sutta actually starts out by saying that ritual physical bathing, found in Brahmanism and Hinduism today, isn't actually going to do anything. The sutta ends with a further discourse in verse pointing out that physical bathing is pointless for purifying deeds. Instead, for the pure in heart and clean of deed, their vows will always be fulfilled. It's here that you should bathe, making yourself a sanctuary for all creatures. The bathing should be done in purity, morality, and ethics, and then bathe in the jhānas, and finally bathe in the Brahma Viharas.

The Kālāma Sutta

The next is a fairly famous text, the Kālāma Sutta. At one point, the magazine Inquiring Mind asked a number of teachers, "What's your favorite sutta?" The majority of teachers said their favorite was the Kālāma Sutta. This is interesting because the Kālāma Sutta also has the Brahma Viharas in it, but nobody mentioned the Brahma Viharas as to why it was their favorite. They were all like, "Yeah, you've got to figure it out for yourself." But it doesn't quite say that. Let's take a look at what it actually says.

The Buddha visits the town of the Kālāmas named Kesamutta. After polite greetings, the Kālāmas say to the Buddha, "There are, sir, some ascetics and brahmins who come here. They explain and promote only their doctrine, while they attack, badmouth, disparage, and smear the doctrines of others. Then other ascetics and brahmins come, and they promote their own and badmouth the others. We are doubting. We are uncertain. I wonder who of these respected ascetics and brahmins speaks the truth, and who speaks falsehood."

The Buddha says, "Yes, it's right. You should be doubting and uncertain. Don't go by oral transmission. Don't go by lineage. Don't go by testament. Don't go by canonical authority. Don't rely on logic. Don't rely on inference. Don't go by reasoned thought. Don't go by acceptance of a view after deliberation. Don't go by the appearance of competence. And don't think, 'This ascetic is our respected teacher.' But when you know for yourselves: 'These things are unskillful, blameworthy, criticized by wise people, and when you undertake them, they lead to harm and dukkha⁹,' then you should give them up."

And what leads to harm and dukkha? Greed, hatred, and delusion.

"But when you know for yourselves: 'These things are skillful, blameless, praised by wise people, and when you undertake them, they lead to welfare and happiness,' then you should acquire them and keep them."

And what does not lead to harm and dukkha? Non-greed, absence of desire, moderation, non-hatred, kindness, wisdom, and clear understanding. "Then the noble disciple is rid of desire, ill will, and confusion; unconfused, aware, and mindful."

This is usually what we hear when the Kālāma Sutta is taught. There's all this "don't go by oral transmission, don't go by lineage," and that we should be looking for teachings that promote non-greed, non-hatred, non-delusion. We could say we are looking for teachings that promote letting go, love, and wisdom. This is a really important teaching on not getting locked into a view for any reason other than that it promotes wholesomeness.

But that's not the whole sutta. Once you've done that, then you should do the Brahma Vihara practices.

"Pervading each quarter with mettā, karuṇā, muditā, and upekkhā—above, around, below, everywhere, and to all as to oneself. One abides pervading the all-encompassing world with a mind imbued with each of these: abundant, exalted, immeasurable, without hostility, and without ill will."

The phrase "to all as to oneself" is notable. It shows up in some translations and it doesn't show up in others. I particularly like it because Western civilization seems to have a problem with self-love. People feel "I don't deserve love" or whatever. This is one of the major failings of Western civilization. It was interesting traveling to other cultures, such as Tibet, where that's just unheard of; that's not part of the culture there. Translating it as "to all as to oneself" indicates that the love you're feeling for others should be at least equivalent to the love you're feeling for yourself. And the love you feel for yourself should be at least equivalent to the love you're feeling for others. And the same for the other Brahma Viharas.

"When that noble disciple has a mind that's free of hatred and ill will, uncorrupted and purified, they've won four consolations in this very life. If there is another world and if there is the fruit and result of good and bad deeds (karma), it is possible that with the breakup of the body after death, I will be reborn in a good destination, in a heavenly world. If there is no other world and there is no fruit and result of karma, still right here in this very life, I maintain myself in happiness, without enmity and ill will, free of trouble."

This is somewhat similar to Pascal's Wager¹⁰. Pascal, the great mathematician, felt that you should believe in God because if you believed and there was a heaven, you'd get to heaven. If you believed and there wasn't a heaven, no big deal. But if you didn't believe and there was a heaven, that was going to land you in hell, and you don't want that. But this sutta is a much better exposition: you should act without ill will and hatred because if there is life after death, you're going to wind up in a good place. And if there's no life after death, people are still going to think you're a good person right here and now.

"Suppose evil comes to one who does evil. Then I will have no evil intentions towards anyone. How can suffering afflict me since I do no evil deed?" I'm not quite buying that; I know that people who don't do evil sometimes experience dukkha. But I'm quite sure that if you don't do evil, you will experience less dukkha.

"Suppose evil does not come to one who does evil. Then right here, I see myself purified in both respects." This is the fourth consolation they've won. The Kālāmas are pleased and go for refuge to the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha.

Q&A: Self-Interest, Generosity, and Equanimity

Question: The last consolation does make sense to me. What it says is, suppose there's no karma in the ordinary sense. I'm still going to get benefits from this because I'm going to be purified, and that's enough. But regarding the comparison to Pascal's Wager, there's a typical objection that it's really just self-interest rather than a genuine connection. Here, it seems even more so. The emphasis is so much on self-interest that it seems in some ways to undermine mettā. We're doing mettā because it will purify us; we're doing mettā because no matter what happens, it will be great for us. I'm not sure that's the reason we want to do mettā.

Leigh Brasington: I think it's a skillful means for getting people to start doing mettā: "This will be good for you." In an ultimate sense, it's not as helpful as doing it because you realize it's going to help you be a better person in this world, which will ultimately benefit others. There is also the other complaint about Pascal's Wager: if you believe in God and there isn't a God, you're deluded. That isn't really a good way to go either.

The most important thing Ayya Khema¹¹ said on that first retreat I attended with her was, "There's nothing to believe in Buddhism. The Buddha said, 'Come and see for yourself.'" I was raised as a Presbyterian preacher's kid, and my father was a literalist—literally Noah in the ark, Daniel in the lion's den. I rejected all of that stuff, and I rejected anything to do with spirituality because it was based on belief. The fact that there's nothing required to believe in Buddhism—just "come and see for yourself"—was a real turning point for me on the spiritual path. I think that's probably one of the main reasons this is a favorite sutta for many. It doesn't demand blind faith, and it's a challenge to religious teachings that do. People, especially those growing up with Western religions, get very excited by this.

Question: In Majjhima Nikāya 7, it talks about having steps to let go, have generosity, love, and wisdom. Is there any guidance about what that looks like on a day-to-day basis?

Leigh Brasington: It does show up in a lot of other suttas. One of my favorites is the teaching on sīla, samādhi, paññā: get a baseline of ethical behavior, concentrate your mind, and now investigate reality. There's the gradual training, which shows up in approximately 30 different suttas (most famously in Dīgha Nikāya 2). You have to keep the precepts, guard your senses, be mindful, be content with little, have a meditation practice, overcome the hindrances, step through the jhānas to concentrate your mind, and then investigate reality by looking at the anicca, dukkha, anattā (impermanent, unsatisfactory, coreless) nature of reality. In doing this investigation, particularly for your own physical body and mind, you begin to see what's really going on, and then the ethical behavior becomes much more automatic.

For practical purposes, Ayya Khema recommended starting every meditation period with mettā. It's a great way to start. Mettā feels good and puts you in a good mood. If you're going to practice jhānas, you already have some pleasure going.

Question: I get the idea that the point of the practice is to be boundless. But practically, when I've done mettā, one of the interesting things is to see where I stop. I really don't feel loving-kindness toward people organizing ICE and doing horrible things. It feels like a spiritual bypass to try to force myself to go beyond that.

Leigh Brasington: Ayya Khema used different mettā phrases than the ones we usually get taught. Her phrases are: "May you be free from enmity. May you be free from hurtfulness. May you be free of troubles of mind and body. And may you be able to protect your happiness."

You can say "May you be free from hurtfulness" to anybody doing evil things. "May you be free of troubles of mind and body"—well, you certainly have troubles of mind if you're acting like that. And "May you be able to protect your happiness"—the only happiness that can be protected is that gained through skillful means. So you're saying, "May you find a different source of happiness other than torturing people. May you find something that's actually based in wholesomeness." If you're doing your mettā practice and you get to someone difficult, you can switch to these different phrases.

Question: I know a couple where one partner seems to practice meditation and outwardly projects a life of Brahma Viharas, but privately, he is very controlling, hypocritical, and refuses therapy. The other partner calls me to complain, but I have a limit to how much I can listen because I can't fix it. If I stop taking the calls, am I lacking empathy? But if I just send them goodwill in meditation, it feels like I'm not really doing anything. What should be done in these kinds of situations?

Leigh Brasington: It's tricky. Sitting and doing the Brahma Viharas is really good, but manifesting them in action is where we're trying to go. If this person is doing the Brahma Viharas in meditation but then acting not in harmony with that, they're not really doing the practice. They're just reciting the practice.

As for how you interact with them in a way that's helpful, it sounds like this couple needs counseling. If the controlling partner refuses, that makes it very difficult. Sometimes we see very clearly that there is a problem that needs to be taken care of, but the people aren't interested. If you are with the two of them and he acts controlling, you want to support his partner as best you can, so that he sees he is not being supported in what he's doing. In terms of your own practice, doing mettā for them is primarily for yourself. It changes you in a good direction, so the next time you interact with them, you will be interacting in a loving, skillful way.

Comment from a participant: Regarding difficult couples, I heard from a teacher that the Buddha pointed to generosity as being the core of things. If I approach the situation with generosity to them, but also generosity to myself—knowing I have a limit, maybe 30 minutes, and then I have to remove myself because it's too painful to watch—that helps me stay engaged without getting overwhelmed.

Leigh Brasington: Exactly. We are doing this practice primarily to convert ourselves to be more loving and more compassionate. Taking that attitude out into the world helps us deal with the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. It's about building the capacity to be a force for good in the world.

Karuṇā (Compassion) in the Suttas

Let's look at Karuṇā in suttas where it appears outside of the context of the four Brahma Viharas.

"The Buddha of Vipassī surveyed the world with the eye of a Buddha out of compassion for sentient beings." Then many devas come to see the Buddha, including a host of the devas of love and compassion. These are late, mythological suttas, but the word compassion shows up there.

"The Buddha says, 'I surveyed the world with the eye of a Buddha because of my compassion for sentient beings.'" He sees the ones with little dust and much dust, keen faculties and not. In the Mahāyāna tradition, it's taught that the Buddha sought enlightenment out of compassion for the world, but that's not found in the Pali suttas. Compassion doesn't show up until after the Buddha has awakened. He was trying to find his way out of dukkha; when he finds the way out, the compassion arises. He surveys the world out of compassion for sentient beings, and we find that occurring over and over again. In the Aṅgulimāla Sutta, he is known as "the compassionate great seer."

There is an interesting sutta titled Like the Moon (SN 16.3): "They teach others because of the natural excellence of the teaching, out of compassion, kindness, and care." This is an instruction to the monks on how they should teach the laypeople. We have three words in Pali here: Karuṇā (usually translated as compassion), Anuddayā (kindness is a good translation), and Anukampā (care or tender concern). These three aren't exactly the same, but it's an example of Pali taking three closely related words and using them for emphasis. If someone is teaching the Dhamma to someone else, they're doing it only out of compassion to help the other person.

"When compassion is developed and cultivated, it's very fruitful and beneficial. How? One cultivates the Seven Factors of Awakening with the concept of compassion based on seclusion, dispassion, cessation, maturing, and release." It doesn't give any more detail, but this occurs for each one of the Brahma Viharas. When practicing the Seven Factors of Awakening, we should have an underlying sense of compassion.

From Aṅguttara Nikāya 5.161: "You should develop love, compassion, and equanimity for a person you resent. You should disregard them, paying them no attention. You should focus on the ownership of karma for that individual. They are doing bad stuff; this is going to get them in trouble." This is how you get rid of resentment.

In another sutta, it says: "You should ignore that person's impure behavior and think of them with nothing but compassion, kindness, and care. May this person give up bad conduct so they're not reborn in a bad place." You can think of your least favorite politician: "May this person give up bad conduct so they're not causing suffering for themselves and others."

How can you just watch while someone is being harassed? Don't you have any compassion? We are instructed that we need to take action. You can't just sit there when someone is causing dukkha to another. Compassion is action. Do what you can.

Muditā (Appreciative Joy)

Muditā is probably the stepchild of the four. It just doesn't get talked about as much, either in the suttas or by current teachers. It shows up in only three suttas where it's not part of the standard four Brahma Viharas.

"When muditā is developed and cultivated, it's very fruitful and beneficial... developed and cultivated with the seven factors of awakening."

That doesn't really tell us much about what muditā is. But here is our best description in all of the suttas: "In the same way, when people are in harmony, appreciating each other without quarreling, blending like milk and water, and regarding each other with kindly eyes, they brim with much merit. At that time the people live in a Brahma Vihara. That is, the heart's release by muditā when they are joyful." Notice this word contains muditā. Joy (pāmojja) arises, then pīti, then tranquility, then sukha, then samādhi. This is a jhāna summary arising dependent on muditā. It's more than just rejoicing at others' good fortune; it's living in harmony and appreciating each other.

In another sutta, it says: "Bhikkhus, there are these three things: discontent, harmfulness, and conduct contrary to the Dhamma... Muditā is to be developed for abandoning discontent." This implies that muditā is the opposite of discontent—contentment. It doesn't necessarily mention rejoicing at the good fortune of others, but being content for yourself.

There are Pali words that include mudita (with a short 'a'). For example: "The seer Asita in his daily meditation saw the bright-clad gods of the host of the 33 and their lord Sakka joyfully celebrating, waving streamers in exuberant exaltation... seeing the gods rejoicing (mudamānā), elated..." Mudamānā means with a gladdened mind, having a happy heart. The literal root mud means to become soft or happy. Samudita means pleased, happy with, or delighted.

Some people say muditā is the most difficult one to learn because it goes against the culture. We don't have the word in English, nor an easy translation. When somebody told me "sympathetic joy," that meant nothing to me. "Appreciative joy" is a little better, and it brings in the idea that you can appreciate your own joy and good fortune.

Upekkhā (Equanimity)

Upekkhā appears in the description of both the third and fourth jhāna. "One dwells in equanimity" in the third, and the fourth jhāna contains "mindfulness fully purified by equanimity." If you get to jhāna four, you're going to have the best kind of mindfulness, which you can then turn to your insight practice because that mindfulness is fully purified by equanimity.

It is also listed as one of the Seven Factors of Awakening. The Four Establishments of Mindfulness state that when one has the awakening factor of equanimity in them, they understand it's in them, how it comes to arise, and how it becomes fulfilled by development.

Upekkhā is listed among the five faculties (pleasure, pain, happiness, sadness, and equanimity), the five feelings, and the six elements (dhātu).

The Buddha declares there are two kinds of equanimity: "When I cultivate this kind of equanimity, unskillful qualities grow and skillful qualities decline. You should not cultivate that kind of equanimity. Whereas, when I cultivate that equanimity, unskillful qualities decline and skillful qualities grow. You should cultivate that kind of equanimity. And that equanimity which is free of vitakka and vicāra (thinking and examining) is better than that which still involves them."

The wrong kind of equanimity sounds a lot like the near enemy of equanimity: apathy. If you're apathetic, you're not really being compassionate because you're not engaged. Equanimity, as we saw last week, means "looking on" or "standing near," so you're fully engaged.

"Now, if dukkha arises, my energy shall be roused up and unflagging. My mindfulness shall be established and lucid, my body tranquil and undisturbed, my mind immersed in samādhi and unified. Equanimity based on the skillful becomes stabilized... At this point, much has been done by that person." Basically, can you be equanimous when dukkha arises? If so, much has been done.

The Buddha says that sensual pleasures give little gratification and much suffering. "Having truly seen this with right understanding, one shuns equanimity based on diversity and develops only equanimity based on unity, where all kinds of grasping to worldly pleasures of the flesh cease without anything left over." Sometimes you just have to realize you can't fix the whole world and find a stable place to come from.

"Suppose you think, 'I will be troubled and the other individual will be hurt, for they are irritable and acrimonious, and they hold fast to their views refusing to let go. I cannot draw them away from the unskillful and establish them in the skillful.' Don't underestimate the value of equanimity regarding such an individual." It helps a lot if you can be equanimous when dealing with difficult people so you don't get sucked into their drama.

There are two kinds of happiness: happiness with pleasure and happiness with equanimity. Happiness with equanimity is the better. These suttas indicate that equanimity is not always emotionally neutral. It can definitely be a happy equanimity. Sometimes we hear about equanimity being a neutral state of mind, but it is an unruffled state of mind. It can be neutral, but in the description of the third jhāna, you have a happy equanimity.

Further Suttas on the Brahma Viharas

Majjhima Nikāya 40: How does a monastic practice in the way that is proper for an ascetic? They give up covetousness, ill will, irritability, acrimony, disdain, contempt, jealousy, stinginess, deviousness, deceit, corrupt wishes, and wrong view. Giving these up is the proper way. They see themselves purified of these bad qualities. Seeing this, joy arises, then pīti, then tranquility, then sukha, then samādhi. In other words, they step through the jhānas and then they practice the four Brahma Viharas. Having developed these Brahma Viharas, they gain inner peace. When they realize undefiled freedom of heart and freedom by wisdom in this very life, they are an ascetic because of the ending of the defilements—that's full awakening.

Aṅguttara Nikāya 11.17: A wealthy merchant asked Ānanda, "Is there one thing the Buddha has explained so that one's mind is freed, their āsavas are ended, and they arrive at the supreme sanctuary?" Ānanda says there are eleven things: practicing the four jhānas, practicing the four Brahma Viharas, and the first three of the immaterial states. "Even this heart's release by the Brahma Vihara is fabricated and produced by intentions. They understand that whatever is fabricated and produced by intention is impermanent, liable to cessation. Abiding in that, they attain the ending of the āsavas." Deep enough insight into the impermanent nature of any of the Brahma Viharas or jhānas leads to full awakening. If they don't attain the ending of the āsavas, they are reborn as a non-returner.

The Rhinoceros Horn Sutta (Sutta Nipāta): "In time, cultivate freedom through mettā, karuṇā, muditā, and upekkhā, not upset by anything in the world. Live alone like a one-horned rhino. Having given up greed, hatred, and delusion, having burst apart the fetters, unafraid at the end of life. Live alone like a one-horned rhino."

This is a very early sutta. In the suttas, people frequently request instructions from the Buddha, saying, "Please, venerable sir, give me a practice I can do. I wish to retire to the forest." They go off and practice alone like a one-horned rhino for some time, and they come back awakened. Once awakened, their compassion is naturally aroused and they start teaching. It's not a secondary command; it's a natural side effect of awakening because you recognize the deep interconnectedness of all beings.

Guided Meditation

In order to begin, please put your attention on your breath for a few moments.

Look into your heart and you will find a flower garden. A garden full of the most amazing varieties of flowers. The garden of your heart.

And now imagine that you go for a stroll through the garden of your heart, enjoying its beauty. Not only the beautiful colors, but the wonderful smells as well. Just enjoy your time hanging out in the garden of your heart.

Now, think of someone that you care about and pick a nice bouquet of flowers from the garden of your heart and present it to this person you care about, and see the joy on their face.

You have other people you're close to. Bring them to mind one by one and pick each of them a nice bouquet of flowers from the garden of your heart.

Think of your acquaintances. People like your neighbors, your coworkers, people you see in stores and restaurants you frequent. Again, bring them to mind one by one and pick them a nice bouquet of flowers from the garden of your heart.

Think of someone you find difficult and pick that person a nice bouquet, maybe of herbs that helps them overcome their difficult nature, or flowers. Flowers to give to everybody on this retreat.

Notice how the flower garden is bigger than when you started. All the flowers you picked have been replaced, and the garden is much larger. You can give flowers out to everybody in your neighborhood, everybody in your town, your city. You can give flowers to everyone on the continent. Happy people, rich people, poor people, sick people, people in prison, whoever there is. Give them some flowers.

The garden of your heart is so much larger now that you can give flowers to everybody on the planet.

Now put your attention back on yourself, back in your own heart. Notice how huge the flower garden is. It's a strange thing about love: the more you give it away, the more you've got.

May all beings everywhere be happy.

So may any merit from these teachings be for the benefit and liberation of all beings everywhere. And thank you both for attending, your good questions, and for your generosity. Take care.