Loving Kindness - Metta Sutta

This is what should be done
By one who is skilled in goodness,
And who knows the path of peace:
Let them be able and upright,
Straightforward and gentle in speech.
Humble and not conceited
Contented and easily satisfied.
Unburdened with duties and frugal in their ways.
Peaceful and calm, and wise and skillful,
Not proud and demanding in nature.
Let them not do the slightest thing
That the wise would later reprove.
Wishing: In gladness and in safety,
May all beings be at ease.
Whatever living beings there may be;
Whether they are weak or strong, omitting none,
The great or the mighty, medium, short or small,
The seen and the unseen,
Those living near and far away,
Those born and to-be-born,
May all beings be at ease!
Let none deceive another,
Or despise any being in any state.
Let none through anger or ill-will
Wish harm upon another.
Even as a mother protects with her life
Her child, her only child,
So with a boundless heart
Should one cherish all living beings:
Radiating kindness over the entire world
Spreading upwards to the skies,
And downwards to the depths;
Outwards and unbounded,
Freed from hatred and ill-will.
Whether standing or walking, seated or lying down
Free from drowsiness,
One should sustain this recollection
This is said to be the sublime abiding.
By not holding to fixed views,
The pure-hearted one, having clarity of vision,
Being freed from all sense desires,
Is not born again into this world.

[@taksaornpetcharatmoloney5844]

_/|\_ Metta Sutta เมตตาสูตร _/|\_ Thank you so much for the chant and Anumodhana sadhu _/|\_

[@drivebypoet]

This is a very good teaching.

[@kevintytel7870]

Add a public comment

[@dfergus04111972]

Thank you for the chant. I will study it.

[@tatianahawaii13]

I wish there was more of that

[@stevenkok1926]

Shadu Shadu Shadu.

[@evadonlon5746]

It's a good teaching, though there are some parts that I am not sure how I should understand. I especially do not understand what is the purpose of chanting verses like these, especially as a form of protection against evil spirits. By chanting do we understand more? There was an interesting article I read that made this point: (here is an extract) -
"In the story of when the sutta was originally given, instead of it being a teaching about how one should correct one’s thoughts and actions, it being used is being used as a ‘protective discourse’ - that is to say, chanting these words protects one from evil and as long as one chants these words, harm will not come to you. This is also precisely how it is used by the vast majority of those who chant it today, and if this story is true, those who do so can claim to be perfectly in line with the original context of how and why the sutta was originally taught.
The very idea of a protective chant - which is equal to a blessing, or a redemptive prayer, or indeed going to wash away one’s sins in the Ganges - is contrary to the basic belief that actions have results, and that we are the heirs to our actions. Any chanting for protection, charm or blessing is a ritual that implies good and bad actions can be washed away and will not have their results. If one can stay secure and free from danger by virtue of chanting some magic words, then why would the Buddha have gone to so much trouble to teach about right speech, right thought and right action, about the purification of the mind? There should be no need for this if we can all be kept safe by repeating a mantra."
believeinwhatyousee.com/2020/06/27/doubtful-matters-in-the-metta-sutta/