Memorial Day Chants for Awakening + Loving Kindness Meditation
at Vista Yoga (in Studio B, to the left of the lobby)
2836 Lavista Rd, Decatur, GA 30033
Free admission!
Donations gratefully accepted.
Memorial Day in the United States is a tradition in which we remember and express gratitude for all those who have sacrificed their lives in defense of freedom and our loved ones. Perhaps we can go even further and make this an opportunity to commit ourselves to finding a path to lasting peace and an end to war, so that in the future no one else must make that sacrifice. The dream is of a world where the need for soldiers has disappeared.
Tonight, in addition to our regular Chants For Awakening practice, we will also do a Maitri (Loving Kindness) Meditation, to pray for harmony and peace for all sentient beings.
The Sanskrit word maitrī is translated as "benevolence, good will, amity, friendliness" and also "equality," but we usually use the term "loving kindness" when we talk about it in terms of meditation. Maitrī (or mettā in Pāli) is an ancient practice within the Buddha Dharma in which affirming energies are sent out to other sentient beings through positive statements like "may you be free of suffering." The practice often begins by focusing on family, friends and loved ones, then progresses to strangers and eventually those who we actively dislike or have conflicts with. This meditation is profoundly transformative, changing us on the inside as well as shifting the energy of the world towards harmony.
Chants for Awakening is a community offering for anyone who is interested in consciousness expansion. In this weekly session (meeting on every Mondaythat I am in town) we chant four specific mantras from the Buddha Dharma tradition that are designed to bypass karmic blocks by connecting to the energy vibrations of the higher consciousness that is an integral part of each one of us.
The session begins with invocations to set the sacred space, and a mantra to balance mind, speech and body.
The chants will begin by connecting to three of the most important Bodhisattva energies through their root mantras: Avalokiteśvara, Mañjuśrī and Vajrapāṇi, who resonate with the vibrations of compassion, wisdom and power, respectively. These Bodhisattvas will act as our guides as we then do a chant, the Heart Sutra Mantra, to connect ourselves directly to infinite consciousness. Through the energy of these mantras, we will be projecting ourselves directly towards a samādhi experience, revealing the nature of the True Self, and gaining greater understanding of each of our personal dharmas, the true purpose of our life.
The sādhana will conclude with a silent meditation and closing prayers.
the Avalokiteśvara mantra (compassion):
oṁ maṇipadme hūṁ
the Māñjuśrī mantra (wisdom):
oṁ a ra pa ca na dhīḥ
the Vajrapāṇi mantra (power):
oṁ vajrapāṇi hūṁ
the Heart Sutra Mantra (infinite consciousness):
gate gate pāragate pārasaṁgate bodhi svāhā
