Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could keep the holiday feelings and sentiments alive all year? I do believe it is possible. How wonderful it would be, to be filled with joy and peace all year? Let’s take this a step further and wouldn’t it be wonderful if all beings were filled with love and peace all year? This joy and peace begins with you. As I spend time with my family during the holidays, I am going to focus on my feelings of love and try to keep that thread throughout the year. The Discourse on Good Will is one of my favorite passages. Wishing you peace and love during this magical time of year.
Discourse on Good Will
May all beings be filled with joy and peace.
May all beings everywhere,
The strong and the weak,
The great and the small,
The mean and the powerful,
The short and the long.
The subtle and the gross:
May all beings everywhere,
Seen and unseen,
Dwelling far or nearby,
Being or waiting to become:
May all be filled with lasting joy.
Let no one deceive another,
Let no one anywhere despise another,
Let no one out of anger or resentment
Wish suffering on anyone at all.
Just as a mother with her own life
Protects her child, her only child, from harm,
So within yourself let grow
A boundless love for all creatures.
Let your love flow outward through the universe,
To its height, its depth, its broad extent,
A limitless love, without hatred or enmity.
Then, as you stand or walk,
Sit or lie down,
As long as you are awake,
Strive for this with a one-pointed mind;
Your life will bring heaven to earth.
-The Sutta Nipata
May you be filled with joy, peace and love during this magical time of year.