Question

We have learned different types of Compassion/Lovingkindness meditation here. Please explain, in which life situation should we use which type of Compassion/Lovingkindness meditation?.

Answer

It would take quite a long time to think of and cover every single situation in life. However by becoming more aware of how they affect you in your normal practice, we become more aware of which meditation is appropriate to use in each situation in life. Say for example, you're having a lot of doubt arise or self aversion and you're feeling separate from the people around you, then it may be quite important to put yourself with others, seeing yourself as a human being just like them, which will help in not feeling that separation so much. This is where the "1-10-11-1" is very useful.

The "D/D" is very helpful when you're getting caught up in self-pity, feeling separated from others and feeling sorry for you. Using a D/D meditation at that time is very helpful even if it is only a short one. The "Waking up in the morning" is helpful when we're not accepting that Dukkha exists. Especially when we're having aversion. For example, say we're in Bangkok and we don't want to be there. Many people don't like being there. When I'm in Bangkok I try to put myself vividly in people's situations, so it becomes a continuous Compassion/Lovingkindness meditation.

Our apologies if there are any errors in the above text. If anything seems to be wrong or confusing in any way, please feel free to contact the teachers for further clarification.