There is a style of meditation that could have come straight from the pages of fantasy.
It’s the closest thing to magic that we Muggles have.
And, in the world beyond Diagon Alley, it is the fuel for the most powerful magic in existence.
It keeps people safe from things that should harm them. It even blocks unlockable spells – the ultimate power.
I am, of course, talking about love.
But not just any love. After all, that is an emotion that is felt throughout the human species. If all a mage needed was to feel something, everyone could use it.
However, in the books, magic based on love is ancient and mysterious.
Curious, right?
And what does this have to do with meditation?
There is a style of meditation called metta, also known as loving-kindness meditation. As the name suggests, you reflect on love. Not greedy love or possessive love, but kind love.
It is a healthy and pure emotion.
Most people feel this at times. There are people in your life who invoke something deeper than infatuation or admiration. We call these people our soulmates or brother/sister. And because we know words can’t convey it, we put so much energy into the label.
There are “brothers” and then there are brothers.
You can practice this state of mind. Like any other thought, it grows stronger with time and attention.
It’s easy to start with people who inspire you to feel that way about them.
Then you move on to the people who know but don’t think much. When you practice loving-kindness toward them, you free yourself from the barriers you put up toward other people.
Once you can do that, you practice on strangers. Think of unknown people in distant lands that you will never meet. When you experience loving-kindness for a person who is both an idea and a reality, you open yourself up even more.
Then the final stage. Feel love and kindness towards your enemies. Genuinely want people, even those who have wronged you.
Now, some people take offense at this idea. There are people who have done horrible and unforgivable things. They think that wishing them love and kindness minimizes all the bad things they did.
Except, I assure you, it doesn’t.
This is not to say that what they did was right. It’s not about welcoming cruel and evil people into your life.
You forgive them for you, not for them. If they’re the kind of people who would exploit that, then you can never let them know. Wish them love and kindness in the privacy of your thoughts.
This makes you strong.
Impossibly strong.
Because when you can forgive someone even when you cut them out of your life, it releases their power over you.
It makes you impervious to the little things that other people can do. Would you notice a moment of rudeness from a stranger if you were capable of that much compassion?
A weak person curses his enemies. A strong person never again wastes a thought or an emotion on them.