Khp 9.  Karaṇīya Mettā Sutta — Goodwill

Do not do the slightest thing

that the observant would later censure.

Think: Happy, at rest,

may all beings be happy at heart.

Whatever beings there may be—

weak or strong, without exception,

long, large,

middling, short,

subtle, gross,

seen & unseen,

living near & far away,

born or seeking birth:

May all beings be happy at heart.

Let no one deceive another

or despise anyone anywhere,

or through anger or resistance-perception

wish for another to suffer.

As a mother would risk her life

to protect her child, her only child,

even so should one cultivate the heart limitlessly

with regard to all beings.1

With goodwill for the entire cosmos,

cultivate the heart limitlessly:

above, below, & all around,

unobstructed, without hostility or hate.

Whether standing, walking,

sitting, or lying down,

as long as one has banished torpor,

one should be determined on this mindfulness.2

This is called a Brahmā abiding

here.

Not taken with views,

but virtuous & consummate in vision,

having subdued greed for sensuality,

one never again

will lie in the womb.