From Sogen
The Song of Loving Kindness is sung during each weekday morning service: May you dwell in the heart, may you be free from suffering, may you be healed, may you be at peace. The Pali word for Loving Kindness is Metta, as in Metta Sutra, which is chanted in our Thursday evening service, “radiating kindness, over the entire world.” Loving kindness is a bodhisattva characteristic and may be cultivated through regular Metta practice.
Begin with expressing loving kindness for yourself: may I be well, may I be free from suffering, may I be at peace. Extend loving kindness to your family, friends, and loved ones: may they be well, may they be free from suffering, may they be at peace. Then send loving kindness to those who may seem difficult, unwholesome, or harmful: may they be well, may they be free from suffering, may they be at peace. Finally, send loving kindness to all beings: may all beings be well, may all beings be free from suffering, may all beings be at peace. Loving kindness is one of the four Brahma Viharas, or Divine Abodes. May you know it well, and may you abide in it.