The Four Immeasurables are the best protection when we send forth: “I love everyone, I have compassion for everyone, I rejoice in everything, and I perceive everything with equanimity,” says Swami Vishnudevananda Giri.
The meditation on the four immeasurable states of Brahma — the brahma-viharas (Sanskrit brahma-vihāra, “abodes of Brahma”) — is known in every tradition. The four states are: maitri (maitrī), karunya (karuṇā), mudita (muditā), and upeksha (upekṣā). Each of them is an intention that extends without exception to all living beings. Together they form a single meditative sadhana.
The Nature of the Four States
Maitri is boundless love. The Guru explains it through intention: “May I love all living beings, regardless of how they manifest.” The key word here is “regardless.” Maitri extends without discrimination: to those who are close and to those who are hostile. When attention is directed toward this state, it begins to fill life. According to the Guru, the Four Immeasurables “gradually materialize, create an aura, an atmosphere” — this is the law of attention: that to which the mind is directed grows and becomes the background of existence.
Karunya is boundless compassion. Its nature is to see the suffering of beings and respond to it with an open heart: without detachment and without being overwhelmed. “May I be compassionate toward all living beings who suffer,” the Guru formulates this intention. Karunya arises where maitri meets pain — and remains steady.
Mudita is boundless joy. The ability to rejoice in another’s well-being is a rare quality of mind, and it is not easy to cultivate. The Guru describes it as an intention: “May I rejoice in all living beings and their successes.” Mudita is a direct response to envy: where the mind is accustomed to feeling unease at another’s success, this state opens up a different possibility.
Upeksha is boundless equanimity. “Great equanimity means that the yogin’s mind is so deep and stable that all dual pairs of opposites are balanced,” says the Guru. Upeksha is the depth that holds the three previous states. Without it, maitri, karunya, and mudita will fluctuate along with emotional waves.
Practice Technique
The meditation on the brahma-viharas can be carried out as a separate session or included as part of other practices.
The Guru describes a method that begins with expanding one’s sense of self. Imagine that the body dissolves into infinite space: the boundaries of the “I” recede, and light pours from every pore. From this expanded space — without contracting back into the usual framework — the generation of the four states begins.
At the first stage, direct your attention to all living beings without exception. Say inwardly, as an intention: “May I love all living beings” — and allow this intention to expand in all directions, not only around you, but into all spaces and worlds.
At the second stage, become aware of the suffering of beings — obvious and hidden, gross and barely perceptible. From the same space of love: “May I be compassionate toward all who suffer.”
At the third stage, see the joy and success of beings — any kind, great or small. Rejoice in it sincerely: “May I rejoice in all living beings and their successes.” Allow joy to be as boundless as the space in which you are.
At the fourth stage: perceive everything — suffering and joy, love and pain — as an illusion in Brahman: “May I perceive everything with equanimity, in detachment.” This is the completion of the practice — equanimity as the foundation that holds everything else.
At the end, the Guru offers a blessing formula:
“May infinite love, joy, compassion, and equanimity bless and envelop all living beings in light, changing their minds and destinies for the better.”
How the Practice Changes the Mind
“The Four Immeasurables will displace our finite, various conditioned states,” says the Guru. And he adds: “We must come to love very much what is not commonly loved, what we do not love — everything; we must deify everything.”
The word “deify” is precise here. To see Brahman in everything — in what attracts and in what repels — is the practical content of the Four Immeasurables. It is work with the very structure of perception.
For this reason, the meditation on the brahma-viharas also acts as protection. When the mind is filled with boundless love, compassion, joy, and equanimity, there is no room left in it for states that make a person vulnerable.
Who This Practice Is For
“In order to begin this meditation, one does not need to be a Hindu, a Buddhist, or a Christian,” says the Guru. “Anyone can perform it.” The Four Immeasurables are described in the teaching as a universal sadhana.
Deep mastery of upeksha — great equanimity — requires a certain stability of mind. For those beginning the path, it is better to start with maitri: it comes more easily and creates the ground for the others.
The practice is integrated into daily sadhana: at the beginning or end of the main session, for 15–30 minutes. It combines well with pranayama and meditation.
The sign that the practice is working is not special experiences during the session. What changes is the background attitude toward the people around you. Without an effort of will. Gradually, as the four states become a habitual quality of the mind.
Lectures by Swami Vishnudevananda Giri on the topic:
