The four immeasurables are: loving kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity. These are qualities we aspire to in buddhist practice and people appreciate them generally. I think this is because they are part of being human. They emerge naturally with a long standing and committed meditation practice since they are the inherent qualities of awakening.

Some people use the cultivation of them to direct themselves toward awakening. This ‘fake it till you make it’ has never been my style personally because all I could focus on is what is actually true and genuine and trusting that practice could reveal that. I didn’t want to add anything that might be false or artificial or untrue. After practicing for many years now I can finally feel into them and explore them without feeling phoney.

[updated 30 march 2024]