The Four Sublime States: AND the Practice of Loving Kindness - Metta

This booklet contains two essays: Four Sublime States by Ven. Nyanaponika Thera and The Practice of Loving-Kindness by Ven. Nanamoli Thera. The four sublime states , known as the brahmavihara are the lofty mental states of love, compassion, sympathetic joy and equanimity.

Venerable Ñāṇasatta Thera, born Martin Novosad on January 25, 1908, in Vizovice, Moravia, was a Czech Esperantist who became a Theravāda Buddhist monk. In 1935, inspired by his wife, he developed an interest in Buddhism and traveled to Sri Lanka in 1938. There, he became a disciple of the German-born monk Venerable Nyanatiloka Mahathera and was ordained as a monk. By 1940, he led the Verdant Hermitage in Bandarwela. Fluent in Sinhala and proficient in Pāli, he was also an active Esperantist. Ñāṇasatta Thera passed away in 1984.

Bhikkhu Ñāṇamoli (1905–1960) was a British Theravāda Buddhist monk and scholar, best known for his translations of Pali Buddhist texts into English. Born as Osbert John S. Moore in England, he studied at Exeter College, Oxford, before serving in the British Army during World War II.

Nyanatiloka Mahathera (1878–1957) was a German-born Theravāda Buddhist monk and one of the first Westerners to be ordained as a bhikkhu. Born as Anton Gueth in Wiesbaden, Germany, he became interested in Buddhism through the works of Schopenhauer and other philosophical influences.