y not said: “ In Ariya Metta Bhavana, how is the receiver benefitted? IS there a receiver, receivers? Here, the loving-kindness, the Metta, wells up in the one doing the Bhavana,the ‘state of overall well-being and oneness’ and all the positive and beneficial effects of it would all appear to be for the meditator. Or is it otherwise? Or, again, is it like I say AND also otherwise?”
The transmitter is the mana indriya of the sender, and the receiver is the mana indriya of the one who is benefiting. For those who need more information, see #9 of: “Brain – Interface between Mind and Body“, and the posts referred there.
Modern day radio signals can be a good analogy. When one speaks, that energy is converted to an electromagnetic signal (wave) at the microphone, and that is transferred over a long distance. At the receiving end, there must be a receiver set to match the frequency of the incoming signal (otherwise, the signal would not be received). Then that signal is again converted back to a sound wave and is heard there.
When we CONSCIOUSLY think (vaci sankhara, i.e, whether spoken out loud or just talking to oneself), the javana power emits energy from the mana indriya. That energy can transmit to “ten thousand world systems” like ours.
Then it can be received by any being in that range WITH THE RIGHT MINDSET. That means, that being must have the “samanantara” to receive that signal and to benefit from it; see, “Annantara and Samanantara Paccaya“.
This is a complex process, but that is the gist of it.
By the way, that is how one (with abhinna power or punna iddhi) communicates with other beings.
y not said: “Crudely stated, Metta Bhavana WOULD appear to be selfish.”
When one gets to a certain stage, and realizes the dangers of the rebirth process, it is done automatically. One can see how much danger one has avoided, and one would want that for all beings, not just close relatives/friends or even just humans, but for ALL beings. It develops gradually.
“Dukkhan bhayattena” (“dukkha characteristic because it is frightening”) means when one truly comprehends dukkha, one will really see the dangers and will see how scary it is to have future births. This is realized in stages as one makes progress: first dangers in the apayas, then in the kama loka, and then anywhere in the 31 realms (well into the Anagami stage).
P.S. However, we should not focus on the suffering. We need to realize that it is the assada or the CRAVING FOR sense pleasures that are really the ROOT CAUSE of suffering. This is the hardest part to understand; see, “Assāda, Ādīnava, Nissarana“.
I hope I am not dumping too many things at once. But, I want to emphasize that one should not get hung up on contemplating on suffering. The Buddha pointed out the truth of suffering (that it exists), but more importantly, he showed the way to stop it from arising. And that is to see the dangers of sense pleasures. First step is to see the dangers in EXCESS sense pleasures.