Yoga Sūtra Chapter One verse 33

मैत्रीकरुणामुदितोपेक्षाणां सुखदुःखपुण्यापुण्यविषयाणां भावनातः चित्तप्रसादनम् ॥३३॥

maitrī-karuṇā-muditā-upekṣānāṃ sukha-duḥkha-puṇya-apuṇya-viṣayāṇāṃ bhāvanātaḥ citta-prasādanam ||33||

The psyche can be calmed by cultivating as an object
friendliness, compassion, gladness and disinterest
within happiness, suffering, virtue and vice.

maitrī - friendliness, good willkaruṇā - compassion, pitymuditā - gladness; rejoicing in, delighted; joyfulupekṣā - disinterest, overlooking, disregard, indifferencesukha - pleasure; happiness; agreeable; ease; comfortable; pleasantduḥkha - suffering, pain, sorrowfulpuṇya - propitious; virtuous; meritoriousapuṇya - non-meritorious; wicked; unvirtuousviṣaya - an object of sense; anything perceptible by the senses; any object of affection or concern or attentionbhāvana - cultivation; imagining, fancying; forming in the mind; to occupy one's imagination with, conceptioncitta - psyche (the totality of the human mind, conscious and unconscious); mind; heartprasādana - calming, soothing, cheering, gratifying; propitiating

Commentaries and Reflections

Commentary by T Krishnamacharya:

“Bhāvana is a beneficial attitude
that is consciously cultivated
despite tendencies to the contrary.”

Commentary by Paul Harvey:

Maitrī
Cultivating a feeling of friendliness
towards our own attempts,
let alone other’s demands,
to distract ourselves.”

Karuṇā
Cultivating a feeling of compassion
towards our bodies and minds,
whatever state we find them in.”

Muditā
Cultivating a feeling of looking,
from a joyful space in ourselves,
at what we can do well and now,
rather than what we can’t do well or now.”

Upekṣā
Cultivating a feeling of holding a distance from
the self-deprecation that can so often accompany
our attempts to improve the quality of our inner life
and old responses to inner tensions and memories.”

Inspirational Quote

“What you are as a single person, you will be as a married person, only to a greater degree. Any negative character trait will be intensified in a marriage relationship, because you will feel free to let your guard down -- that person has committed himself to you and you no longer have to worry about scaring him off....” Josh McDowell