Psychological illness is to be healed by psychological medicine. You can use one idea to cancel another. You can balance a negative emotion by instilling a positive one. Giving is the opposite of greed. Benevolence is the opposite of hatred.
Understand clearly now: this is not an attempt to liberate yourself by autohypnosis. This is not autohypnosis, but to know the truth with wisdom. You cannot condition Enlightenment. Nirvana is an unconditioned state. Nirvana is an egoless state, completely free from ego-grasping. Although we’ve eliminated the notion of ego, our innate ego-grasping is still there. It’s not that easy. If you’ve eradicated ego-grasping completely, then that is Nirvana — nirvana with residue. Nirvana is an unconditioned state. A liberated person will indeed be generous and benevolent. If you are egoless, you are definitely generous and benevolent. But not because you have been conditioned to be so. It is unconditional. It is purely the manifestation of one’s basic nature, no longer inhibited by ego. So this is not conditioning. This is psychological medicine. If you take this medicine according to directions, it will bring temporary relief from the symptoms of the malady from which you are currently suffering. Then you can get to work in earnest on the illness itself. You start out by banishing thoughts of self-hatred and self-condemnation. ……………………………………………………………… Before meditation, you can also aspire like this: During meditation, may all meditators be mindful and awakened, extinguish ignorance, and subdue greed, hatred, and delusion. This kind of dedication is loving-kindness. Remember this: if you wish to succeed in what you are doing, you should dedicate it to all living beings — may all beings be able to do it well and successfully. This kind of dedication is the best. It is immeasurable love and immeasurable compassion. If you want to accomplish something, you certainly wish all living beings to accomplish it. This is the most realistic and best dedication. The four immeasurables are closer to your current state of mind. What are the four immeasurables? It is to wish all living beings to achieve what you yourself wish to achieve. This is immeasurable love and immeasurable compassion. There is also immeasurable equanimity — impartiality. If you wish to obtain a certain result for what you are doing, you definitely wish all beings to obtain the same result. Hold the same attitude toward your enemies as toward all beings. This is equanimity. Then your meditation will succeed quickly. Aspire in this way from the bottom of your heart. This is not chanting, but a sincere wish — entirely true, without any falseness. In this way, you will succeed.