How we can develop metta for terrorists? Metta is benevolence towards all beings, without any discrimination, free of attachment and free of hatred. How we can develop metta for terrorists?
I am going to try my reply, based on the assumption that by 'terrorists' you are referring to the recent events in Middle East, 'Sydney Siege', Charlie Hebdo and so forth.

Personally I would take the following approach:

Ensure my own 'safety' first

By 'safety' I mean to ensure I do not lose my own Metta. Within the eternal tides of Samsara, the wellness of my current physical body can not compare to my heart's purity. Terrorists attacks mainly originates from the hatred poison, and I must ensure I do not have delusions of justice which can subject myself to the same contamination.

In reality, I am a commoner with no political influence on international affairs. Therefore, as a son, father and husband, I am obliged to ensure my, and my families', safety so I can continue to fulfil my duties. I shall remain respectful to all parties, and always keep a graceful distance.

Repent my own poisons

Upon witnessing the aftermath of much hatred build-up, I shall reflect within myself, "am I still poisoned with the same or similar traces of hatred? if so, can I let go of them? if not, then I shall continue to diligently abstain from hatred."

Offer my merits to them

Buddhism teaches that we are one with every being in all realms. We all share the same essence, and the existence of 'me' and 'them' is an illusion. 

Everyone in the cosmos is like the trillions of microscopic cells in a human body. When a body part is malfunctioning, the body proceeds to repair it, not avenge it. For example, if my teeth accidentally bites my tongue, would my tongue exact revenge on my teeth? If differently body parts start to turn against each other, the violence multiplies and we will all eventually perish together.

There is an African village that doesn't punish fellow villagers whom has committed misconduct. They consider 'bad people' are simply unfortunately confused, so they would band together, and sing and dance around the 'bad person'. They would sing to praise nice things about him, and remind him that he should return to being the wonderful person he has always been.

We may need to stay vigilant in the short term to protect our safety, but in spirit we must be mindful that anyone is capable of greatness, everyone can attain Buddha-hood, and work towards that goal.

As a Pureland Buddhist myself, I would ask Amitabha Buddha to help us and dedicate merits to the situation at the end of every practice.

Proper education

As a Chinese Buddhist I practise Confucian virtues as a core foundation before diving into Mahayana wisdom. An essential part of Chinese Buddhism (and Chinese culture, in general) is cultivating filial piety. By fulfilling our filial duties we focus our life on full and proper care for our parents, our first and most important benefactors, and then gradually expand that love to our direct family members, friends, community and, with Mahayana teaching, expand the love to all realms. 

The confucian book 'Di Zi Gui' (sometimes known as 'Pupil's Guide') summarizes criteria of filial piety into 7 parts: filial to elders, care for juniors, exercise caution, trustworthiness, love all beings, get well acquainted with the wise, and study arts (e.g. literature, skills, music etc) once the former criteria have been well established. This is commonly thought to be taught to children, but has been highly encouraged for adults to practice and 'fill in the gaps'. After all, how can you be Buddha, if you can't even succeed at being a human being?

If we can promote education towards love and wisdom (Metta), then we can cultivate better empathy for others and work together to foster happier families, and better communities. The most efficient way to convince others is not to approach them, but to first practice Metta diligently, set a great example, and convince others with our actions.



I hope the above has been helpful. I must be honest to say that I am not the expert in global affairs, but I can act on what I know and try to be a better human being. Any feedback to my reply above would be very much appreciated.