Recommended Reading: On Compassion

 Topic: Recommended Reading: On Compassion

Today we will be discussing the book On Compassion, written by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and available for free online.

Compassion, as defined by Path doctrine, is a recognition of and desire to ease the suffering in the world. Paradoxically, the secret to Compassion lies in not giving a shit; to have no emotional involvement whatsoever. It is only when we set our personal feelings aside that we are able to act with true and pure Compassion. While His Holiness does not put it quite that way, that is the basic idea in this book.

Let me provide you with a relevant example. It is easier to be Compassionate toward a trans person if you have no emotional involvement in what they call themselves. If you truly do not care if somebody is a man, a woman, or something in between, then you can treat them all with equal dignity and kindness. It is only because we like to categorize people and get emotionally attached to those categories, deliberately treating people differently based on gender expression, that we suffer so much when we encounter somebody who is not easily categorized, or who dares to change categories. Path doctrine, of course, teaches us to accept a trans person- or anyone who has chosen to reinvent themselves- for who they are now and to use an individual’s preferred name and pronouns.

Another relevant example is racism. The Compassionate person is by definition antiracist, because racism is the cause of a great deal of the suffering in the world and has been for centuries. Racism came about in large part because of a kind of base ignorance coupled with European self-aggrandizement, both of which are a kind of suffering, and went on to inflict suffering on every non-white person on the planet. Now we have people of color being oppressed by racism, and white people suffering ignorance and fear for their entire lives for no reason. But, by not giving a shit or making assumptions and instead simply accepting another person’s ethnicity or skin color and treating everyone as a unique and precious individual, not only do we demonstrate Compassion, but we give ourselves the opportunity to engage with and learn from everyone we meet.

Compassion always begins with Self-Control and Mindfulness, to see and recognize suffering both within and without. Compassion towards others is always easier when we address our own internal suffering; although letting go of harmful ideas is challenging at times, because we are too emotionally or viscerally attached to them. Sometimes it takes an external perspective to prompt us to examine our ideas and ask ourselves if we need to evolve in our thinking. Once we have faced and moved beyond toxic ideation, we can do our part to help others do the same. One thing a walker of the Path should never do, however, is attempt to force or bully another person into agreeing with you. Everyone is on their own Path, and we are obligated to respect the journeys that others are on, and let them come to Enlightenment in their own time.

Do you see how genuine Compassion requires emotional objectivity? Are there people you could be more Compassionate toward?