Wisdom from The Chopa Centre's Namaste:


Compassion


Compassion is a unique emotion. It is passive yet it is an action. Being created in unconditional love it reaches beyond one’s senses to inhabit the flesh, form, and spirit of the receiver of compassion. It is born of our divine selves and when experienced, it inhabits the divine self of the other. It is Namaste in action – that elusive oneness we all seek. It transcends the concepts of tolerance and acceptance – it is truly the universe embracing your soul and that of another in the same breath.

Compassion cannot be taught – it already rests in each one of us in the same form that enlightenment resides in the soul of every being born to this life – waiting to be re-awakened.

Kuan Yin is immensely popular among Chinese Buddhist especially those from devotional schools. She is generally seen as a source of unconditional love and more importantly as a savior. In the Bodhissatva Vow, Kuan Yin promises to answer the cries and pleas of all beings and that she will liberate all beings from their own karmic woes.

The act, thought and feeling of compassion and love is viewed as Kuan Yin. A merciful, compassionate, loving individual is said to be Kuan Yin. A meditative or contemplative state of being at peace with oneself and others is seen as Kuan Yin. Only through compassion and love one can take the step to save others. Only by having peace within oneself can one save oneself.
****************************************************


Words of Wisdom



My religion is loving-kindness.
—Dalai Lama

If all the beasts were gone, men would die from a great loneliness of spirit, for whatever happens to the beasts also happens to the man. All things are connected. Whatever befalls the Earth befalls the sons of the Earth.
—Chief Seattle of the Suwamish Tribe

A human being is a part of the whole, called by us "Universe," a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. Nobody is able to achieve this completely, but the striving for such achievement is in itself a part of the liberation and a foundation for inner security.
—Albert Einstein

Teach this triple truth to all: A generous heart, kind speech, and a life of service and compassion are the things which renew humanity.
—Buddha

Until he extends his circle of compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace.
—Albert Schweitzer

I would rather make mistakes in kindness and compassion than work miracles in unkindness and hardness.
—Mother Teresa

In the Buddhist tradition, compassion and love are seen as two aspects of same thing: compassion is the wish for another being to be free from suffering; love is wanting them to have happiness.
—Dalai Lama

Compassion is the willingness to play in the field of dreams even though you are awake.
-Buddha

The more compassionate you are, the more generous you can be. The nmore generous you are, the more loving-friendliness you cultivate to help the world.

Thich Nhat Hanh

What Kwan Yin most clearly embodies is the quality of compassion. She is called "She Who Hears the Cries of the World" and steps forward to help all suffering beings. Meditating on Kwan Yin-as she sits by the river holding a willow branch, or as she stands on a lotus blossom holding her vial containing the elixir of compassion to pour out over the world-can soften our hearts and open us to the truth of our sharing with all human beings, human and otherwise, in our living. She asks us to listen, as she does, to the cries of the world, and to begin always by sending compassionate caring to ourselves.

Sandy Boucher

Thank you for sharing this timely information.
We all need to exercise a little more compassion towards all beings. The world needs it more than ever.

Love,
Sue

Albert Einstein:
A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.

HH the Dalai Lama:
If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.

Thank you for this post.
All human beings need to be compassionate towards other living beings, no matter who they are or where they are.

Love
Vicky

Compassion is what we really need at the moment.
Thank you for sharing these words of wisdom.

Sincerely,
Gisele

St. Basil, Greek religious leader:
He who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love.

Thank you all for your replies and beautiful images.

Inda
****

Martin Luther King, Jr.:

I look forward confidently to the day when all who work for a living will be one with no thought to their separateness as Negroes, Jews, Italians or any other distinctions. This will be the day when we bring into full realization the American dream --
a dream yet unfulfilled. A dream of equality of opportunity, of privilege and property widely distributed; a dream of a land where men will not take necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few; a dream of a land where men will not argue that the color of a man's skin determines the content of his character; a dream of a nation where all our gifts and resources are held not for ourselves alone, but as instruments of service for the rest of humanity; the dream of a country where every man will respect the dignity and worth of the human personality.

Kuan Yin is the Chinese Goddess of Compassion.
Kuan means Earth and Yin is the female life force.
Kuan Yin has strength which is embraced by softness. Call on Kuan Yin to practice compassion, this will send healing energy throughout your body.

This is an excellent topic dear Inda and all!

I've been busy, "haven't had time" to be here reading this... but now I wish I had read it when it first showed up!

so many great quotes, images.. woweeEE!!

quote:

If all the beasts were gone, men would die from a great loneliness of spirit, for whatever happens to the beasts also happens to the man. All things are connected. Whatever befalls the Earth befalls the sons of the Earth.
—Chief Seattle of the Suwamish Tribe

Wow. Wise. But would the Earth or the beasts be sad if there were no more men?

quote:

Compassion is the willingness to play in the field of dreams even though you are awake.
-Buddha

http://au.greetings.yahoo.com/browse/Holidays/Buddha_Purnima/


http://www.prospirit.org/art_monk.htm

I think my compassion, is sharing all these happy buddha buddy pix!




Love and light being, Teo Do (Re, Mi, Fa, Soul...)

Thank you Teo for your nice reply.

Deepak Chopra: Compassion Quotes
Giving connects two people, the giver and the receiver, and this connection gives birth to a new sense of belonging.