Compassion

03/31/2011 Musing:

Compassion: Introspection into your passions.

Compassion. Many meanings, concepts and connotations are associated with this word. It has been in the modern usage as both a state of being, and as a human emotion, and as a behavioral action. Regardless of language origin these concepts have been apart of the human experience since the very beginnings of civilizations. Not only that it crosses the veil of life and death because it is of spirit not just the world around us.

As a state of being it is most often married with emotion. This is often described a feeling. A human emotional state. It is when you have an emotional reaction caused by the pain of others which then gives you the longing to relieve it. To this complex feeling is often assigned pity. But Pity is not always the same as compassion. Another emotion that can come about from compassion and pity is that of grief. Pity is feeling sorry for something that seems beyond your control. Grief is often the feeling associated with your guilt due to your or others perception of helplessness in the face of the experience. Adding these two extra emotions is often about loss and fear.

Compassion can also be understood in modern usage to be an action that one can take. By reacting through compassion towards something else. There is a great deal of debate and thought depending on ones personal view of how the world works, and religious belief, philosophy, and experience. But really, it's importance is what it means to you and how you apply it to the world around you.

At times we often associate other feelings with compassion as our mind makes leaps of association based on our surroundings and experiences. Some for good, some that are destructive. It is often a fine line that is only tread successfully by close examination of our thoughts. If you ask 100 people to describe what compassion means to them, more than likely you will get many different answers. Some solely based on examples, some based solely on religious texts, some based upon what others say, some based in fears such as guilt or defiance, or perceived wrongs.

What ever your perspective is on compassion, it is a good bet that the word itself causes a passionate response in you. This is quite intentional. For Compassion is a fundamental element of Spiritual development. It is one of the major tools in which we evolve our soul. For the word Compassion is about "Coming into passion stemming from personal emotion".

Again; What we all might want to consider upon contemplation of compassion is what else we associate it with while examining that which we are passionate about. What are some of those associated things? They are feelings, based on perspective which leads to intent which leads to action. What one might consider is: Are those associated feelings based in fear or love? Some of those associated feelings can be flavored in the negative: pity, grief, regret, apology, and anxiety... the list goes on and on. In an of themselves they are not necessarily negative, but when used in compassion without followup they become self limiting.

Look closely to see what you feel. For example: If you see someone in need and you feel sorry for them. Look closely at what that means. "Sorry for"......often dead ends without reaction or action. It is Better to use compassion as an opportunity for service or self evaluation of emotional perspective. Contemplative introspective thought on ones emotional reactions will lead one to selfless service that will not only lift up your fellow humans but carry your soul to experience ever greater manifestations of itself.