The author is
This article was NOT WRITTEN by the Dali Lama, but ABOUT him and his talks. I find that in this type of situation the writer sometimes does not convey the true mean or intent of the speaker. Nor do many writers understand the words used and their INTENT, which is important.)
Here are some quotes from the article that I like and then my comments:
He doesn’t deny the reality of our differences or the inevitability of conflict. What’s important is how we choose to react. (referring to the Dali Lama)
A lot of the Dali Lama article seems to be focused on how people relate to others. There is little to no discussion on how we relate to OURSELVES.Are we being compassionate with OURSELVES? Or are we beating ourselves us with our emotional reactions to what life is offering us?If we do not FIRST have compassion for ourselves then we will not be in any shape to care about and have compassion for others.
“And your empathy can be extended further, eventually towards your enemy. Your enemies may disagree with you, may be harming you, but in another aspect, they are still another human being like you. They also have the right not to suffer and to find happiness. If your empathy can extend out like that, it is unbiased, genuine compassion.”
THIS I fully agree with.
Interestingly, the next paragraph the writer (not the Dali Lama) talks about “the three poisons of passion, aggression, and ignorance.”This shows the ignorance of the writer in that he included passion as a poison.Without passion there can be no com-passion.
“This touches on the very definition of what we mean by compassion,” the Dalai Lama replied. “At the heart of compassion is our response to someone else’s suffering. The first point is their immediate suffering, and at another level is the causes or conditions of the suffering. Maybe it is wiser to develop compassion toward people who are creating the causes of their future suffering. That’s wiser, because compassion can bring preventive measures. Immediate suffering has already happened—we feel a sense of concern, but sometimes nothing can be done. Maybe our efforts should be to prevent these kinds of things in the future.”
This is what I talk about the most, Preventative Compassion, a compassion that confronts the CAUSES of injury BEFORE they happen.Sometimes bringing about crisis is the most compassionate way to wake people up to their habits that are causing the suffering.Confrontation is just bring forth the truth of what is happening so confrontation is a healthy way to wake people up to their unhealthy habits.
“The basis of compassion for others is compassion for oneself,” he said. “If you don’t have the natural wish to be freed from your own suffering, you won’t be able to empathize with others’ experience of suffering. Therefore, the basis is compassion for oneself.”
YES, absolutely.My point exactly.
I wrote about Dynamic Compassion yesterday in my blog.You can read it below and may see some differences between my perspective, which I would call a more holistic perspective, and the Buddhist’s perspective.