Quotes About Compassion

When we forgive someone, we don't pretend that the harm didn't happen or cause us pain. We see it clearly for what it was, but we also come to see that fixating on the memory of harm generates anger and sadness.

Compassion grows in us when we know how the energy of love is available all around us.

We can discover the capacity of the mind to be aware, to love, to begin again

To truly love ourselves, we must open to our wholeness, rather than clinging to the shivers of ourselves represented by old stories. Living in a story of a limited self – to any degree – is not love.

Letting go—abandoning, relinquishing—is actually the same mind state as generosity. So the practice of giving deeply influences the feeling tone of our meditation practice, and vice versa.

Generosity has such power because it is characterized by the inner quality of letting go or relinquishing.

When we practice metta, we open continuously to the truth of our actual experience, changing our relationship to life.

You can see your thoughts and emotions arise & create space for them even if they are uncomfortable.

Respecting differences while gaining insight into our essential connected-ness, we can free ourselves from the impulse to rigidly categorize the world in terms of narrow boundaries and labels.

Sit comfortably, in a relaxed way, and close your eyes. As much as possible, let go of analysis and expectation. For ten to fifteen minutes, call to mind something you have done or said that you feel was a kind or good action—a time you were generous, or caring, or contributed to someone's well-being. If something comes to mind, allow the happiness that may come with the remembrance. If nothing comes to mind, gently turn your attention to a quality you like about yourself.

Sharing food is a metaphor for all giving. When we offer someone food, we are not just giving that person something to eat; we are giving far more. We give strength, health, beauty, clarity of mind, and even life, because none of those things would be possible without food. So when we feed another, this is what we are offering: the substance of life itself.

In a situation of potential conflict, let compassion guide you.

Being happy at work is possible for all of us, anytime & anywhere, with open eyes and a caring heart

We so often in our lives serve as mirrors for one another. We look to others to find out if we ourselves are lovable; we look to others to find out if we are capable of feeling love; we look to others for a reflection of our innate radiance.

Can we allow the lives of others to be different from ours and feel happy for them? Can we rejoice for them as their happiness grows, in whatever way that is happening?

The more we practice sympathetic joy, the more we come to realize that the happiness we share with others is inseparable from our own happiness.

The skills available to us through mindfulness make it possible to bring love to our connections with others.

We cannot instantaneously force ourselves to forgive—and forgiveness happens at a different pace for everyone and is dependent on the particulars of any given situation.

There are an incalculable—even infinite—number of situations in which we can practice forgiveness. Expecting it to be a singular action—motivated by the sheer imperative to move on and forget—can be more damaging than the original feelings of anger. Accepting forgiveness as pluralistic and as an ongoing, individualized process opens us up to realize the role that our own needs play in conflict resolution.

Anger often makes us hurt ourselves more than any enemy.

The practice of loving-kindness is about cultivating love as a trans-formative strength

Loving kindness is the practice of offering to oneself and others wishes to be happy, peaceful, healthy, strong

Ultimately, we forgive others in order to free ourselves.

This mirroring quality, whereby we "reteach a thing its loveliness," is one of the greatest attributes of metta. The power of metta enables us to look at people and affirm the rightness of their wish to be happy; it affirms our oneness with them. The power of love reflects both to ourselves and others the manifold possibilities available in each moment.