{"id":5032,"date":"2021-05-14T11:21:52","date_gmt":"2021-05-14T05:51:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/?p=5032"},"modified":"2021-05-14T11:23:51","modified_gmt":"2021-05-14T05:53:51","slug":"why-compassion-is-so-important","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/why-compassion-is-so-important\/","title":{"rendered":"Reasons Why Compassion Is So Important"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">As humans, we must all know the reasons why compassion is so important for a wholesome life on Earth. As we share love and care, let\u2019s come together and make an effort to ease other\u2019s pain.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\"><em>&#8220;If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.&#8221;<\/em> <strong>&#8212; Dalai Lama.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">There probably wouldn&#8217;t have been a better time, than now, to write and share my thoughts on compassion. In a time when the world is at war with a pandemic and millions of people are suffering (and dying) &#8211; there are million others, who are being heroes and compassionately stepping up to help others, sometimes at the cost of their own lives.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Yeah, you got me right, I&#8217;m talking about all those doctors, nurses, hospital staff and caregivers &#8211; whom we now know as &#8216;Covid Warriors&#8217; &#8211; and they are setting an example of compassion for us. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Before I go deeper into discussing the reasons why compassion is so important &#8211; let us first understand what exactly compassion is.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"toc_container\" class=\"no_bullets\"><p class=\"toc_title\">Contents<\/p><ul class=\"toc_list\"><li><a href=\"#What_is_compassion\">What is \u2018compassion\u2019?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#What8217s_the_difference_between_8216compassion8217_and_8217empathy8217\">What&#8217;s the difference between &#8216;compassion&#8217; and &#8217;empathy&#8217;?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#The_power_of_compassion\">The power of compassion<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Compassion_is_unifying_It_is_the_bond_that_unites_all_of_humanity\">Compassion is unifying. It is the bond that unites all of humanity.<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Compassion_makes_us_accept_the_responsibility_that_we_never_thought_we_could_handle\">Compassion makes us accept the responsibility that we never thought we could handle.<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#An_act_of_compassion_can_change_your_life_forever\">An act of compassion can change your life forever.<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n<h2><span id=\"What_is_compassion\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">What is \u2018compassion\u2019?<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Compassion can be defined as a feeling that arises when you are confronted with someone else&#8217;s suffering and feel motivated to relieve that suffering, with kindness, care, and support. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">It is, in fact, a mindful practice where we go beyond indifference and judgment, to feel another&#8217;s pain, distress and hardships.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">To put it in simpler words, compassion is important for our life, like the air we breathe. Being compassionate helps us to live as a part of larger society as well as gives us a sense of fulfillment.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"What8217s_the_difference_between_8216compassion8217_and_8217empathy8217\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">What&#8217;s the difference between &#8216;compassion&#8217; and &#8217;empathy&#8217;?<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Most of the time, we identify compassion as empathy and vice versa. Well, compassion definitely involves the feelings of empathy, love, altruism, etc., but essentially, there&#8217;s a stark difference between each of these emotions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Empathy can be considered as the spark that ignites the sense of compassion. Sensing someone&#8217;s pain and suffering is a sign of empathy, but when we step beyond the feeling and act to reduce the pain, that&#8217;s compassion. Being empathetic isn&#8217;t enough, being compassionate is necessary.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">As Daniel Goleman rightly quotes, <em>&#8220;True compassion means not only feeling another&#8217;s pain but also being moved to help relieve it.&#8221;<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Here are the most meaningful reasons why compassion is so important:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Well, Like I said in the beginning, in the present times, the world needs our compassion more than ever. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">While compassion has certain benefits that can create greater impacts, there are other things that one can feel at a personal level as well.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">1) Researchers have observed that our body generates happy hormones after helping someone else. Thus, being compassionate can <strong>reduce your anxiety and stress level<\/strong>, making you feel happier in general. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">2) Compassion <strong>generates a sense of fulfillment<\/strong> &#8211; it helps you to be at peace with yourself, as you know that you&#8217;re doing the best you can, for others.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">3) Compassion nurtures serenity around you. When you are compassionate towards others, you will notice a <strong>sense of calm and serenity within yourself<\/strong> and your surroundings. It&#8217;ll also nurture harmonious and meaningful relationships with your friends and family.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">4) Compassion helps in <strong>improving your Emotional Quotient (EQ)<\/strong>, as you focus on the needs of others, rather than your own and make an effort to help them, whole-heartedly.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\"><em>&#8220;Compassion is the desire that moves the individual self to widen the scope of its self-concern to embrace the whole of the universal self.&#8221;<\/em> <strong>&#8212; Arnold Toynbee.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"The_power_of_compassion\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">The power of compassion<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n<h2><span id=\"Compassion_is_unifying_It_is_the_bond_that_unites_all_of_humanity\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Compassion is unifying. It is the bond that unites all of humanity.<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">The sense of compassion enables us to understand someone else&#8217;s situation, making us take action to change their lives for the better. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">It&#8217;s a quality that allows us to step out of our comfort zone, in order to see &amp; feel the situation in which another person is suffering. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">It requires enough willpower to stand by those who are dealing with problems and facing challenges in their daily lives. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">In a world where there&#8217;s so much hatred caused due to cultural, racial, and religious differences, compassion is the only thing that can bring us all together and unite all of humanity. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">For centuries, leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Jr., Nelson Mandela and others have tried to spread the message of peace &amp; harmony through compassion.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Compassion_makes_us_accept_the_responsibility_that_we_never_thought_we_could_handle\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Compassion makes us accept the responsibility that we never thought we could handle.<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">As humans, we are often so self-centric that we tend to forget our abilities to stand by others and help them in times of need. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">We feel we aren&#8217;t capable enough to uplift someone from distress or to support someone in times of pain &#8211; but that isn&#8217;t true. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">As you cultivate a sense of compassion, you&#8217;d feel an overwhelming desire to stand by others and make a difference in their lives, without seeking any acknowledgment for your actions. Y<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">ou&#8217;d slowly understand that compassion isn&#8217;t just an emotion, but a way of life. And when you notice that your actions are making an impact in someone&#8217;s life, there would be a sense of satisfaction that can&#8217;t be expressed through words.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\"> It would reiterate your faith in your own self, and make you realize that you&#8217;re more than what you think you are!<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"An_act_of_compassion_can_change_your_life_forever\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">An act of compassion can change your life forever.<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Let me begin with an example, so that it&#8217;s easier for you to understand what I mean when I say &#8216;your life will change forever&#8217;. I lost my parents at the age of 27 years and suffered from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">There was a void that I could feel, but couldn&#8217;t express. I would spend hours thinking why this happened to me, why didn&#8217;t I get some more time with my parents, etc &#8211; it felt like I was stuck, unable to move on. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">A couple of years back, <a href=\"https:\/\/thetravelmanuel.com\/how-a-volunteer-trip-to-kenya-changed-my-life\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">I decided to take a volunteer trip to Kenya and worked at a childcare center<\/a>, where mostly orphaned and abandoned kids were sheltered. There were about 70 kids, ranging between the age of 10 days to 14 years &#8211; and they had never known what parents&#8217; love felt like. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Spending time with them made me realize that I have been blessed with so much, that I shouldn&#8217;t even have complained about life ever. As I showered them with love, took care of them, shared happiness and laughter &#8211; I felt a sort of completeness within myself. That&#8217;s when I knew what compassion can do to us.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Coming back to the point, compassion essentially refers to the willingness to give selflessly. It&#8217;s a desire to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/make-a-difference-in-someones-life\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">make a difference in someone else&#8217;s life<\/a> by donating your skills, money and time, without expecting anything back in return. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">Being compassionate requires courage and mindfulness, without which one cannot fully devote himself\/herself in serving others.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">The rewards you&#8217;d receive from this act of compassion would not just be extremely satisfying, but it would also help you to look at life differently and make you a better human. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">T<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">o say the least, compassion is the greatest gift that one human being can share with another.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">On today&#8217;s date, when there&#8217;s so much unrest and divisiveness, let us all pledge to be more compassionate as individuals and make this world a better place to live.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;\">If you have a story of compassion to share, let us know in the comments below. We&#8217;d be glad to hear about your experiences.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As humans, we must all know the reasons why compassion is so important for a wholesome life on Earth. As we share love and care, let\u2019s come together and make an effort to ease other\u2019s pain. &nbsp; &#8220;If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.&#8221; &#8212; [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5035,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[63],"tags":[656,703],"aioseo_notices":[],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5032"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5032"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5032\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5037,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5032\/revisions\/5037"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5035"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifegram.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}