What is Compassion?

Compassion in Dictionary is:

• pity
• feeling for the sufferings of others
• prompting one to give help
• 憐憫、同情

Compassion in Wikipedia is:

Compassion is a sense of shared suffering, most often combined with a desire to alleviate or reduce such suffering; to show special kindness to those who suffer. Thus compassion is essentially empathy, though with a more active slant in that the compassionate person will seek to actually aid those they feel compassionate for.

Compassionate acts are generally considered those which take into account the suffering of others and attempt to alleviate that suffering as if it were one's own. In this sense, the various forms of the Golden Rule are clearly based on the concept of compassion.

Compassion differs from other forms of helpful or humane behavior in that its focus is primarily on the alleviation of suffering. Acts of kindness which seek primarily to confer benefit rather than relieve existing suffering are better classified as acts of altruism, although, in this sense, compassion itself can be seen as a subset of altruism, it being defined as the type of behavior which seeks to benefit others by reducing their suffering.

The cultivation of compassion is considered a virtue in many philosophies and also in almost all major religions.

Christianity
The example of Christ has also inspired Christians throughout history to found hospitals and other such institutions. It is also Christ's example that challenges Christians to forsake their own desires and act compassionately towards others, especially, but not exclusively, towards those in some type of distress or need. This is typified in Jesus' statement from the sermon on the mount: "Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy." Compassion can also be kindness towards a stranger that is unexpected in most situations. Compassion can be linked to generosity, empathy, sympathy, and mercy.

Hinduism
The prayers of Vasudeva Datta, a Vaishnava holy man (sadhu) from the 1500s, exemplify compassion within Gaudiya Vaishnavism and Hinduism. He prayed to his Lord (Krishna) as follows: My dear Lord, You incarnate just to deliver all conditioned souls. I now have one petition, which I wish You would accept. My Lord, You are certainly able to do whatever You like, and You are indeed merciful. If You so desire, You can very easily do whatever You want. My Lord, my heart breaks to see the sufferings of all the conditioned souls; therefore I request You to transfer the karma of their sinful lives upon my head. My dear Lord, let me suffer perpetually in a hellish condition, accepting all the sinful reactions of all living entities. Please finish their diseased material life [through awarding them liberation from suffering]." (from the Chaitanya Charitamrita, Madhya-lila, Chapter 15)

Buddhism
Main article: Bodhisattva
At the core of Buddhism is the idea that "unenlightened life is suffering" (the first of Four Noble Truths). Thus from statement the fundamental basis of Buddhism is the concept of compassion.
In the words of Dalai Lama: "Compassion makes one see the picture clearly; when emotions overtake us, the lack of seeing clearly clouds our perception of reality and hence the cause of many misunderstandings leading to quarrels (even wars)."

American Buddhist monk Bhikkhu Bodhi wrote: “Compassion supplies the complement to loving-kindness. Whereas loving-kindness has the characteristic of wishing for the happiness and welfare of others, compassion has the characteristic of wishing that others be free from suffering, a wish to be extended without limits to all living beings. Like metta, compassion arises by entering into the subjectivity of others, by sharing their interiority in a deep and total way. It springs up by considering that all beings, like ourselves, wish to be free from suffering, yet despite their wishes continue to be harassed by pain, fear, sorrow, and other forms of dukkha.
To increase the breadth and intensity of compassion it is helpful to contemplate the various sufferings to which living beings are susceptible. A useful guideline to this extension is provided by the Buddha’s first noble truth, with its enumeration of the different aspects of dukkha (suffering). One contemplates beings as subject to old age, then as subject to sickness, then to death, then to sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair, and so forth.”

Empathy
Caregiving
Forgiveness
Tolerance
Humility
Patience

Compassion in Mark 1:40-42

Jesus filled with compassion and healed the leprosie with a touch. Here Jesus did something that nobody is willing to do for fear for infection - a touch. To offer a touch requires amper of compassion that someone is willing to deny his/her safety to comforting a sufferer. I believe inpair with this compassion, lots of courageous to act upon is essential. It echoes "Love has no fear" in xxxxx.

Luke 10:25-37 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The parable of the good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) differs from most other parables in that it is so simple and concrete that a child can understand its basic point. However, it is also an insightful and memorable exposition of practical moral principles. That so many religious and secular people understand it shows the effectiveness of its simplicity and depth. Unlike other parables, each figure in the story does not necessarily represent a spiritual equivalent. The whole narrative describes working compassion as contrasted to selfishness, of hate compared with love.

In the parable's introduction (Luke 10:26), Jesus uses a technical term regularly used by the scribes or lawyers when consulting one another about a matter of the law: "What is your reading of it?" The lawyer gives the only right answer—the necessity of loving God and his neighbor (verse 27). He then asks the question—"Who is my neighbor?" (verse 29)—that prompts Jesus into giving His parable. The lawyer believes that no Gentile is his neighbor, although it seems he suspects they really are. This parable makes clear who is our neighbor and how we should respond to his needs.

Luke 10:33-35 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The Samaritans were a Gentile people mostly living in Samaria, and Jews thought of them as inferior and hated them. It probably shocked the lawyer to hear Jesus speak well of the Samaritan as the only one who acted compassionately toward the beaten traveler (Proverbs 25:21; Matthew 18:33; Luke 6:27-31; Galatians 5:13-14; I Peter 3:8-9).

"Compassion" in Luke 10:33 comes from the Greek splagchnizomai meaning "to be moved as to one's innards." A person's innards represent the seat of the warm, tender emotions or feelings. It specifically symbolizes the higher viscera: the heart, lungs, and liver, signifying compassion out of the depth of one's character. The Samaritan not only intervenes on behalf of the beaten traveler, he goes beyond the call of duty to ensure the man receives care until he has recovered. He does not contemplate his action but reacts from the pre-shaped compassion of his true character.

Galatians 5:22 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The Greek word chrestotes is translated "kindness" in the NKJV and "gentleness" in the AV and RV. Chrestotes denotes goodness of heart, kindness, graciousness, and includes gentleness. Kindness has many synonyms: benevolence, generosity, mercy, charity, philanthropy, sympathy, compassion, tenderheartedness, friendliness, etc. Kindness is a major attribute of moral excellence and is intricately entwined with the other fruit of the spirit. Chrestotes is translated as "goodness" in Romans 2:4 and 11:22 (3 times), so chrestotes is love in tender action, a quality of goodness, and certainly requires gentleness in word and action.

How could I act upon compassionately?

• If a kind and good heart builds compassion, a nurturing act on this spiritual fruit in our inner self will be essential.
• In order to be kind and good daily as our real self, understanding its definition and standard is important.
• I, then have to study further on generosity, empathy, sympathy, and mercy.

Empathy (from the Greek εμπάθεια, "to suffer with") is commonly defined as one's ability to recognize, perceive and directly experientially feel the emotion of another. As the states of mind, beliefs, and desires of others are intertwined with their emotions, one with empathy for another may often be able to more effectively define another's modes of thought and mood. Empathy is often characterized as the ability to "put oneself into another's shoes", or experiencing the outlook or emotions of another being within oneself, a sort of emotional resonance.

• I found to answer the question of "What is Compassion?" helped me to clarify why knowing the character of Jesus is important. He is our role model.