The
Growth of Compassion
By George Taylor
The path to true compassion is an ever-evolving lifelong
journey. This
arduous process is ultimately the most infinitely rewarding
endeavor
anyone can undertake. Compassion for all things is the road
to happiness,
paved with loving-kindness for existence in all forms.
The best way I can illustrate the experience and effects
of cultivating
compassion is by briefly explaining the path my life has
taken thus far.
My development in compassion began with a two year period
of soul
searching, in which I ventured into the ideas of the many
world religions,
beliefs, and philosophies. This search concluded with me
following the
beliefs of Buddhism. The goal of living a peaceful life
is one I’ve
shared, among many other aspects within Buddhism. My life
has taken me on
many major ups and downs recently, including a period of
extreme
depression and suicide contemplation. I came out of this
recent bout with
depression only after I relearned what I had discovered
a year earlier. I
relearned to love life and beauty in its myriad versions
of reality.
Compassion, I once again discovered, is the key to all true
happiness.
The first step in my recovery began with forgiveness for
every aspect in
which I felt wronged. This forgiveness came with the realization
that
every living thing is connected, even if we don’t
always see it. When I
realized that, I saw that my actions toward the world had
just as strong a
bearing as what I received from the world.
The second step was to begin practicing again. “If
you want others to be
happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice
compassion,”
the Dalai Lama. The cultivation is a very simple, but very
long process.
It begins the moment we choose to help others and continues
with every
forward breath. Actions large and small will result in great
change.
Things as small as holding the door for someone passing
through or helping
someone up from a fall can dramatically alter someone’s
day. Offering your
ear to listen to someone who is down could change the course
of their
life. Encouraging all to follow peacefully and help everyone
and
everything in need will, without a doubt, change the world.
I will leave out names for the benefit of those involved.
A friend was
struggling to cope with her cousin’s suicide. She
had hit a great low that
some are lucky enough to never experience. Without thinking
twice, I
counseled her. I listened to all that she had to say and
offered ways she
could regain her personal happiness. She is now much happier.
Recently, I
saw one of her friends very sad about a recent breakup and
her doing what
I had done. In this way the lessons of compassion and happiness
are spread
and eventually the whole world is affected.
I offer this final summation. Life may be challenging. We
may reach times
that we feel we will never recover. When we learn to love
and help all
regardless of whom they are, we will be truly happy and
help all to be
truly happy.
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