Click here to go to the next issue.

From: "Christopher Wynter" <wynter@bigpond.com>

Compassion is not something that is provided ... or learned ... or earned

Compassion is the essence of beingness beyond reaction ...

reaction comes from subjugated or denied need ...

The action of compassion is action without need or regard of outcome ...
without
judgement of right or wrong ... without fear or favour ... and without need
to
act or re-enact some past pattern or belief ... being without doing

Compassion is not something that is experienced by the compassionate one ...
if there is feeling, it is sympathy or empathy .. if there is need, either
conscious or unconscious, the expression is sympathy

Christopher Wynter

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Compassion is a recognition of oneness. If a person
percieves himself or herself to be suffering then the
compassionate one also bears that suffering. In this
the compassionate one is not separate from the person
who is suffering, they are the same person.
Buddha and Jesus and others teach that compassion
extends to the entire perceived universe.

andrew
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mirror:

>Dear Jan,
>Perhaps you can clearify me on the topic of compassion.
>A concept in my mind, used to tell me that 'the awakened
ones' (like Jezus
>and Buddha), have always very much emphasized the topic of
'compassion'.
>This, in itself, I believe is wonderful and only natural.

Jan:
You are right. It is only natural. So it doesn't come as a
surprise that prince Gautama experienced suffering when being
confronted with the fate of the body. Asceticism brought
another round of suffering and he nearly died of it. If the
"means to salvation" appear to have been of no use, that is
quite a blow. Being left without hope or expectation, he
suddenly recognized what was never lost and became the Buddha.


Jesus was confronted with occupation, a war-like situation
with a lot of suffering. "Helping others" is a central theme
in Christianity.

Mirror:
>The strange paradox I have been confronted with, however, is
that there
>truly is nobody out there suffering. All is I. All is the
unlimited,
>sometimes experiencing itself through the limitations of
(mental) suffering.

Jan:
Both were knowing, being is one and there is no suffering.
They also knew, suffering has two sides. It can lead to giving
up "the will to live and enjoy" which is surrender. On the
other hand, suffering, not understood, can lead to a situation
where life on a planet will become extinct.

Mirror:
>But the unlimited remains unlimited, regardless of it
experiencing all kinds
>of limitations. The unlimited remains immaculate and never
suffers, whatever
>the circumstance.

Jan:
This is true for the unmanifested. The "human interface"
belongs to the manifested and the process, transforming matter
into life-forms culminates in creatures, being able to express
the unmanifested, like humans. The creatures again are turned
into matter and the cycle is complete; life is a giant
auto-recycling machine seemingly creating all the mirrors
(there is only one).

Mirror:
It doesn't mean that I don't stretch out my hand when
>someone needs help! No, a hand is always stretched out, but
even that, is
>that very same unlimited one, experiencing itself as a
helping hand.

Jan:
The manifest comes with a set of rules; compassion is one of
them. Call it cleaning mirrors if you like :)

Mirror:
>This 'view' is still so new and unfamiliar to me, that it
sounds cruel to my
>mind having to admit that in spite of all appearances,
nothing is happening
>and nobody is affected. The concept of compassion still
lingers very
>strongly in the outskirts of this mind. But who am I supposed
to feel
>compassion for?

Jan:
Nobody. The feeling arises spontaneously; not resisting it
means action without acting.

Mirror:
>Would you (or anyone for that matter) elaborate on this one?
>

Jan:
As compassion is natural, there have been societies where
compassion wasn't mentioned; it was "normal" practice. For
some, a so called "ideal society" is one without crime,
discrimination, indifference etc. But would that mean an end
to suffering? Of course not. One would have much more intimate
relations and confrontation with loss and death would be
rather frequent. The burning pain of losing (loved ones,
youthful body etc.) reveals the presence of "ego",
identification with/ and fuels the "desire" for the
unchanging.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dan:

The teaching of compassion is a doorway, an image.
Walking through: there is only compassion.
No longer a teaching, only what is.
Compassion is its name from "outside".
All names imply an outside and an inside.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Xan:

Beingness
always
surprises
my mind
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

here's a hymn to hummmm

hymn

someone put
a dollar in the plate
and thanked
some Him.
jeans clad
work boots
dollar fifty net
worth some one put
a dollar in
his sidewalk cup
and thanked himself.

it was nothing
he was noone
it was a conspiracy-- a breathing together.
love and blessings,
aleks

top of page