During a lecture at the University of California marking his 80th birthday, the Dalai Lama confessed that all he wanted for his birthday was compassion. With all the turmoil going on in the world and the problems that can be solved by cultivating compassion, examining the perspective of the Dalai Lama is very instructive.
The Tibetan language has what the Dalai Lama defines as . People with such character traits want to help those who need it. If you pay attention to the Latin root of the word “compassion”, then “com” means “with, together”, and “pati” is translated as “suffer”. Everything together is literally interpreted as “participation in suffering.” During a visit to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, the Dalai Lama discussed the importance of practicing compassion in managing stress. He told doctors the following: The Dalai Lama noted that the manifestation of compassion for a person helps to gain strength for him to fight illness and anxiety.
The Dalai Lama preached that compassion and inner peace are essential and that one leads to the other. By showing compassion, we are first of all helping ourselves. In order to help others, it is necessary to be harmonious yourself. We must make an effort to see the world as it really is, and not as subjective as it has been formed in our minds. The Dalai Lama says that . By showing more compassion to others, we will receive more kindness in return. The Dalai Lama also states that we should show compassion even to those who have hurt or may hurt us. We should not label people as “friend” or “foe” because anyone can help us today as well as cause suffering tomorrow. The Tibetan leader advises to consider your ill-wishers as people to whom the practice of compassion can be applied. They also help us develop patience and tolerance.
And most importantly, love yourself. If we don’t love ourselves, how can we share love with others?