The Heart That Fills With Compassion
As we let go and still see others suffer, the heart fills with compassion. So much suffering is human caused. We awaken to a poignancy and tenderness beyond our own personal injuries. One Zen master calls this caring "the tears of the way." Our personal suffering diminishes, but our awareness of the sorrow and pain in the world grows stronger. Our heart is open and we feel connected to all things.
Resting in the peaceful heart, we weep at the folly of so many who live in the suffering of greed, hatred, and delusion, who have lost their way. And, all unbidden, we act. When a child falls into the street, everyone rushes to pull him from danger. When we see suffering, we respond. Barbara Wiedner, who founded Grandmothers for Peace, describes it this way: "I began to question, what kind of a world am I leaving for my grandchildren? So I got a sign, 'A Grandmother for Peace,' and stood on a corner. Then I joined others kneeling as a human barrier at a munitions factory. I was taken to prison, strip-searched, thrown into a cell. Something happened to me! I realized they couldn't do anything more to me. I was free." Now Barbara and her organization, Grandmothers for Peace, work in countries around the world.
The Tao Te Ching explains, "Because she has let go, she can care for the welfare of all as a mother cares for her child." When we let go of being the one who suffers, we are free to bring blessings wherever we go.
Resting in the peaceful heart, we weep at the folly of so many who live in the suffering of greed, hatred, and delusion, who have lost their way. And, all unbidden, we act. When a child falls into the street, everyone rushes to pull him from danger. When we see suffering, we respond. Barbara Wiedner, who founded Grandmothers for Peace, describes it this way: "I began to question, what kind of a world am I leaving for my grandchildren? So I got a sign, 'A Grandmother for Peace,' and stood on a corner. Then I joined others kneeling as a human barrier at a munitions factory. I was taken to prison, strip-searched, thrown into a cell. Something happened to me! I realized they couldn't do anything more to me. I was free." Now Barbara and her organization, Grandmothers for Peace, work in countries around the world.
The Tao Te Ching explains, "Because she has let go, she can care for the welfare of all as a mother cares for her child." When we let go of being the one who suffers, we are free to bring blessings wherever we go.
— Jack Kornfield
Excerpted from The Wise Heart: A Guide
to the Universal Teachings of
Buddhist Psychology
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