This week I have been meditating on love, compassion and empathy. At the beginning of the week, I drew an oracle card depicting the Chinese Goddess, Kuan Yin, the Goddess of compassion or “she who hears the cries of the world.” She is the Goddess that many people pray to when they are in despair, and she is the archetype of the merciful, compassionate, deep feminine.  

In my meditations this week I repeated the mantra – I am love, I am compassion, I am empathy. I wanted to completely embody these characteristics so that they become who I am. I don’t want to have to think about having empathy or compassion. Rather I want those characteristics to become my natural reaction to whatever situations arise in my life.

I also looked up the difference between compassion and empathy. Empathy is feeling the pain of another; compassion is feeling the pain and trying to alleviate it in some way. It is not enough to feel the pain of another. After I feel it, I must take some kind of compassionate action to alleviate that pain.  

It is not that I have to save the world. It is easy to get caught up in despair about the state of the world, to feel helpless and hopeless because I can’t do enough. However I can do something. I can volunteer at my favorite charity; I can donate (according to my means) to causes which make a difference; I can join civic organizations; I can do my work with integrity; I can listen to my friend; I can be less judgmental; I can provide a smile or an encouraging word; I can love an animal; I can plant trees. I can use my gifts in some way to make a difference, to help alleviate suffering.

I must also not forget to shower the same empathy and compassion I show to others on myself. It is easy to judge myself much more harshly than others would judge me. If in fact I embody love, empathy, and compassion, then I must lavish it on myself just as I would lavish it on others. The first rule of survival is that to save others, I must save myself first. I am no good to anyone if I don’t treat myself with kindness and understanding.

I wrote a couple of weeks ago about finding compassion for those who do terrible things. It isn’t easy, and it takes practice. It also seems to be a lesson that I need to work on. I still have a long way to go, but after this week of meditating on love, empathy, and compassion, I find that I am more open to seeing and hearing others. I more readily radiate love and understanding, to others and to myself, rather than judgment. I am freer to share a smile with a stranger and to give deep, warm hugs. I feel less stressed about the state of the world and more content with the things that I can do to make a difference.

Barbara Garland
August, 2023