221. Compassion Is Self-Compassion

Compassion directed towards another person is also self-compassion. When I treat others with compassion, I also make the world better for myself. By helping others meet their needs and become more aware, they are freed from unnecessary pain and suffering, and they gain an opportunity to become more compassionate.

A more compassionate world is one that is more empathetic, more cooperative, and more loving. I benefit greatly from all of these things, both directly and indirectly. I benefit directly through the ways I’m better treated by the people around me, and indirectly through the more compassionate choices they make in their own lives and in their treatment of others.

Self-compassion is also compassion towards others. When I treat myself with compassion, I meet my own needs and I become more aware, and in doing so, I help to eliminate suffering. I do this not only for myself, but for others too, as greater compassion follows from greater awareness.

Compassion follows from awareness because one of the most important things I become more aware of is the unity of myself and the world. In addition to being distinct entities, the two are also one and the same. The self literally is the world and vice versa. Realizing this, it becomes straightforward to see that all compassion is always directed towards both the self and the other.

As I become more aware, I learn to see the world as part of me, and I incorporate more of the other into myself. Similarly, I learn to see myself as an integral part of the world, and I express more of myself to others.

It’s when I can see self and world as one that I will always act from compassion. Compassion is actually a kind of self-interest, where the self I’m interested in helping is not just this body that is mine but also the entire world. My concern is for both myself and the world as one, and I care for both as one.