Talk:Compassion

Hinduism

As I read the article, I'm wondering if it's possible to reorganize the section for Hinduism? I think that it could be condensed in a clearer and concise way to be more straightforward.

EJHM1 (talk) 05:19, 2 May 2023 (UTC)EJHM1 23:17, 1 May 2023

Comment

Some content moved to Forty-nine charismatic virtues. Peter Manchester 13:35, 25 Nov 2003 (UTC)

... v.s. Sympathy

So how does this differ from sympathy? Should the two be merged? Why or why not?

Additionally, is compassion predicated on empathy or sympathy, or neither, or both? It may be something outside the bounds of both of these things, but is triggered in various forms, or to various ends, by these things. 24.16.251.40 23:30, 31 May 2006 (UTC)

Sympathy is about feeling "sorry for" another person from a distance. As in, "you poor dear". "I feel sorry for you, you poor thing."

Compassion is about getting involved, entering in, suffering with, walking in the shoes of another person. "Compassion" is derived from the latin root words "cum": "with" and "passio": "to suffer", or literally "to suffer with". It is not about taking away or relieving one's suffering but rather meeting them in the place of one's suffering and being a companion with them, perhaps in hopes of lightening the load, but if suffering is not alleviated it does not mean one was less compassionate. Sympathy is not equal to compassion. All compassion may be sympathetic, but not all sympathy is compassionate. Sympathy is more about feeling sorry for another person from a distance. Compassion requires walking with the other person and feeling with them their suffering.

Empathy is different than sympathy because it’s about taking the perspective of the other, in the other’s shoes. I don’t put myself in their shoes, I try to see what it must be like for that unique person, not how I’d react, but I try to take that other person’s perspective, in their situation.

Sympathy: You poor thing. I feel so bad for you.

Empathy: That must be a tough thing for someone with your history to face.

Empathy: I have experienced the situation you are going through. (Has nothing to do with how you express your perception of another's situation only the fact that you understand because you suffered the same situation.) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.192.115.129 (talk) 12:53, 27 January 2014 (UTC)

Compassion: How can I walk with you in this dark time and hurt with you? Compassion pushes us to take action whenever we see or feel another person sad or in pain.

Measure

How to measure [compassion] in a country? unknown 07:38, 16 May 2006 (UTC)

Possibly charitable acts as percentage of disposable income (not just donations of money), volunteer hours donated, etc.... These would have to be measured against fully altruistic (ie. tithing) or technically selfish acts (ie. donating to one's own organization) that just seem compassionate. I am unaware of any resources that are currently doing this, but you might want to check out the United Nations. You would probably also have to subtract (or even maybe divide by?) the relative number of anti-compassionate acts (such as expecting or demanding bribes, interfering with journalism, interfering with unharmful free expression, etc...) in those nations. A few organizations do this last, such as: http://www.heritage.org/index/ (Index of Economic Freedom), http://www.rsf.org/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=573 (Reporters sans frontières) . International human rights watches of various sorts would probably also be up on it. 24.16.251.40 23:51, 31 May 2006 (UTC)

How to teach somebody to have compassion?

How to teach somebody to have compassion or to increase it, children or adults?

Same way you teach someone to like to eat tripe: you convince or trick them into trying it and if they still don't like it, not much you can do. Maxim K 00:37, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

You teach somebody to have compassion by example, by being compassionate with them. You increase your own compassion through repetition of being compassionate (and also through meditation). --Brian Fenton (talk) 20:56, 4 August 2011 (UTC)

Compassion is a sense of shared suffering, most often combined with a desire to alleviate or reduce such suffering; to show special kindness to those who suffer.

One other way to teach compassion could be to show compassion to those you are trying to teach it to. For example, how did Jesus Christ teach it? By doing.Darci1200 (talk) 19:22, 25 September 2021 (UTC)

removed "veganism" from see also

Not that vegans aren't compassionate, but it seemed far too arbitrary to include.

Buddhism in the the beginning summary

I think the first few paragraphs should objectively describe compassion without discussing all these buddhist beliefs, perhaps moving the buddhist quotes into the 'In Religion' section. Thoughts? --Dankind 19:18, 19 January 2007 (UTC)

Agreed - I have moved the information into the Religion section just now - the intro para could probably do with a bit more work. Ys, Gouranga(UK) 21:21, 19 January 2007 (UTC)

ay sorry this is sao paulo brazil .39830044

Purpose of Hitler's words?

More quatations should be included, at least to justify the existence of those words. Alex. 20:04, 4 September 2007

I have removed the quote. This Google search seems to indicate that the quote was made up. It definitely appears to be unsourceable. (For future reference, it is usually best to move random quotes like this to their corresponding page at wikiquotes.org if they can be sourced. Otherwise, be bold and delete the (probably) fake quote.) Dave Runger 20:14, 4 September 2007 (UTC)

Origin

I was wondering, where did compassion come from? Why did we evolve to be compassionate? From a survival standpoint, compassion is a weakness; for example: A man evolves compassion and is attacked by a mountain lion, he bests the creature and it lays on the ground dying. The man feel compassion for the lion and helps save it's life; when the lion is better, in most cases it would immediately rip out the man's throat. As such the man who evolved compassion is killed, thus not being able to pass on the trait.24.118.227.213 05:02, 28 September 2007 (UTC)

It probably evolved in tribal settings, tribes where members support probably did better... That's maybe also why people tend to care more about those that are similar to them or territorially close. Maxim K 00:15, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

WikiProject class rating

This article was automatically assessed because at least one WikiProject had rated the article as start, and the rating on other projects was brought up to start class. BetacommandBot 03:52, 10 November 2007 (UTC)

vs Empathy?

The article says that Compassion should not be confused with Empathy, but after reading the article, the difference between the two still isn't clear to me. --Irrevenant [ talk ] 08:35, 28 January 2008 (UTC)

Compassion implies both understanding of other's suffering as well as the desire to alleviate it, empathy is an ability to understand other's emotions, without those being explicitly stated, but it doesn't neccesserily imply concern (although colloquialy it often does, iin which case there is no difference) Maxim K (talk) 05:54, 26 May 2008 (UTC)

The article should probably cite some literature on the difference, and maybe dedicate a section to it. To me "compassion" is more of a religious concept that entails a certain value system, whereas empathy is more of a psychological/cognitive one describing the cognitive capacity of empathizing with someone else by imagining their state of mind.User:Maunus ·ʍaunus·snunɐw· 01:00, 11 July 2014 (UTC)

Merge with Compassion in spirituality

The Compassion article is little more than a stub. It seems unreasonable to have such a large offshoot article such as Compassion in spirituality standing on its own. These two articles should be merged. Neelix (talk) 20:56, 7 May 2008 (UTC)

Agreed. Compassion in spirituality should be brought here. --Robert Daoust (talk) 21:05, 7 May 2008 (UTC)

I disagree. Spirituality as a "kind-of" or "type-of" of emotion is just postmodern speculation. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Co4e (talk • contribs) 19:56, 21 October 2011 (UTC)

Actual definition

According to OED, the word 'compassion' means:

 1. Suffering together with another, participation in suffering; fellow-feeling, sympathy.
 2. The feeling or emotion, when a person is moved by the suffering or distress of another, and by the desire to relieve it; pity that inclines one to spare or to succour.
 3. Sorrowful emotion, sorrow, grief.

And yet the article begins with the line "Compassion is an understanding of the emotional state of another or oneself." Compassion is primary a feeling (an emotion) rather than a mere intellectual understanding. Further, the first paragraph ends with the line "compassion may lead an individual to feel empathy with another person." Compassion is feeling; thus this statement is not accurate.

- Nearfar (talk) 05:21, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

I agree with Nearfar. The whole intro is badly in need of a serious rewrite. It's embarrassing. Wingspeed (talk) 17:44, 5 June 2008 (UTC)

I have just added a second paragraph in the lead, dealing with the etymology of the English word, compassion, as I think it may be relevant, and it leads to cross-references to the related words patient — as seen by physicians — and pathos. --DavidB 05:44, 16 September 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for the definition

I am an outlier, but I have been building a model. In our model compassion is the behavior arsing out of the "simpler systems" of empathy. Both sympathy and empathy are held in the aggregate of simpler emotions. The decomposition can be traced down to the more autonomic or somatic sensory experiences. It feels good to eat. It feels good to be caressed. It feels bad when spanked. all emotions following birth are abstractions of the somatic constraints. This topic should be bound to "ambivalence" and ambivalence should be the stub article for all emotion discussion. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Co4e (talk • contribs) 19:21, 21 October 2011 (UTC)

Compassion in the Jewish tradition

Just noticed: this is a yawning, and also embarrassing, omission. Volunteers? Wingspeed (talk) 16:40, 8 June 2008 (UTC)

Also is more conspicuously lacking now a section on compassion in secular society or persons... --Robert Daoust (talk) 18:11, 8 June 2008 (UTC)

Very true. Wingspeed (talk) 18:19, 8 June 2008 (UTC)

I'll put all the religious stuff under an overall label, "Religious and spiritual views on compassion," which, with luck, will speed up the appearance of a "Philosophical & secular views on compassion" section or some such. Wingspeed (talk) 14:02, 10 June 2008 (UTC)

The Sikh tradition

The Sikh section - again, embarrassingly - seeems at present to be mainly about not the Sikh but the Buddhist tradition. Needs to be rectified as matter of urgency. Volunteers?Wingspeed (talk) 14:35, 13 June 2008 (UTC)

Just sought to rectify this omission, but still needs a lot more work, as indeed do the Hindu & Christian sections.Wingspeed (talk) 14:14, 20 June 2008 (UTC)

Positive

Do we really want to refer to Compassion as a positive emotion? Isn't that a subjective statement, in contrast with the NPOV? Many may see compassion as a weakness (though I do not). Nutiketaiel (talk) 19:43, 8 July 2008 (UTC)

Seeing no objection, I will remove it now. Nutiketaiel (talk) 11:52, 10 July 2008 (UTC)

Yeah, I'm the guilty party. I think you're probably right. Weakness for alliteration must have got the better of me. Thanks for spotting it. :D Wingspeed (talk) 02:32, 11 July 2008 (UTC)

Not at all; the alliteration was pretty tempting.  ;-) Thank you for the positive feedback. Nutiketaiel (talk) 11:32, 11 July 2008 (UTC)

I added a new section Criticism - as virtually nobody has thought about writing it. This should help clear up the debate on compassion being a 'positive' emotion - Nearfar (talk) 01:15, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Sutra

• Great Compassion Dharani Sutra

"(Also known as:)

• Maha Karuna Dharani Sutra
• Maha Karunikacitta Dharani Sutra
• Nilakantha Dharani Sutra"

How to mention/insert it best to section Buddhism?

Austerlitz -- 88.75.79.147 (talk) 14:18, 1 February 2009 (UTC)

"(The full title is:) Thousand-Handed and Thousand-Eyed Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva's Vast, Perfect, Unimpeded, Great-Compassionate Heart Dharani Sutra"

-- 88.75.79.147 (talk) 14:22, 1 February 2009 (UTC)

• [1]

-- 88.75.79.147 (talk) 14:34, 1 February 2009 (UTC)

Alice Miller

• Compassion for abusing parents Tuesday April 07, 2009

Can there be.

Austerlitz -- 88.75.89.140 (talk) 10:12, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

this link, ^ [2] Exploring Religious Ethics in Daily Life on the wikisite (see references no. 2) does not work there.

Austerlitz -- 88.75.69.44 (talk) 12:44, 11 August 2009 (UTC)

To be inserted

How and what best?

• Dr. Yutang Lin: The Unification of Wisdom and Compassion

Shastra

Austerlitz -- 88.75.201.192 (talk) 15:25, 12 August 2009 (UTC)

http://www.purifymind.com/BuddhistPsychotherapy.htm Wisdom and Compassion: Buddhist Psychotherapy as Skillful Means © 2002 Kerry Moran

-- 88.75.201.192 (talk) 15:34, 12 August 2009 (UTC)

Lede issues

I generally like the tone and the philosophical way the lede explains the concept, referencing some of the most notable components. However "compassion" is not "an emotion" - its a trait of sympathetic beings, with an emotional dimension. It is the essential property of "compassionate" beings. There is also a problem with the degree factor - asserting that "compassion" has to be "passionate," when in fact it can be quite philosophical and to some degree detached. Compassion is not empathy with more energetic emotion in it - though the two words are sometimes used that way, that is not strictly the way the terms relate to each other. Also, the etymology paragraph in the lede belongs in its own section - though I understand why its placed high in the article. If someone else does not get to it first, I'll work on the above changes shortly. Regards, -Stevertigo (w | t | e) 00:45, 13 May 2010 (UTC)

I agree. Please let all know any disagreement before creating a new heading. New worl April 12, 2013.

Historical?

For one, this isn't attributed properly, and for seconds it seems very much out of place. Should at the very least be "Philosophy" or something similar.

It's also a very general hearsay quote that should be supported by actual sourced quotes-otherwise we're looking at a contemporary quote purporting to be historical. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.112.0.130 (talk) 00:26, 22 August 2012 (UTC)

Cruel Compassion

Thomas Szasz wrote a book titled Cruel Compassion. Szasz says the FEELING of compassion was distrusted in the past. “Greek and Roman philosophers distrusted (feeling) compassion. In their view, reason alone was the proper guide to conduct. They regarded compassion ( a virtue) as an affect, neither admirable nor contemptible.” Helping people who do not want "help" because of the feeling of compassion, is potentially evil. Some slave owners claimed they were helping their slaves have a better life. Henry Wilckens anti abolitionist.--Mark v1.0 (talk) 12:49, 15 January 2013 (UTC)

Yes, and it says so in the article, in the section Historical. So which changes to the article do you want to discuss? With friendly regards, Lova Falk talk 12:33, 16 January 2013 (UTC)

Senior Psychology Lab

Hello, I am a Senior Psychology student at Clemson University. As part of my Senior Psychology Lab I am editing psychology related articles on Wikipedia. I am going to start editing this page. If other contributors have any suggestions or opinions please let me know. Bensmyers (talk) 20:03, 21 February 2013 (UTC)

Welcome! Please remember that Wikipedia is not an academic paper or essay! Wikipedia articles should not be based on WP:primary sources, but on reliable, published secondary sources (for instance, journal reviews and professional or advanced academic textbooks) and, to a lesser extent, on tertiary sources (such as undergraduate textbooks). WP:MEDRS describes how to identify reliable sources for medical information, which is a good guideline for many psychology articles as well. With friendly regards, Lova Falk talk 18:53, 23 February 2013 (UTC)

I have written most of the content that I would like to add to the article in my User:Bensmyers/sandbox. Please feel free to tell me about any changes that need to be made because I know that the content needs to be cleaned up before being added to the article. I also plan on adding more empirical research before finalizing my modifications. Everything that I plan on adding to the article is related to the Psychology section. Bensmyers (talk) 20:21, 8 March 2013 (UTC)

• Just a friendly reminder to use secondary and tertiary sources when adding more "empirical research". Descriptions of single studies are usually removed. Lova Falk talk 07:26, 12 March 2013 (UTC)
• In your sandbox, you wrote the following: "Research has shown that self-compassion and self-esteem are positively correlated in men and that men who are compassionate, forgiving of themselves, and possess a balance emotional perspective have higher levels of self-confidence.[30]" In Wikipedia we describe the information that we have about a subject, so we would simply remove the four first words, and write: "Self-compassion and self-esteem are positively correlated in men...". However, you use a primary source, and your claim is way too strong. This is one study with 145 heterosexual men, and the results can specific for heterosexual men, for the country and culture of these men, and the results can possibly be biased by the scientists' prejudices and way of asking. So this whole statement has to go. Use secondary sources. Se-con-da-ry sources. Secondary sources! Lova Falk talk 07:33, 12 March 2013 (UTC)

Non-modern compassion

Someone with more eloquence than I should create a section on compassion shown by species other than homo sapiens.

http://www.fromquarkstoquasars.com/6-human-fossils-of-compassion/ — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.14.181.23 (talk) 00:43, 27 December 2013 (UTC)

The Starfish Story by Loren Eiseley

"The Star Thrower" by Loren Eiseley is a modern American myth often used to teach the lesson of compassion. The essay is a contrast of the Narrator with the Rescuer, the observer with the doer, the man of Reason with a fully-realized human being, a blinking-light robot with a Human of deep compassion for Life. Only after some torturous soul-searching does the robot become a Man, able and eager to join in the life-saving/life-giving activities of the rescuer on the beach. Eiseley has stated "When the human mind exists in the light of reason and no more than reason, we may say with absolute certainty that Man and all that made him will be in that instant gone." The Starfish Story, has it has become known in various simplified adaptations, does not fall into any of the religious categories given in the main article but the story is so well-known in this country that the article seems incomplete without it.Flatwaterblue (talk) 21:00, 6 August 2014 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Flatwaterblue (talk • contribs) 20:19, 6 August 2014 (UTC)

The link to our article is The Star Thrower. Dougweller (talk) 09:48, 7 August 2014 (UTC)

Fatique and Burnout with Compassion?

The article included a section under the heading FATIQUE with a reference to a 20 year old article which suggests that there can occur a fatigue with compassion. However, neuroscientific research from the last years suggests that it is empathy that leads to fatigue or burnout and that compassion rather prevents burnout and fatigue. That's why I updated the section and its heading. Academic references for this amendment can be found here:

1) Altruism: The Power of Compassion to Change Yourself and the World, author= M. Ricard, chapter IV, chapter-url: http://info-buddhism.com/Empathy-Compassion-Neuroscience-Ricard-Altruism.html, pages=56–64, year=2015, publisher: Brown and Company, isbn: 978-0316208246 and here:

2) Differential pattern of functional brain plasticity after compassion and empathy training, Olga M. Klimecki, Susanne Leiberg, Matthieu Ricard, and Tania Singer, Department of Social Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences

Kt66 (talk) 15:25, 31 August 2016 (UTC)

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Does Compassion Require Suffering?

This article has caused me to be curious about an aspect of the concept of compassion. It seems like this article has explained that the basis of compassion is the feeling of love that we develop for someone else when they are suffering or sad. This was interesting to me. Does someone need to be suffering or sad in order to receive our compassion? Can we not have compassion on someone who is successful or happy? These questions came to my mind while reading.

I would also be interested in seeing some other examples/histories of compassion that aren't so religious or philosophical. Adding some extra examples from books or movies might allow the reader to become more connected and understanding of the concept. Sarahshawrich (talk) 04:45, 20 January 2022 (UTC)

I like all of these thoughts and questions, I would definitely look for some books to see if they can be answered so that we can have a good source material, since this article is rated in the c-class for most of the sections. (also I am new in this Wikipedia editing work so I am learning how to do this! thank you guys for your patience.) Ky137 (talk) 05:22, 17 January 2023 (UTC)

Compassion and the Immune System

A study by G. Rein, M. Atkinson, and R. McCraty found that positive emotions, compassion included, improved immune functioning. The researchers observed the amount salivary IgA after inducing anger or positive emotions in participants. It was found that compassion and like moods tended to increase the amount of antibodies found in saliva. Here is the citation for the article:

Rein, Glen, Mike Atkinson, and Rollin McCraty. The physiological and psychological effects of compassion and anger. Institute of HeartMath, 1995.

Here is the link: http://www.aipro.info/drive/File/228.pdf Erinbueler (talk) 22:51, 14 January 2023 (UTC)

Wiki Education assignment: Adult Development Winter 2023

This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 4 January 2023 and 3 April 2023. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): QualityContent24.7 (article contribs).

— Assignment last updated by Jskalski (talk) 20:41, 2 March 2023 (UTC)