Module 6: Foundations of Buddhist Meditation III: The Four Immeasurables · The Buddha’s Path
Session 3 - Compassion
David Oromith · 85 minutes · recorded September 24, 2024
In compassion practice we move from ourselves through a suffering acquaintance, a loved one, a stranger and finally someone acting cruelly, wishing each free of suffering and its causes. David distinguishes compassion from its near enemies, grief and pity, describing how despair once fed his own depression working in mental health wards, and why compassion stays active rather than overwhelmed. Members discuss compassion fatigue, burnout and caring for an ageing parent.
A Candle in Darkness & Compassion in the World (Guided Meditation on 'A Candle in Darkness' followed by a discussion (from 19:34) about dealing with bad news in the media and feeling overwhelmed) Choose Compassion (Guided Meditation on Compassion followed by a discussion (from 28:18) inspired by some quotes by the Dalai Lama about compassion and its benefits for your happiness & health) Matthieu Ricard's book Altruism: The Power of Compassion to Change Yourself and the World carries the laboratory finding behind the distinction drawn in this session. Resonating with another person's pain and meditating on altruistic love turned out to activate quite different networks in the brain, and it was the resonance that wore people out, which is why Ricard calls burnout a fatigue of empathy rather than of compassion. His conclusion, in his own words: “there was no fatigue of love & compassion.”
Anger and aversion Anxiety and fear Depression and low mood Grief and loss Stress and burnout Compassion (karuna) Loving kindness (metta) The four immeasurables