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Being open to the value of loving-kindness,
one can easily develop the precious attitude of compassion because its
nature is the wish to remove the suffering of all beings. Love moves you
to offer them some assistance to get through and free them from misery. It
weakens the structure of ego-clinging so that your true nature can break
through and reach out to all sentient beings, sharing this open-hearted
attitude with everyone. Of course, you can feel compassion for yourself as
well, but it is primarily practiced in relation to other beings.
Compassion helps create an opening or gap in your normal habit patterns
and weakens ego-clinging.
You
have good reason to feel compassion for others, because every being is
suffering. Although their intentions are quite normal and similar to your
own -- to be happy, joyous, and peaceful, their aspirations and what is
actually happening are at variance. We would like to be happy, but often,
if not constantly, we are facing many difficulties, misfortunes, and
hardships.
Sentient beings
normally act with good intentions. Even in trivial activities we are
trying to achieve some joy, peace, and freedom for ourselves, either
directly or indirectly. Animals are doing this as well. In running,
flying, digging, and moving, by day or night, their final goal is to
achieve some kind of comfort according to their understanding. In this
way, the common goal of all sentient beings is the same. We have similar
desires and objectives, yet we do not achieve what we want all the time.
Why not? The major obstacle is ignorance.
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