Tuesday, August 12, 2025

Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Intention: Cultivating Compassion

 

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RIGHT INTENTION
Cultivating Compassion
Whatever you intend, whatever you plan, and whatever you have a tendency toward, that will become the basis upon which your mind is established. (SN 12.40) Develop meditation on compassion, for when you develop meditation on compassion, any cruelty will be abandoned. (MN 62)

The far enemy of compassion is cruelty. (Vm 9.99)
Reflection
In a moment of compassion, cruelty is impossible, and when cruelty is present there is no room for compassion. As opposite emotions, these two always compete for a spot in the mind. Whichever is raised into conscious awareness from its unconscious latency will have the greatest impact on the mind stream that follows. When we are able to cultivate compassion over cruelty, we can train our minds toward healthy and happy states.
Daily Practice
Put aside some time each day to think of the suffering of others, perhaps just before or just after meditating, and allow yourself to feel compassion in your heart rather than pity or despair. Also, any time you catch yourself feeling mean-spirited or hurtful, immediately take note of that and see if you can replace the incipient cruelty with its antidote, authentic compassion. In these ways you guide your mind in a noble direction.
Tomorrow: Refraining from Malicious Speech
One week from today: Cultivating Appreciative Joy

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Via Daily Dharma: We Are Not Separate

 

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We Are Not Separate

Though feelings of isolation can compound our suffering and sense of being overwhelmed or inadequate, the bedrock truth is that we are not separate. The separation we feel in our daily lives is artificial, a construct of our minds.

Brother Phap Xa and Brother Phap Luu, “Connecting with the Root of Our Being”


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