August 28, 2025
Emptiness and Compassion
Recited in temples around the world and chanted by millions of practitioners each day, the Heart Sutra is arguably the most important scripture in Mahayana Buddhism.
The Heart Sutra is said to contain the essence of the Buddha’s teachings and reveal the fundamental nature of reality. It’s a profound expression of the Buddhist doctrine of emptiness, shunyata—and the compassion that goes hand-in-hand with the realization of emptiness.
For many practitioners, this doctrine can be perplexing and difficult to grasp. What does it really mean to accept our bodies, sensory experiences, and all of reality as empty? How would this awareness change the way we live?
As the Buddha taught it, the principle of emptiness is anything but nihilistic. Instead, it is the very foundation of compassion and liberation. If we can recognize that all things are fundamentally boundless and devoid of a separate, fixed existence, we find the keys to free ourselves from all causes of suffering. This realization of emptiness is thus described as the “perfection of wisdom,” or as Thich Nhat Hanh translated it, “the insight that takes us to the other shore.”
Discover the profound wisdom of the Heart Sutra in this week’s Three Teachings, which provide three unique lenses on the text’s core teachings and enduring importance. | 
