成人快手

Karuna and metta

Compassion (karuna)

Compassion is a feeling of concern for others who are suffering and therefore makes a person want to do something to help. In Buddhism, compassion is called . The Buddha taught that showing compassion to others is something all people can do, even if they find other parts of his teaching difficult to follow.

Buddhists believe that they should show compassion to everyone. They should also try to think about how they would feel if it was them suffering, as this will help them to want to free others from that suffering.

Compassion is one of the , which the Buddha taught that people should work on and develop within themselves. People should do this so that they know (through wisdom) how to help others.

I believe that at every level of society, the key to a happier world is the growth of compassion.
His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet, 'What Is The Purpose Of Life?''

Loving kindness (metta)

Another one of the Four Sublime States is , or loving kindness. It is important as Buddhists want to develop this quality in order to help others to be free from suffering.

Metta is a more positive way of looking at life than karuna, as metta is about trying to show love to others before they need help. A good example of this would be giving something to a friend to make them happy (metta) rather than helping someone if they fell over (karuna). Although both are important, metta is more positive as it involves acting before being prompted to do so by a bad situation.

Metta leads people to be kinder, more considerate and more helpful.