Compassion

What a gift, to have someone as wise and as kind as the Dalai Lama to share his views on grand topics.  This is an excerpt from the book, "My Spiritual Journey" where the Dalai Lama shares his views on the meaning of life itself.

For me, in my own my search for happiness, I've found this to be so true.  The happiest times in my life involved deeply servicing and helping others.  And this continues to this day, as my new purpose and calling.

Enjoy!

Compassion, path to my happiness

A big question underlies our experience, whether or not we are aware of it: What is the meaning of life?  I have thought about this, and I would like to share my thoughts on this subject.

I believe that the aim of life is to be happy.  From birth, every human being aspires to happiness and does not want to suffer.  Social conditions, education, and ideology do not affect these tendencies of our deepest being.  That is why it is important to find out what will bring us the most happiness.

First, we divide happiness and suffering into two main categories, mental and physical.  But it is the mind that exercises the most influence over us.  Unless we are seriously ill or deprived of necessities, our physical condition plays a secondary role in life.  When the body is satisfied, we’re almost not aware of it.  The mind, on the other hand, registers the slightest event, no matter how minor it is.  So we must devote our effort to developing peace of mind.

According to my own experience, the highest level of inner calm comes from the development of love and compassion.  The more concerned we are with the happiness of others, the more we increase our own well-being.  Friendliness and warmth toward others relax mental tensions and help us to dissipate fears or insecurity so that we can overcome obstacles.  That is the ultimate source of success in life.

In this world, where we are bound to encounter difficulties, if we lose hope and become discouraged, we reduce our ability to face things.  What’s more, if we remember that everyone, not just ourselves, has to experience suffering, this realistic perspective reinforces our determination and our ability to overcome difficulty.  In fact, with this attitude, every new obstacle will be regarded as a good opportunity to improve our state of mind!

That is how we can gradually strive for more compassion- by cultivating both real sympathy when faced with suffering of others and a desire to help them free themselves of it.  In this way our own serenity and inner strength will increase.

--Dalai Lama, From the book “My Spiritual Journey”