Acting with Love and Compassion
One February 24th, one of my dearest friends sent me a WhatsApp audio in which she shared with me how hurt she was about someone's action towards her and asked me whether she was wrong, thinking maybe she was the one mistaken. Since I knew she was acting from love, I sent her an extense audio reply and, right after sending it to her, I felt drawn to write on my journal -as a reminder and affirmation- the following 'condensed' passage which reflects my humble advice to her:
Never lose your conviction, never let other people make you feel small, never stop trusting your gut, your inner voice, YOURSELF. You are you and nobody else is living your life but you. Whatever the situation you're facing, if you are acting from love and with love, you're not doing anything wrong, don't give in to fear. If someone mistreats you, that is THEIR problem, not YOURS, if they feel that they have to belittle you, or insult you, disrespect you or any other fear-infused action, it shows how much fear they have inside themselves, how much love they're lacking and craving, how much love they are asking for. Yes, we all want to be loved, valued, appreciated, respected and seen, truly seen. If a person treats you poorly, just think how much suffering he/she is going through, what fears plague them, what thoughts run wild 24/7 through their minds.
In her compassion meditation, Gabby Bernstein says, '(...) if you feel safe and comfortable, you may want to begin to direct compassion towards someone you feel has harmed you, there's freedom on the other side when you open up to forgiveness, remembering that a happy person cannot do harmful things so if you feel harmed, have compassion for that person who has harmed you because they are not happy they are not well. May you be happy, may you be healthy, may you live with ease'. I agree with Gabby, I think there is so much power in feeling compassion for someone who has hurt us because it means that we understand that that person is not well and that, ultimately, that person is asking for help, for love (however paradoxical and hard to believe that may be). It doesn't mean that it is easy but it IS simple and there is such a sense of freedom once we understand that people who 'attack' us, are actually hurting and asking for help.
The Dalai Lama beautifully wrote that 'love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive', and I agree as I feel there is such a strong calling for more compassion and more love on a global scale and we should reflect on the importance of developing and embracing such vital necessities in their totality, always bearing in mind that they are our true nature. However challenging we might think it is to love or feel compassion for someone who, for example, thinks or looks different from us or someone who has hurt us -among all the triggering events that may make us feel separate from others-, once we actually remember and celebrate the fact that we are all part of the same family, it will be easier to pause, take a deep breath and try to see events from someone else's perspective, understanding how hurt that person is; just try, one 'challenging' interaction at a time and remember that when you act with an open heart, you're contributing with positive energy to heal the planet through kind, loving and compassionate thoughts and actions and, in turn, helping everyone -directly or indirectly- to move more and more towards love.
Never lose your conviction, never let other people make you feel small, never stop trusting your gut, your inner voice, YOURSELF. You are you and nobody else is living your life but you. Whatever the situation you're facing, if you are acting from love and with love, you're not doing anything wrong, don't give in to fear. If someone mistreats you, that is THEIR problem, not YOURS, if they feel that they have to belittle you, or insult you, disrespect you or any other fear-infused action, it shows how much fear they have inside themselves, how much love they're lacking and craving, how much love they are asking for. Yes, we all want to be loved, valued, appreciated, respected and seen, truly seen. If a person treats you poorly, just think how much suffering he/she is going through, what fears plague them, what thoughts run wild 24/7 through their minds.
In her compassion meditation, Gabby Bernstein says, '(...) if you feel safe and comfortable, you may want to begin to direct compassion towards someone you feel has harmed you, there's freedom on the other side when you open up to forgiveness, remembering that a happy person cannot do harmful things so if you feel harmed, have compassion for that person who has harmed you because they are not happy they are not well. May you be happy, may you be healthy, may you live with ease'. I agree with Gabby, I think there is so much power in feeling compassion for someone who has hurt us because it means that we understand that that person is not well and that, ultimately, that person is asking for help, for love (however paradoxical and hard to believe that may be). It doesn't mean that it is easy but it IS simple and there is such a sense of freedom once we understand that people who 'attack' us, are actually hurting and asking for help.
The Dalai Lama beautifully wrote that 'love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive', and I agree as I feel there is such a strong calling for more compassion and more love on a global scale and we should reflect on the importance of developing and embracing such vital necessities in their totality, always bearing in mind that they are our true nature. However challenging we might think it is to love or feel compassion for someone who, for example, thinks or looks different from us or someone who has hurt us -among all the triggering events that may make us feel separate from others-, once we actually remember and celebrate the fact that we are all part of the same family, it will be easier to pause, take a deep breath and try to see events from someone else's perspective, understanding how hurt that person is; just try, one 'challenging' interaction at a time and remember that when you act with an open heart, you're contributing with positive energy to heal the planet through kind, loving and compassionate thoughts and actions and, in turn, helping everyone -directly or indirectly- to move more and more towards love.
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