Compassion is a Skill

Service is not Compassion

Chatting with a fur seal, about 23 years ago, I lamented and whined: “Friend, I'm so sorry humans have you stuck in this cage. We are the most selfish bastards and our entire society is a flaming pile of shit.”

And the fur seal shocked me by responding with the most gentle energy, expressing: “My love, stop. Love yourself and other people. I'm doing great. I love my life.”

I was not expecting that.

Instead, I was projecting my deep disgust with how humans behave, with everything we create in the modern world, with our horrifying habits and our seemingly never ending ability especially to exploit nature.

When we project, we will always miss most of the picture.

Chatting with some students in my classroom about 7 years ago, I asked them what they saw in Donald Trump, because I was genuinely confused about his popularity. They responded, “He cares about American jobs and families, he wants to help restore economies we used to have, he sticks it to the media and the establishment.”

I was not expecting that.

Instead, I had been taught to see only racism, misogyny, and xenophobia. But, none of these hatreds were present at all and, in fact, much of what they valued, I also valued.

The Spiritual Ancestors have this to say on the topic:

“When we look with fresh eyes and aim to see as others do instead of as we do, we see a whole new world and we grow. It is simple. It is obvious. It is almost never practiced.

You can develop this skill within yourself by, instead of criticizing or complaining, asking yourself why a being would choose that which you are in rejection of.

Further, find one who represents that and ask them.

In a moment, you will see your similarity outweighs your difference, and it would be so throughout the Universe of Being. Whether you were to speak with an angel, a demon, or an alien: all will seem foreign until you practice seeing from their perspective.

This is the heart of compassion, actually, and it is a skill.