A Discourse On Compassion

Tommi: I've heard you say that you believe your life is a path of compassion. Could you explain this?

Hoyu: Well, this is through personal experience. Turning away from adversity and challenges in life lead (and have led) to suffering. Through the experience of investigating and immersing into the cause of suffering there is the opportunity to become aware even of its transient nature. Suffering arises and then after a while dissolves. (Just as non-suffering does) This change is not an option or even a choice. The only choice is how we respond to the obvious nature of change.

Perhaps, the practice is to move mindfully along the path of suffering/compassion until awakening to the realization of it being the doorway. The understanding that there truly is no separation.

A favourite quote from "There Is Nothing Wrong With You" by Cheri Huber seems to ring true.

The only way out of this life of suffering is through the doorway of compassion.

"But how do you find the doorway?"

You can't find it because you are it. The moment there is nothing left of you but compassion, you ARE the doorway. The door is wide open and you are free.

This is accompanied by a wonderful line drawing of a face looking down towards the chest/heart which displays an open door with a dancing figure in it.

Suffering becomes an option when you experience suffering and non-suffering.

Tommi: Okay, so that is the personal journey. How do you extend compassion to others?

Hoyu: First by being compassionate with yourself. This is an incredibly difficult practice because western social conditioning is focussed on "shame and blame". Moving beyond this and really understanding that mistakes happen. And not only do mistakes transpire but accidents happen, tragedies occur, errors exist, unskillful thinking is followed by unskillful behaviour. Becoming aware, correcting where possible, understanding that everyone makes mistakes and applying liberal self forgiveness all can be a precursor to compassion. Only through self forgiveness and compassion can the same be accorded to others.

Of course, this explanation because of the nature of words infers that this existence is linear. The explaining is only intended to be a finger pointing at an idea.