Tags
Compassion, Ideas Worth Spreading, Imam, layperson, Rabbi, Reverend, Swami, TED, Tenzin
A Swami, a Rabbi, an Imam, a Tenzin, a layperson, and a Reverend walk into a bar…
Sounds like the beginning of a joke!
But no.
TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an organisation dedicated to Ideas Worth Spreading. And this idea is very cool.
What they’ve assembled are six different perspectives on the topic of compassion. With – you guessed it – a Swami, a Rabbi, an Imam, a Tenzin, a layperson, and a Reverend.
- Swami Dayananda Saraswati: The profound journey of compassion
- Rabbi Jackie Tabick: The balancing act of compassion
- Imam Faisal Abdul Rauf: Lose your ego, find your compassion
- Tenzin Robert Thurman: Expanding your circle of compassion
- Robert Wright: The evolution of compassion
- Reverend James Forbes: Compassion at the dinner table
Some I found easier to relate to than others, but they are all wonderful discussions on compassion.
Of course, compassion has to start with ourselves. True compassion becomes a part of who you are, not like a jacket you clothe yourself in at will, applied sporadically.
But as Swami Dayananda puts it (paraphrased)… to learn to swim you must swim… in order to be compassionate you must act with compassion… and you fake it til you make it!
Also, check out the Charter for Compassion – a brand new inter-faith initiative looking at how to develop world-wide compassion…
The Charter seeks to change the conversation so that compassion becomes a key word in public and private discourse, making it clear that any ideology that breeds hatred or contempt ~ be it religious or secular ~ has failed the test of our time.
This is all good stuff for contemplating how we treat ourselves and others. And hopefully, a little more ammunition for learning to make peace with ourselves. 🙂
~Svasti
Svasti: A Journey From Assault To Wholeness 