Compassion Quotations

We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.

My doctrine is this, that if we see cruelty or wrong that we have the power to stop, and do nothing, we make ourselves sharers in the guilt.

We must fight against the spirit of unconscious cruelty with which we treat the animals. Animals suffer as much as we do. True humanity does not allow us to impose such sufferings on them. It is our duty to make the whole world recognize it. Until we extend our circle of compassion to all living things, humanity will not find peace.

God wants us to know that life is a series of beginnings, not endings. Just as graduations are not terminations, but commencements. Creation is an ongoing process, and when we create a perfect world where love and compassion are shared by all, suffering will cease.

Self-pity comes so naturally to all of us. The most solid happiness can be shaken by the compassion of a fool.

Computers are magnificent tools for the realization of our dreams, but no machine can replace the human spark of spirit, compassion, love, and understanding.

I joined the Labour party because I believed in equality, in freedom of speech and in tolerance, compassion and understanding for people, irrespective of their background and views. In whatever I decide to do in the future I will hold to those principles.

You desire that which exceeds my humble powers, but I trust in the compassion and mercy of the All-powerful God.

You have to take strength from the people that love you and the people that love Barbara and the huge number of expressions of sympathy and compassion and support. That has been extremely moving.

I think there is a complicated side effect to overcoming evil in that we are forever changed by it. I think after we ingest some of the cruelty of the world, it takes years off of our lives, but it also gives us wisdom and a little grace, hopefully a sense of compassion.

I think we learn the most from imperfect relationships - things like forgiveness and compassion.

When there's that forgiveness present and compassion, it just helps you live so much easier.

I became a vegetarian out of compassion for animals and to live as healthy as possible. I realized soon after that I was truly concerned with nonviolent consumption and my own health, a vegan diet was the best decision.

When you have learned compassion for yourself, compassion for others is automatic.

Being a typical teenager isn't easy. When you have autism, it can be extra difficult. We need more public awareness about these hurdles as well as compassion towards these young people.

Pets have more love and compassion in them than most humans.

The super power that I would choose would be compassion. Because that's what I think it takes to make it through life-an understanding, a give and take. It saves an awful lot of resentment.

Wars begin in the minds of men, and in those minds, love and compassion would have built the defenses of peace.

One of my great regrets, and I don't have many, is that I spent too long putting people's status and reputation ahead of their more important qualities. I learned far too late in life that a long list of letters after someone's name is no guarantee of compassion, kindness, humour, all the far more relevant stuff.

Children, even infants, are capable of sympathy. But only after adolescence are we capable of compassion.

I do not say that one who is vegetarian is full of compassion and one who is not, is otherwise. We sometimes find people, who are vegetarians, are very bad people.

People with lower incomes tend to give a greater percentage of their incomes to help others and show greater empathy and compassion - perhaps because they know they might face the same circumstances.

In Scotland over many years we have cultivated through our justice system what I hope can be described as a 'culture of compassion.' On the other hand, there still exists in many parts of the U.S., if not nationally, an attitude towards the concept of justice which can only be described as a 'culture of vengeance.

Being a good neighbour is about compassion, which is as warm-blooded as justice is cool-headed.

Compassion is not a popular virtue. Very often when I talk to religious people, and mention how important it is that compassion is the key, that it's the sine-qua-non of religion, people look kind of balked, and stubborn sometimes, as much to say, what's the point of having religion if you can't disapprove of other people?

Where I didn't have the maturity and the compassion to consider other people's needs, I did a lot of damage.

Are you not moved to tears and bitter compassion, when you behold the only Son of God seized by the most impious, dragged away, mocked, scourged, buffeted, spit upon, crowned with thorns, hung upon the infamous cross between two thieves, finally in such a horrible and execrable manner suffering death, for your salvation and that of the world?

The gift that has been given to me says much about our capacity for great compassion and generosity, and I hope it sends an inspiring message to others about the importance of organ donation.

Birds are indicators of the environment. If they are in trouble, we know we'll soon be in trouble.

Something called 'the Oklahoma Standard' became known throughout the world. It means resilience in the face of adversity. It means a strength and compassion that will not be defeated.

We don't want the efficiency of the federal government and the compassion of the IRS to run our health care.

But my experience is that people who have been through painful, difficult times are filled with compassion.

Humankind seems to have an enormous capacity for savagery, for brutality, for lack of empathy, for lack of compassion.

I realized that it's all really one, that John Lennon was correct. We utilize the music to bring down the walls of Berlin, to bring up the force of compassion and forgiveness and kindness between Palestines, Hebrews. Bring down the walls here in San Diego, Tijuana, Cuba.

The harshness and choice of words can cut deeply. Republicans need to show compassion and to be reasonable when talking to any ethnic group.

Human it is to have compassion on the unhappy.

I just believe as a Christian, we are to show love; we are to show compassion to people, not to point the finger, not to do this, but to do this - to love them, to welcome them, to embrace them.

America is hope. It is compassion. It is excellence. It is valor.

At the end of the day, love and compassion will win.

As Christians, our compassion is simply a response to the love that God has already shown us.

Before I was humiliated I was like a stone that lies in deep mud, and he who is mighty came and in his compassion raised me up and exalted me very high and placed me on the top of the wall.

It is a great consolation for me to remember that the Lord, to whom I had drawn near in humble and child-like faith, has suffered and died for me, and that He will look on me in love and compassion.

Christlike communications are expressions of affection and not anger, truth and not fabrication, compassion and not contention, respect and not ridicule, counsel and not criticism, correction and not condemnation. They are spoken with clarity and not with confusion. They may be tender or they may be tough, but they must always be tempered.

These things will destroy the human race: politics without principle, progress without compassion, wealth without work, learning without silence, religion without fearlessness and worship without awareness.

Americans are blessed with great plenty; we are a generous people and we have a moral obligation to assist those who are suffering from poverty, disease, war and famine.

The law has no compassion. And justice is administered without compassion.

What a liberating thing to realize that our problems are probably our richest sources for rising to the ultimate virtue of compassion.

I don't know if it is a spiritual, physiological or psychological phenomenon, but I believe now more than ever that singing is a universal, built-in mechanism designed to cultivate empathy and compassion.

We need the compassion and the courage to change the conditions that support our suffering. Those conditions are things like ignorance, bitterness, negligence, clinging, and holding on.

More by example than by word, my father taught me logical reasoning, compassion, love of others, honesty, and discipline applied with understanding.

No, you're not allowed to be bossy when you're married. You have to learn compromise, and compassion and patience.

There is this notion that the lives of the comfortable-off middle class don't merit being treated seriously and with compassion.

The war in Iraq has as much to do with terrorism as the administration has to do with compassion.

We can have skills training in mindfulness so that we are using our attention to perceive something in the present moment. This perception is not so latent by fears or projections into the future, or old habits, and then I can actually stir loving-kindness or compassion in skills training too, which can be sort of provocative, I found.

The propagandist's purpose is to make one set of people forget that certain other sets of people are human.

Biblical orthodoxy without compassion is surely the ugliest thing in the world.

Fiction is a kind of compassion-generating machine that saves us from sloth. Is life kind or cruel? Yes, Literature answers. Are people good or bad? You bet, says Literature. But unlike other systems of knowing, Literature declines to eradicate one truth in favor of another.

Typically, discussions of the safety net boil down to one side wanting to spend more in the name of compassion, and the other side wanting to spend less in the name of fiscal restraint. In both cases, money serves as a proxy for moral responsibility.

No deep and strong feeling, such as we may come across here and there in the world, is unmixed with compassion. The more we love, the more the object of our love seems to us to be a victim.

True compassion means not only feeling another's pain but also being moved to help relieve it.

Compassion is more important than intellect in calling forth the love that the work of peace needs, and intuition can often be a far more powerful searchlight than cold reason.

Jurors want courtroom lawyers to have some compassion and be nice.

The mind is no match with the heart in persuasion; constitutionality is no match with compassion.

In search of a complete education with the ideals of trust, faith, understanding and compassion, many families are turning to the structure, discipline and academic standards of Catholic schools.

It is much easier to show compassion to animals. They are never wicked.

Competition is such a virtue, and everybody's so busy competing, they have no time for compassion.

The essence of Hinduism is the same essence of all true religions: Bhakti or pure love for God and genuine compassion for all beings.

All creatures tread across the rubble of ruined civilizations. The trick is to keep moving. No animal ever goes about dispensing shallow compassion.

Love is cheering and sharing and compassion and giving and receiving. Love is an action thing more than a word thing, that brings comfort or joy or relief to anyone or anything.

There are no greater treasures than the highest human qualities such as compassion, courage and hope. Not even tragic accident or disaster can destroy such treasures of the heart.

I just don't know that shame and fear need to be our teachers; rather, compassion, understanding, and love should be our guides

Developing our sympathetic compassion is not only possible but the only reason for us to be here on earth.

Today, our actions must be motivated only by our intense desire to achieve a just and lasting peace. The compassion and charity of the American people should be reflected in this legislation, though sadly, they are silenced.

Compassion is the key in Islam and Buddhism and Judaism and Christianity. They are profoundly similar.

My parents' selfless affection and dedication nourished and prepared me to receive the love of my guru or spiritual father, Swami Prabhupada. My parents prepared the soil in which my guru sowed the seeds of his compassion.

I lost my sense of trust, honesty and compassion. I crashed down and became what I consider an emotional mess. I've never been so miserable in my whole life. I just wanted to go to bed and never get up.

Feeling compassion for ourselves in no way releases us from responsibility for our actions. Rather, it releases us from the self-hatred that prevents us from responding to our life with clarity and balance.

I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.

I'm no expert standing at a podium giving speeches. I share heartbeats. Compassion.

Mindfulness is about love and loving life. When you cultivate this love, it gives you clarity and compassion for life, and your actions happen in accordance with that.

Since its inception, our Nation has stood on the foundations of compassion and justice.

I have a deep compassion for the idea that it's okay to be myself. The idea that anything 'other' is bad and wrong and broken is so wildly off base.

I look at the Samurai because they were the artists of their time. What I think struck me when I read Bushido is compassion. 'If there's no one there to help, go out and find someone to help.' That hit me, because I try to lead my life like that.

One man cannot hold another man down in the ditch without remaining down in the ditch with him.

If we don't change from a world society that worships money and power to one that worships compassion and generosity, I think we'll be extinct by mid-century. I don't say that as an alarmist or as a pessimist.

Of course we have compassion. We just don't believe the safety net should be used as a hammock.

The greatness of a man is measured by the way he treats the little man. Compassion for the weak is a sign of greatness

Religions have always stressed that compassion is not only central to religious life, it is the key to enlightenment and it the true test of spirituality. But there have always have been those who'd rather put easier goals, like doctrine conformity, in place.

When one has love for God, one doesn't feel any physical attraction to wife, children, relatives and friends. One retains only compassion for them.

It is my intention to live an authentic life of compassion and integrity and action.

The great gift of human beings is that we have the power of empathy.

We obviously need more love in the world. And we obviously need more compassion and understanding. Our leaders need to really address these issues properly now.

All I know for sure is that issues like race, like class, are always best approached with compassion and open-mindedness.

To pity distress is but human; to relieve it is Godlike.

A love for humanity came over me, and watered and fertilised the fields of my inner world which had been lying fallow, and this love of humanity vented itself in a vast compassion.

Compassion is a practically acquired knowledge, like dancing. You must do it and practice diligently day by day.

I am not interested in picking up crumbs of compassion thrown from the table of someone who considers himself my master. I want the full menu of rights.

Most governments are pragmatic, most people are logical. There are pockets of extremism in Israel, in the U.S. and in the Muslim world. But we have to fight them with reason, with logic and with compassion.

I believe in the power of intention to change the landscape of our society - and it is my intention to live an authentic life of compassion and integrity and action. Jamey Rodemeyer's life changed mine.

Respect all manner of men regardless of their station in life. Compassion is one of the greatest virtues.