Compassion

From "Light on Life" by B.K.S. Iyengar:

Compassion for the suffering of others is more than just sympathy. The superficial sympathy we express for the woes of others, when we watch the nightly television news, for example, is often no more than a wish to feel good about ourselves, a sop to our own conscience. “I am a person sensibility and feeling,” we say. Without action, this is mere self indulgence.

It is a modern illusion to imagine that positive emotions, sympathy, pity, kindness, and a general but diffused goodwill are the equivalent of virtues. These “soft” emotions can serve as a form of narcissistic self indulgence. Often they are impotent. They make us feel good about ourselves, like when we give a coin to a beggar. They create the illusion of health and well-being. But sensitivity should be used as a diagnostic tool, not as a mirror to our own vanity. Real compassion is potent as it implies the question, “What can I do to help?”