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Compassion as a Precursor to Wisdom

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  Who wouldn’t want to have more wisdom in their life? I suppose some might hesitate pursuing wisdom if convinced it only came via coping with problems. But is that all there is to wisdom? Every older adult has had challenging life experiences. But only some seem to gain true wisdom. What causes some to have it and others not? While many factors may be involved, one is well recognized. The practice of compassion is important in the alchemy that is wisdom development. What is Compassion? Compassion is a feeling of sympathy or sorrow for another person’s suffering. It is opposite of apathy or indifference. Its makeup includes having concern and respect for someone in pain.   Many believe we should strive to cultivate the virtue of compassion in ourselves. It motivates us to help others when they are suffering. The more of us helping others, the better off we all may be. How Can We Cultivate Compassion? Recent studies have shown that there are many benefits to practicing compassi...
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Recognizing the Deity of Compassion in Athens

Membership in the greater Olympian pantheon in Greece was not static. Greeks added or altered myths over generations. So, the view Greeks had of the pantheon changed from 750 BCE. Overall, myths became more nuanced with greater complexity over time. By a thousand years in 250 CE, pantheon followers developed varied outlooks. Eleos was an understated deity added during this stretch. Eleos had her prime location of worship in Athens, near the Altar of the Twelve Gods. While early gender references for Eleos may have been masculine, later ones were more often feminine. The deity of mercy and compassion had her place within the greater pantheon. Athenians venerated Eleos at The Altar of Pity. In the earliest Greek writing, compassion wasn't yet personified by deity. In his book, “Acts of Compassion in Greek Tragic Drama,” Johnson discusses the Iliad. Here he refers to eleos as a concept as so aligned during Homer's time. The value of compassion is inherent within early Greek cultur...
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Guided Meditation to "Fount of Compassion"

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Wrote a guided meditation to a "Fount of Compassion." For those that would like to listen to it, the (still photo with audio file) video of it is on youtube here .  The basic script for it follows -  Get comfortable Whether you sit or lie down Take a moment and Let yourself relax Focus on your body Breathe in, Breathe 0ut, Tilt your head to one side And back Tilt your head to the other side And back Breathe in, Breathe out, Shrug your shoulders And shrug them again Turn your torso to look left And hold Return to center Turn your torso to look right And hold Return to center again Breathe in, Breathe out, Always return to your breath Rock gently from side to side Feel the movement of your hips Return to center and rest Tighten you leg muscles and hold And release Breathe in, Breathe out, Wiggle your toes Relax and close your eyes Be in your body Breathe in, Breathe out, Feel yourself growing lighter And growing lighter still Growing lighter than air You are floating, allow it ...
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