Widening the circle of compassion
All beings tremble before violence. All fear death. All love life. See yourself in others. So, who can you hurt? What harm can you do?
From the Dhammapada: The words of the Buddha
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A month ago, following the Gregorian calendar, we began a new year with its wishes for peace, happiness and goals to be achieved. And everyone can ask themselves whether they have put into action all their wishes from the previous year, and what they need to deepen this year to manifest that peace and compassion that many, at least in their wishes, seem to desire. At some point, on the path we all take to discover who we are, we'll have to ask ourselves what compassion means, and which actions we can each take to manifest it in the world.
When I was a child, I didn't have a natural tendency towards benevolence and compassion like some people have towards people and animals. And, as was usual, I differentiated between the cats and dogs, the “so-called pets” we had over the years and other animals.
When I was 16, a friend of mine who was into horse-riding suggested that I discover horses, and I became fascinated by them, learning to respect them and helping the blacksmith when he came. I didn't like the way he treated the horses, wanting to put a nose-twist on some of them when they were reluctant to keep quiet. It was around this time that I decided to stop eating horsemeat, and my parents adopted the same diet. It seemed obvious, if I love horses, I'll stop eating them, and at the time it didn't occur to me that other animals being sentient beings, I could keep them off my plate too.
When I was in my twenties, I discovered spirituality with one of my grandmother's nephew, Pierre Besson, a renowned dowser, I understood that there was also another way of eating that greatly reduced our impact on other living beings. I began to glimpse the interconnection we had with these other beings and what we create with our thoughts, words, beliefs and actions.
When I set out on this path of self-discovery, of my inner universe, I began to explore those parts of my consciousness that are defined by society as non-ordinary states of consciousness and by psychology as the unconscious or subconscious, going beyond the mind and directly experiencing one of these deeper levels of consciousness to which the heart chakra and the following aspects are connected: relating, perceptions of love, unconditional giving, acceptance and compassion.
I changed my diet, and at the time, in 1980, this was quite rare in the western society. My parents, although I no longer lived with them, also chose to do the same. Some time later, I began to resume a diet where I could blend in. and no longer look like the troublemaker, until I realized that I had to show compassion for all living beings, no matter what others thought.
As Paramahansa Yogananda teaches, non-violence, or ahimsa, is a fundamental principle. He emphasizes that true non-violence lies not only in action, but also in intention. The thought of harming a living being is already a form of violence. By advocating compassion and respect for all life, Yogananda encouraged us to cultivate a peaceful, benevolent state of mind. Compassion is linked to the heart chakra, and for most people, when they begin to explore their consciousness, they understand that this involves feeling compassion for themselves and then for other human beings.
When you understand that we are interconnected with all forms of life, you become aware that it could be ethical and moral to refrain from killing all forms of living beings. However, for many, this remains an intention that doesn't manifest itself in action. As Mathieu Ricard writes in “A Plea for Animals”, our compassion stops at the edge of our plate.
If we wish to alleviate the suffering of all living beings, this includes the lives of animals. We have the choice at every moment to widen our circle of compassion, and to teach children to do so, to respect all forms of life, offering future generations, as Dr Rick Hanson writes, the opportunity to experience a state of oneness with all life. Children do this naturally if given the opportunity.
Swami Yukteswar Giri developed the idea that to open our heart, which is the “door of communication between material and spiritual creation”, we must abstain from all cruelty.
This is not to judge those who, in one way or another, cause animals to suffer, and it's understandable that it can be difficult to make the connection between the products we buy and the animal suffering created by the production of these products. Our perceptions can be influenced by our cultural traditions. Some cultures believe that animals are there to be used as we see fit, while other cultures respect all beings, human or not. And as we are connected with the Whole and experience what we create with our consciousness, there is a need for awareness, knowing that every year, 60 billion land animals and 1,000 billion sea animals are killed for our consumption.
For Plato, “The happiest man is the one who has no trace of wickedness in his soul”. He is joined in this by psychologists, neuroscientists and Buddhists, for whom ethics is part of the project to remedy all forms of suffering and eradicate the causes of that suffering. Based on this vision, compassion is the form altruistic love takes when confronted with the suffering of others. And as Ram Dass writes, “To act with compassion is to act from our deepest understanding of what life is, and not to compromise the truth.”
We are reaching a point in our evolution where human consciousness can understand and feel that we can extend our benevolence and compassion to all forms of life. We are all co-citizens of the world.
Books:
Paramahamsa Yogananda “Autobiography of a Yogi”
Baird Spalding “The Life of the Masters in Far East”
Jacques Bergier and Louis Pauwels “The Morning of the Magicians"
Mathieu Ricard “Plea for Animals"
Dr Rick Hanson “ Neuro Dharma"
Swami Yukteswar Giri “Kaivalya Darsanam - Sacred Science”.
Pierre Besson and André Delobel “Man or God” Editions Omnium Littéraire
