Life is full of transitions, big and small. We transition all of the time and don’t realise they are happening. Sometimes transitions in our lives might be as simple as going from sitting to standing with such without us realising have an effect on us. How? For example, the flow of blood in the body changes through shifting our position, the amount of effort exerted to be upright changes, and even the breath and heart rate change slightly. Small body transitions change our perception and interaction with the world, so you can imagine that the bigger the transition, the more significant effect on us. And those big transitions aren’t always in the physical realm. They could be and often are in the realm of thoughts and emotions. Relationships change and evolve; comfortable things may need to be swapped out for things that are less comfortable and familiar. The nature of the entire universe is impermanent, and we cause ourselves to suffer by wishing things didn’t change. Noticing our desire for things to remain the same is the first step to acceptance. Once we are aware that this transition is “harder than I expected”, then we can reach into our toolboxes of self-care and decide what is most appropriate to take care of myself as I move through this transition.
Constance Kassor, a scholar and teacher of Buddhist philosophy, comments, "If you are genuinely able to have compassion toward all sentient beings without exception, then this means that you are also able to recognize the suffering of all sentient beings all the time." This statement directly highlights the profound connection between compassion and the recognition of suffering in her statement. According to Kassor, if an individual possesses the remarkable capacity to genuinely extend compassion to all sentient beings without any exceptions, it implies an inherent ability to perceive the suffering experienced by all sentient beings incessantly. This perspective emphasizes the deep interdependence and interconnectedness of all beings, suggesting that a compassionate heart is not selective in its concern but extends boundless empathy to all. By acknowledging and embracing the suffering of every sentient being, one can cultivate a compassionate mindset that transcends boundar...
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