Empathy vs. Compassion

Empathy and compassion are surely related, but what are the differences between the two?

Transcript

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Empathy and compassion. Are they the same thing? In common English, the distinction between the two tends to be a little fuzzy, and surely they must be related, but how? This is the way I look at it. Empathy is the spark, it's the fire that gives rise to compassion. Empathy opens the door, but it is compassion that takes the first step outside. Compassion is doing something to relieve the plight of another being just as much as it is acknowledging the joy or value that another brings to you. Empathy is necessary for genuine compassion, however, one can also have empathy without compassion. Empathy means literally feeling a reflection of the pain or joy that you are witnessing in another. When we see a situation that triggers our empathy, some part of us wants to act on it, but all too often we do not. When this happens, there is no compassion, because compassion involves outreach, connection, and exchange. It is a transaction, a transaction that yields connectedness. So do not confuse your empathy for others as compassion. Compassion changes the lives of others and improves the world around us, even if in a small way. Meanwhile, empathy is purely internal. It lives entirely within us. It is a sense like vision, hearing, smell, touch, or taste, while compassion is acting upon that feeling. It could be said that empathy is to compassion as hearing is to a musician, or vision to a painter, or taste to a cook or a chef. Compassionate acts are not only those acts which relieve pain and suffering in the world around you. Compassion equally is the acknowledgement of the joy or value another brings to you. When you tell someone else how something they did for you changed you for the better, that is also compassion. Empathy means feeling a reflection of the pain or joy that you are witnessing. Compassion relieves that feeling within you by relieving the original suffering you witnessed. In this way, the empathic pain you felt is relieved, or empathic joy reinforced. But there's something more to it. You get something back that goes beyond simple relief. You get a bounce back effect. Some call it the joy of giving. For others, it may simply express itself as a sense of peace. Peace of mind in particular. Another may simply experience a sense of increased groundedness or internal stability and satisfaction. And for others, it provides a clarification of life's purpose. In all of these cases, it gives you a sense of increased energy and empowerment. So remember, empathy is something you feel. Compassion is something you do. So when you feel empathy, it's a call. It's like that ringing phone in one of those Matrix movies. It's a phone call that if answered will bring you back to reality. But as always, the choice is yours, whether or not you answer that call. But should you do so, you may experience one, several, or all of the benefits that I just mentioned. You've been listening to the This Light Shines podcast. Thank you for listening, and as always, God bless.