COMPASSION

Connect with your heart and access compassion

by Debbie Homewood

What is Compassion? First and foremost, Compassion is the power to transform – to transform suffering, powerlessness, isolation and fear.
Compassion is a quality of loving kindness that is the tender acceptance of even that which might otherwise seem unacceptable.  It is a respectful, kind understanding of suffering – a soft, gentle appreciation of pain.

Compassion comes from the HEART, not the head.  We have two centres of intelligence – intellectual and emotional.  We call the emotional centre of intelligence the heart. It has resources and abilities the intellect does not have and is a great source of inner strength, where we find courage, compassion, patience, empathy, and an ability to cope with the otherwise unbearable, including grief.

Learning to connect with your heart and access compassion is one of the most important, empowering, healing and life-giving gifts we can give our self and others.  The simple technique which follows is very effective in connecting you to your heart.

Inspired by the teachings of Stephen Levine, Joan Halifax and many others, Connecting to Your Heart, takes through a gentle but powerful process to connect with your Heart Centre, the seat of your emotional and spiritual intelligence.  Our intellect is not good at dealing with fear, sadness, grief or anxiety.  As we learn to connect with your heart we find there the inner strength to approach and eventually transform these otherwise unbearable experiences.  This gentle but empowering technique which embraces mindfulness, compassion and presence helps you to find peace and your path through your suffering.

The deceptive thing about compassion is that although it seems simple, it is so very powerful.

View Connecting With Your Heart Technique

Debbie Homewood is a counsellor who helps her clients access and benefit from compassion. This article may not be republished without the permission of the author. Copyright © 2009 Debbie Homewood