The source of the word compassion derives from passion, which is from the Ancient Greek verb πάσχω (paskho), which means to suffer. Simply put, compassion is the act of being with suffering.
Unbundling and coming to understand and appreciate the relationship between passion and suffering is well worth our investment. Coming to understand the implications of this relationship can profoundly impact how we live our lives and how we organize some of society's most fundamental institutions.
Dr. Will Schutz once said to me, “…we connect through our vulnerabilities.” I’ve come to think that this profound observation needs to be expanded to to include “…and we disconnect through our certainties.” It's our certainty about the world and our place in it that contributes to our insulating ourselves from experiences that would challenge what we "know".
Being vulnerable exposes us to the world; being vulnerable is about being raw, uncertain and exposed. And this point of rawness or exposure is the exact point at which I am most alive...it’s also at this point of “rawness” that we suffer.
Contrary to what is typically assumed, suffering does not automatically include pain. That suffering is to be experienced as pain is a grand misconception that keeps the vast majority of mankind trapped from the possibility of living a life filled with aliveness!!! The truth is that what is typically feared is simply the “suffering” of being exposed and without defense.
Suffer is defined in the dictionary as to “feel keenly; to undergo or experience”. Think about this! For almost all of mankind's existence on this planet, suffering has had a negative connotation associated with pain...yet the willingness to intentionally “feel keenly, to undergo and experience” does not automatically confer pain. Pain can be demonstrated to be a consequence of attitude and context.
What we want most as human beings is a profoundly pleasurable experience of being alive. The fascinating paradox is that my being willing to vulnerably expose myself and to be available to “suffering” is the exact point at which I avail myself of this possibility. It is at this exact point of exposure that I surrender to suffering and experience aliveness! Joining another at this point is where true joy is possible.
Yet, most of us typically live lives that are designed to shield and numb us from direct experience. Awakening to the reality of this realization is what, for most people, causes one to suffer in the more traditonal, painful, sense of the word. Moving into aliveness causes one to suffer - it causes one to "feel keenly."And, it is the way we become abidingly awake and alive!
Compassion is about meeting at that exquisite point of rawness. It is the act of literally and intentionally choosing to join with another at the place that they are most alive. It is because of this that compassion is regarded as a fundamental part of human love, and a cornerstone of greater social interconnection and humanism — it is foundational to the highest principles in philosophy, society, and personhood.
In Part 2 of this thread I will explore what compassion has to do with ideals in motion and with capitalism specifically. I'll also explore how compassion has the potential to transform business into a tool that generatively impacts the way all of us live on this planet...stay tuned for more on Compassionate Capitalism.