Love and compassion in Buddhism and Christianity

Zohaib [email protected] Friday, 12/12/14

Love and Compassion in Buddhism and Christianity: Exerciseof Spiritual Orientation

Viaduct of understanding between the two

Author noteThis paper is produced for Theology 001-71 taught by professor

Laude

Table of contents

Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………2

Love in Christianity ………………………………..………………………………………………………………....2-4

Love in Buddhism ……………………………………………………….……………………………………………..4-5

Comparison of Buddhist and Christian love ……………………………………………………………… 6-7

Compassion as seen in Christianity …………………………………………………………………………. 7-8

Compassion as seen in Buddhism …………….……………………………………………………………. 8-10

Analyzing compassion in the light of spiritual aim …………………………………………….… 10-11

Conclusion …….……………………………………………………………………………………….…………… 11-12

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2

Every human being opens his or her eyes to the face of his or her

mother. The infant then enters the process of “care-taking”, where the

mother feeds him, puts his needs ahead of hers and makes him subject

to her affection for the rest of her life. Therefore, since the

beginning of his life, the child is exposed to a state of love and

compassion from his care-takers. These words may seem ordinary, but I

believe Buddhism and Christianity allow us to explore them in a way

that even our linguistic ability feels limited when it comes to

articulating their true dimension. But for the purpose of this thesis,

genuine love and compassion will generally be seen as both independent

and co-dependent elements that not only lead but also complete each

other’s existence in both Buddhism and Christianity. Although, the end

goal in both religions regarding these two religions is the same; to

foster tranquility and contentment, their means to reach the

destination are different.

It is easy to say that everyone is aware Christianity is the

religion of love – this is at least true in theoretical terms if not

that easily limited to practice. 1 The first and second commandments

instruct this characteristic.

1 King Winston, Buddhism and Christianity, Some Bridges of Understanding, Hoboken: Taylor and Francis, 2013. Pg. 86

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Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with your all should, and with your all mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, you shall love yourneighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depends all the law and the prophets.2

The essential reason for common expression of love in Christianity can

be based on their Monotheistic belief in a personal god who has

further exhibited it in to his creations – mankind. This was done

prominently in Christ, who then offered his life as a sacrifice for

the entire mankind. Therefore, at the very heart of Christianity lies

an emphasis on the element of love as an important component of our

life. In order to understand this characteristic. In order to avoid

confusion, we can break love down to three levels, through the use of

Greek words. Firstly, Eros that refers to the sensual feeling of erotic

or sexual experience of love, mainly in the form of possession. The

second is Philia, that implies social love; family members, friends,

relatives and society. The final one is the absolute love that God

sheds upon all his creatures alike, which is referred to as the

highest level of Christian love, called Agape. An example of this

divine love can be seen in Christianity when God gave his only son,

Jesus Christ, to men as it is mentioned,

2 The Bible Gateway, Matthew 22: 36-40, accessed: 09/12/2014 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+22%3A36-40&version=KJV The English Bible, King James Version, W. W. Norton & Company, 2012.

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God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. 3

At the surface, these varying levels of love may seem to be ranked in

terms of their significance, where the highest form is the love that

God manifests upon all the sinners as the most fulfilling form

(Agape), whereas the presumably lowest one (Eros) refers to the

pleasure and sensual feeling that is just limited to the fulfillment

of the individual(s) involved4 is seen in terms of mediocrity. Although

this is arguably a valid way of looking at it, it has to be noted that

these three levels of hierarchy in Christian love are not synonymously

there different levels of importance. The three distinctions are only

made to point out the different kinds of existence that take the form

of love. Other than that, all three; Eros, Philia and Agape, are like

individual pieces of the same Jigsaw puzzle. Despite their

differences, the love of God (Agape) does not come in conflict with

the love of man (Eros). In other words, physical worldly love is not

completely independent from the spiritual love. These three degrees of

love do not contradict or cancel out each other; rather, there is a

sense of continuity and interrelatedness in the continuum. This shows

that the highest form of spiritual love, instead of being completely

3 The Bible Gateway, Romans 5:8, accessed: 09/12/2014. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+5%3A+8&version=KJV The English Bible, King James Version, W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. 4 Daniel D. Williams: Love, in a Handbook of Christian Theology. Pg. 218.

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detached from the humane love, enhances it. Conversely, when there is

a full divorce between the religious love and the earthly, then in a

way the three levels of love in absolute terms become redundant and

itinerant.5 This point is also made in the New Testament in the context

of sexual relationship. The relationship is fundamentally seen in a

positive, instead of a pejorative, way relating it to as a right of

both, husband and wife, in a union.6 This sort of bond can be compared

to the relationship of the Christ and the Church that sets as an

example of a perfect unification.7 Thus we can deduce that the higher

levels of love in Christianity are actually an elevation of the lower

ones; the sexual-personal love is then transformed into the love for

family, peers, relatives and even to the Love of God.8 Although

reducing or unionizing Agape with Eros is not that simple and

straightforward, both Protestant and Catholic interpreters,

5 King Winston, Buddhism and Christianity, some bridges of understanding, Hoboken: Taylor and Francis, 2013. Pg. 89. 6 The Bible Gateway, 1 Corinthians 7:2-5, accessed: 09/12/2014. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Corinthians+7%3A2-5&version=KJV

The English Bible, King James Version, W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. 7 The Bible Gateway, Ephesians 5:25, accessed: 09/12/2014.

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians+5%3A25&version=KJV

The English Bible, King James Version, W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. 8 King Winston, Buddhism and Christianity, some bridges of understanding, Hoboken: Taylor and Francis 2013. Pg. 89.

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Preserve a positive place for Eros within the goodness of man’s created nature, and thus provide for its fulfillment within the purpose of God, though that purpose becomes clear only in the light of Agape.9

The sequential level of love can in Christianity also be reinterpreted

as man’s continuous struggle and quest for the love of God (Agape) and

God’s search for an imperfect man. The imperfection is what gives room

to a need for perfection in the first place and, conversely, the

perfection is what stems back from the imperfections.

The Pali word Mettā refers to loving-kindness with respect to

Buddhism. This is described as a desire to eliminate selfishness for

the welfare of someone else.10 The famous Metta-Sutta gives a

description that allows us to understand the concept of love in

Buddhism.

Whatever living beings there be… May all beings be happy…Let him not wish nay harm

to another. Out of anger or ill will… Let his thoughts of boundless love, Pervade the whole

world.11

It is followed that if a person has an intention to help and desire to

extend his or her services for the benefit of others, then correct

course of action will follow automatically.12 However, in order to

9 Daniel D. Williams: Love, in a Handbook of Christian Theology. Pg. 218. 10 Metta, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mett%C4%81 accessed 11/12/2014. 11 Sister Vajira, tr., Sutta nipata, Maha Bodhi Society, Sarnath, India, pg. 6 12 Venerable U Thittila, Buddhist Metta; the Light of the Dharma, Volume 5, No.1, pg. 51.

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extend these feelings of love and kindness to others, one first has to

start from the within. This means that, according to Buddhist

doctrines, only by suffusing our own body with affection will we be

able to increase this tenderness to someone; charity begins at home.

Note that one,

Who loves himself will never harm another.13

Therefore, only by creating room for love for one self, can a person

share or have the same feeling for someone else. Mettā in Buddhism

comprises as one of the four related qualities traditionally called

the Divine Abidings. 14 Love (Mettā), along with three others;

compassion (Karuṇā), Joy (Muditā) and Equanimity (Upekkhā), make up

these Divine Illimitables. These can be understood through the two

extreme planes of attachment and detachment in Buddhism. At the plane

of attachment sexual love is experienced at the base. This can then

grow into the personal love that develops love for those around us.

The next level is that of compassion and sympathetic joy where our

love for others has now evolved in to feelings of empathy, sympathy

and pity, that then result in to Loving-Kindness (Mettā). This state

is then perfected when the person reaches the final condition of

13 Bhandatacariya Buddhagosha, The Path of Purification, translated by Ñáóamoli, R. Semage, Colombo, 1956, pg. 347,356. 14 King Winston, Buddhism and Christianity, some bridges of understanding, Hoboken: Taylor and Francis 2013. Pg. 100.

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Equanimity (Upekkhā). This is where second extreme has been reached –

the plane of detachment. When this level has been reached, the four

traits of Mettā, Karuṇā, Muditā and Upekkhā perfect their amalgamation

and therefore allow a person to act as a selfless, benevolent soul

that serve the needs of another without any distinction or limitation.

In this highest state, the “you” becomes the “I” and the compassion,

love and joy for others is seen as our own. In this way, a person

completely identifies himself with the others around him.

Love in both, Christianity and Buddhism, involves an apparent

level of hierarchy that distinguishes one state from the other. But at

the same time, it shows how one form leads and is dependent on the

other. Despite the different terms and stages involved in perfecting

it, it is safe to say that the end aim of love in both disciplines is

the same; eradicating ill will from oneself. In this way, it allows us

to see some points of convergence between the two. The four Abidings

in Buddhism can be compared to the description of love in Christianity

given by Paul,

Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things,and endures all things.15

15 The Bible Gateway, International Standard version, 1 Corinthians, 13:4-7, accessed 09/12/2014. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%2013:4-8&version=ISV

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Apart from that, clearly there is another point of convergence.

This is when love is first developed as an intimate feeling at an

individual level and then extended to a greater level as we move up

the hierarchy level in both religions. Both religions, when talking

about love at the personal love, Eros in Christianity and developing

love within himself for Buddhism, clearly point out the right practice

of both conditions. The self-growth of love in Buddhism should not be

mistaken for personalized affection as the latter can be seen as an

attachment to the self which, instead of extending to others, can in a

narcissistic manner lead to completely different outcomes. Whereas in

Christianity, there is a clear distinction between love expressed in a

marriage relation and immoral sexual intercourse, where the latter has

been described as lustful and lecherous. But it has to be noted that

these similarities in perspectives does not deem love in both

religions as the same. Even though there is some connectedness between

the levels of love in Buddhism and Christianity, It would not be wrong

to say that there is to some extent more exclusion between the various

magnitudes of love as compared to the Christian scheme. Of course one

cannot say that Mettā has nothing to do with the sexual love at the

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base of detachment in Buddhism; however, the two are quite distinct

from each other in their features.16

Just as love is significantly crucial to the complete

understanding of Christianity and Buddhism, so is its counterpart,

compassion. Compassion is as important as love in Christianity. The

life of Christ idolizes the need and implementation of this train in

society as well as the bible is flooded with instances where

compassion has been valued as a vital component of life. As Mark

reports,

… He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. 17

Genuine compassion in Christianity comprises of three basic elements;

true understanding, moral outrage and bonding. All of these three

synthesis together to foster our understanding of this feature in this

religion. Firstly, true understanding implies the need to comprehend

that in the real world, there is no black or white; just shades of

grey. The world is neither naïve nor cynical, rather a mixture of the

two. And this is what the Bible seeks to explain that Jesus,

16 King Winston, Buddhism and Christianity, Some Bridges Of Understanding, Hoboken: Taylor and Francis 2013. Pg. 100. 17 The Bible Gateway, Mark, 6:34, accessed 09/12/2014https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark+6%3A34&version=KJV . The English Bible, King James Version, W. W. Norton & Company, 2012.

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Knew all men, had no need that anyone should testify of man, for he knew what was in

man18

Even though he had perfect knowledge of man inside-out, he did not

cease to comfort or help them in any way possible. He was aware of the

fact that the creation of god (mankind) was subject to imperfections

and thus sin-sick. Despite this, he did not deal with them with

ignorance, instead reached out to them in an open way. When he saw the

multitude gathered around, he was moved with compassion and knew that

the deficiency did not lie in the harvest, but, instead, in the

laborers who were needed to collect them.19 Therefore he asked them to

pray to the Lord to send them more laborers.20 True compassion is the

result of a true understanding of the surrounding and people around

us. The second aspect is moral outrage. This moral outrage is at one

point shown by Jesus at the death of his friend Lazarus. His reaction

are described by John twice at different places.21 It says that Jesus

not only “groaned” in the spirit but also within himself. This was

18 The Bible Gateway, John 2:24-25, accessed 09/12/2014. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john+2%3A+24-25&version=KJV The English Bible, King James Version, W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. 19 Grace giving 461: Biblical compassion, pg. 5 accessed, 09/12/2014 http://www.pvcwired.com/ABI-Biblical%20Compassion%20461.pdf 20 The Bible Gateway, Mathew 9:37-38, accessed 09/12/2014. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mathew+9%3A37-38&version=KJV The English Bible, King James Version, W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. 21 The Bible Gateway, John 11:33, 38, accessed 09/12/2014. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+11%3A33%2C+38&version=KJV The English Bible, King James Version, W. W. Norton & Company, 2012.

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because his friend; God’s creation, beauty, harmony, order, everything

was lost and now the body was simply an example of disorder.22 This is

the level of compassion that is being talked and reflected here. A

sense of feeling that is not just extended to you but by you towards

others. And the third and final aspect for true compassion is known as

bonding. This activity involves the unionization with the object of

compassion.23 One example of this can be seen when God identified

himself completely with Jesus of Nazareth. As man and god became

synonymous, the feelings of grief experienced by man was also felt by

god himself.24 In the person of Jesus, he was completely man and

simultaneously he was completely God, his suffering along man was not

just as man, but as God. He died not just as a man, but as God.25 At

this point, god was man and man was god, and thus there was a

reflection of god in his creation. This can be seen as one of the

highest levels of compassion in Christianity where the difference

between the divine and moral ceases to exist.

As we discussed earlier, in Buddhism compassion is a feeling of

sympathy, empathy and pity. But compassion is not just limited to

22 Grace giving 461: Biblical compassion pg. 6, accessed 09/12/2014. http://www.pvcwired.com/ABI-Biblical%20Compassion%20461.pdf 23 Grace giving 461: Biblical compassion pg. 8. http://www.pvcwired.com/ABI-Biblical%20Compassion%20461.pdf 24 The Bible Gateway, Isaiah 53:4a, accessed, 09/12/2014. 25 The Bible Gateway, Acts 20:28, accessed 09/12/2014.

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that. It can also be seen as sharing the suffering of others. 26 It is

not just limited to others, but also inclusive of our own self. In

fact, Buddha is asserted to have said,

If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.27

Therefore, in Buddhist tradition, true compassion is not just limited

to the concern for others, but the circle also includes a sense of

responsibility for our own self. So In a way, it is only completely

attained when we not only remember others, but also ourselves. Thus,

true compassion is reached when the two sides are in equilibrium. In

this way, compassion can be divided into two types; compassion for

self and compassion for others. The compassion from the self refers to

the fact of identifying our own condition in order to empathize with

another. Being compassionate does not involve the interaction of the

powerful and the weak not does it involve the meeting of good or bad

situation. Instead, real compassion is understanding that we, as

sentient beings, share the same human reality. In other words,

Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It’s a relationshipbetween equals.28

26 “Compassion”, the Barnhart dictionary of Etymology, 1988. 27 http://www.dailycelebrations.com/compassion.htm 28 Pema Chodron, Comfortable with uncertainty: 108 teachings on cultivating fearlessness and compassion, 2008, pg. 73.

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The compassion for our self is what stems the growth of the second

type, compassion for others. It is a process of relating to the world

and realizing the same substantive reality also surrounds those around

us. This then allows us to develop our understanding and concern

beyond ourselves, and thus towards others. Christian mystic, Sue Kidd,

describes this process in her article, “Birthing Compassion” as

follows,

The stages and movements in this birthing process entail a gradual shifting of spiritualconsciousness. We move from a false and separated way of relating to the world… finally

to a sense of interconnectedness with all that is, which brings us to the birth ofCompassionate We.29

Another example of this is found in the Dhammapada verse.

All tremble at violence, Life is dear to allPutting oneself in the place of another

One should neither kill nor cause another to kill30

Compassion, thus, helps us make amends. This not only involves filling

in the empty spaces within ourselves by bringing them together, but we

also start to compassionately recognize the separated places within

others, as we move from the conscious “I” to the conscious “We”.

Then the questions arises, if detachment is a way of gaining liberation by remaining aloof from

the world, and if compassion means to relieve others from their suffering, can the two be

simultaneously practiced, or even exist for that matter?

29 Sue Kidd, Birthing Compassion, Weavings: A journal on the Christian Spiritual life, 1990, pg. 18-30. 30 Acharya Buddharakkhita, The Dhammapada: The Buddha’s Path of Wisdom, verse 130, Buddhist Publication Society, 1996.

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If we take the path of Nirvana out of context of compassion and

look at it in isolation, there can be some sort of ambiguous

misconception that the only way to be enlightened to by adopting a

lack of concern for others – detaching yourself from the physical

world. However, when talked about in context, I would argue that this

is not the case. The important thing that needs to be understood here

is the difference of linguistics that can serve as a root to such

misconceptions (From Pali to English in this case). It has to be

understood that by “detachment”, the Buddha did not imply physical

exclusion from the physical world. In fact, such extreme withdrawal

from the world is actually seen in a negative manner inn Buddhism as

the Buddha confirms,

because their bodies were extremely emaciated, their… freedom of mind diminished.31

Therefore, such physical isolation, as an attempt to reach Nirvana,

can actually backfire and lead back to the state of suffering.

Instead, the emphasis on liberation through knowledge actually

complements the co-existence of compassion and thus, both notions

complete each other in their respective aspects. Parallel sentences

can be seen contrasting these two qualities in Acariya Dhammapala’s

words,

31 Elizabeth j Harris, Detachment and Compassion inn Early Buddhism, Buddhist Publication Society, 2005, pg. 11.

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It is through the understanding that he fully understood others suffering and through

compassion that he undertook to counteract it…32

It can be easily understood then that instead of canceling out each

other’s existence, Karuna or compassion is actually connected with

enlightened actions achieved through knowledge. It is the wisdom that

allows the person to develop compassion for others and, conversely, it

is the compassion that compels the enlightened to remain in the

society and act as a source of benefit for others.33 This is also

another reason why there is a lot of emphasis on the combination of

knowledge and compassion that then allows genuine altruistic action to

take place. But it also has to be noted that the intention of

compassion alone without the knowledge of others’ needs can prove to

harmful too. This is what David Burton talks about in his book of

about compassion and knowledge,

There is often nothing more harmful than altruistic intentions.34

This link between knowledge and compassion is equally important

is order to produce a successful compassionate activity. After all,

The Buddha was also referred to as sometimes the great “physician” who

32 Path of purification, chapter 7, N. 9. 33 Elizabeth j Harris, Detachment and Compassion inn Early Buddhism, Buddhist Publication Society, 2005, pg. 11. 34 David Burton - Buddhism, Knowledge and Liberation, Ashgate Publishing, 2004, pg. 165.

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would recommend people “medicines” (solutions) to their problems. This

could only be done if he had knowledge of their need so that everyone

was addressed according to their own specific requirement. The

characteristic of “omniscience” that is usually attached to the

Buddha35 further adds a great deal of importance laid on being

“mindful” of the situation in Buddhism, which roots back to the

original doctrine of being fully aware and conscious of the scenario.

In this way, compassion involves a combination of gaining knowledge

(liberating oneself through detachment) and being, in a way, alert of

state in order to make an attempt for a successful altruistic

activity.

We have discovered love and compassion both in depth to some

extent that can now allow us to make some sort of a deduction about

the two aspects. Irrespective of the religion, all-encompassing love

starts from within. Compassion for others requires concern for self in

the first place. We can also notice that, love and compassion, both

consist mutual aspects of resilience and spontaneity36 that play an

important role in human and divine interplay. One can either be seen

35 Buddha and Omniscience, accessed 10/12/2014 http://www.buddhismuskunde.uni-hamburg.de/fileadmin/pdf/analayo/BuddhaOmniscience.pdf 36 Susan K. Sherman, Compassion in the practice of spiritual direction, Lorian Centre for incarnational spirituality, 2009, pg. 13.

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as a subset or an equally sound component for the other. They may

exist independently, but their mutual co-dependence and collusion can

offer a greater social benefit to the society. In other words; “The

whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”

APPENDIX

I. “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with your all should, and with your all mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, youshall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depends all thelaw and the prophets.”

II. “God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us”

III. “Preserve a positive place for Eros within the goodness of man’s created nature, and thus provide for its fulfillment within the purpose of God, though that purpose

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becomes clear only in the light of Agape”

IV. “Who loves himself will never harm another”

V. “Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things,hopes all things, and endures all things.”

VI. “He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd.”

VII. “Knew all men, had no need that anyone should testify of man, for he knew what was in man”

VIII. “Because their bodies were extremely emaciated, their… freedom of mind diminished”

IX. “It is through the understanding that he fully understood others suffering and through compassion that he undertook to counteract it…”

X. “There is often nothing more harmful than altruistic intentions.”

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