I have found it possible to feel compassion even for people whose acts are awful: Terrorists who indiscriminately shoot people, army snipers who deliberately target children, corrupt politicians who only think of themselves, CEOs who poison the food chain. Eventually the extent of the misery they have caused will dawn on them and that must be a terrible realisation. I feel compassion for these people who cause suffering and waste their precious lives. But then, of course, they have to be stopped.
But there are instructions I grapple with. For instance that one should rejoice in everyone's good fortune. I mean I have no problem rejoicing if somebody wins the state lottery but should I really rejoice if terrorists manage to escape after an attack? Or if anti-abortionists manage to get a court to agree with them? That would be good fortune in their eyes but the rest of the world would disagree.
I am glad that I now read Judy Lief's take on this: in her interpretation, the good fortune in question is "when […] someone succeed[s] in overcoming confusion through dharmic practice."
Maybe that is a narrow definition but it is one that makes the instruction easier to apply.
I have found it possible to feel compassion even for people whose acts are awful: Terrorists who indiscriminately shoot people, army snipers who deliberately target children, corrupt politicians who only think of themselves, CEOs who poison the food chain. Eventually the extent of the misery they have caused will dawn on them and that must be a terrible realisation. I feel compassion for these people who cause suffering and waste their precious lives. But then, of course, they have to be stopped.
But there are instructions I grapple with. For instance that one should rejoice in everyone's good fortune. I mean I have no problem rejoicing if somebody wins the state lottery but should I really rejoice if terrorists manage to escape after an attack? Or if anti-abortionists manage to get a court to agree with them? That would be good fortune in their eyes but the rest of the world would disagree.
I am glad that I now read Judy Lief's take on this: in her interpretation, the good fortune in question is "when […] someone succeed[s] in overcoming confusion through dharmic practice."
Maybe that is a narrow definition but it is one that makes the instruction easier to apply.