The Principle of Active Compassion
Active Compassion is the principle of behaving in a compassionate manner continuously and energetically throughout the day. Everyone is suffering on some level. By keeping one's compassion "switch" in the on position we are more in tune with people we come into contact with and better able to behave in a benevolent manner toward them. By easing the pain of others we effectively ease our own suffering by shifting the focus away from ourselves and by making our hearts light.

Active Compassion has the added benefit of allowing us to react openly in situations in which we may normally react with defensiveness or anger. Again, by focusing on the "other" we may take note that the person may simply be having a bad day and react with a smile instead of a counter-attack. A.C. also allows us to go beyond simple tolerance for those that are different from ourselves and toward real understanding and true interconnectedness.

By lifting up another we lift up ourselves.

The 6 Tenets of Active Compassion
Empathy - Be aware of the other person's feelings
Respect - Value the other person and his or her feelings
Kindness - Be nice to the other person
Connection - Try to learn about him or her
Action - Do something nice for the other person
Altruism - Don't expect anything in return