compassion
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /kəmˈpæʃ.ən/
rhymes: -æʃən
Forms: form: compassions
Etymology: From Middle English compassioun, compassion, from Old French compassion, from Ecclesiastical Latin compassio (“sympathy”), from Latin compati, past participle compassus (“to suffer together with”), from com- (“together”) + pati (“to suffer”); see passion.
Senses: examples: text: Oh! the unspeakable privilege to have Him for our Father, who is the Father of mercies and compassions, and those not barren, fruitless pityings, for He is withal the God of all consolations.
ref: 1849, Robert Leighton (Archbishop of Glasgow), A practical commentary upon the first Epistle of St. Peter (page 47)
text: Other people's problems, they overwhelm my mind / They say compassion is a virtue, but I don't have the time
ref: 1977, David Byrne, “No Compassion”, in Talking Heads: 77, performed by Talking Heads:
text: In many ways, people today lack compassion as a way to internalize and experience the inner soul of the other person, animals, and the universe. We need to reintroduce compassion so humanity may survive.
ref: 2002, Werner J. Krieglstein, Compassion: A New Philosophy of the Other, page 149:
text: Ethics of compassion are grounded in one's mindful commitment to one's own happiness with the recognition that the well being that one wishes for oneself also is wished for by others.
ref: 2008, Richard Reilly, Ethics of Compassion: Bridging Ethical Theory and Religious Moral Discourse, page 1:
text: From Master's words, I understand that having compassion does not mean allowing people to take advantage of us. We can be kind but we should uphold moral values.
ref: 2020 January 28, “My Understanding Of What It Means to Be Compassionate”, in Minghui:
glosses: Deep awareness of the suffering of others that people have to the point of them being motivated to relieve such states.
examples: text: Similarly to the practice of loving kindness, meditation on compassion towards our own experience builds the foundation for expansion of the circle of compassion towards others.
ref: 2013, Dusana Dorjee, Mind, Brain and the Path to Happiness — A Guide to Buddhist Mind Training and the Neuroscience of Meditation, page 75:
text: True leadership lies in compassion, not in coercion.
topics: human-sciences
psychology
sciences
glosses: Deep awareness of the individual experiences of suffering of others or themselves that people have to the point of them being motivated to relieve such experiences, as reflected by the psychological term self-compassion.
Synonyms: sense: deep awareness of another's suffering
word: empathy
word: mercy
word: ruth
word: pity
word: sorrow
word: tenderheartedness
sense: desire to relieve another's suffering
word: kindness
sense: desire to relieve another's suffering
word: heart
sense: desire to relieve another's suffering
word: mercy
sense: desire to relieve another's suffering
word: ruth
sense: desire to relieve another's suffering
word: tenderheartedness
word: bowels
word: commiseration
word: compassion
word: fellow feeling
word: remorse
word: rue
word: sympathy
word: loving-kindness
Hypernyms: word: sadness
Hyponyms: word: self-pity
Derived terms: compassionable
compassionate
compassion fatigue
compassionless
incompassion
self-compassion
uncompassion
Related terms: word: compatible
word: passion
word: what a pity