Clarence Darrow Quotes

Compassion is the wish to see others free from suffering.

True kindness presupposes the faculty of imagining as one's own the suffering and joys of others.

It is my observations, though, that happiness limits the amount of suffering one is willing to inflict upon others

He scorn'd his own, who felt another's woe.

The happiness of the tender heart is increased by what it can take away from the wretchedness of others.

To pity distress is but human; to relieve it is Godlike.

A man, to be greatly good, must imagine intensely and comprehensively; he must put himself in the place of another and of many others; the pains and pleasures of his species must become his own.

Three passions, simple but overwhelmingly strong, have governed my life: the longing for love, the search for knowledge, and unbearable pity for the suffering of mankind.

In democratic ages men rarely sacrifice themselves for another, but they show a general compassion for all the human race. One never sees them inflict pointless suffering, and they are glad to relieve the sorrows of others when they can do so without much trouble to themselves. They are not disinterested, but they are gentle.

Some public officials are blessed - you can't acquire this, but you are blessed with the gift of empathy, being able to empathize with those who are suffering.

Whenever I had anything and saw a fellow being suffering, I was more anxious to relieve him than to benefit myself. And this is one of the true secrets of my being a poor man to this day.

They learned no compassion from their own anguish. thus their suffering was wasted.

By compassion we make others' misery our own, and so, by relieving them, we relieve ourselves also.

As long as there are people suffering, how can I not be happy?

Compassion refers to the arising in the heart of the desire to relieve the suffering of all beings.

We all have the potential to show others love and affection, but as we progress in our materialistic world, these values tend to remain dormant. We can develop them on the basis of common sense, common experience and scientific findings. The response to the recent tragedy in the Philippines is an example of how such values are awakened; people helped simply because others are suffering and in need of support.

Sympathy is the first great lesson which man should learn. It will be ill for him if he proceeds no farther; if his emotions are but excited to roll back on his heart, and to be fostered in luxurious quiet. But unless he learns to feel for things in which he has no personal interest, he can achieve nothing generous or noble.

Some people think that without that spark of empathy we would do nothing, but that's just flat-out wrong. You could feel compassion for somebody without the spark of empathy.

The man who melts With social sympathy, though not allied, Is more worth than a thousand kinsmen.

A sense of concern for others gives our lives meaning; it is the root of all human happiness

Nothing helps us build our perspective more than developing compassion for others. Compassion is a sympathetic feeling. It involves the willingness to put yourself in someone else's shoes, to take the focus off yourself and to imagine what it's like to be in someone else's predicament, and simultaneously, to feel love for that person. It's the recognition that other people's problems, their pain and frustrations, are every bit as real as our own-often far worse. In recognizing this fact and trying to offer some assistance, we open our own hearts and greatly enhance our sense of gratitude.

The great secret of morals is love; or a going out of our nature, and an identification of ourselves with the beautiful which exists in thought, action, or person, not our own. A man, to be greatly good, must imagine intensely and comprehensively; he must put himself in the place of another and of many others; the pains and pleasure of his species must become his own. The great instrument of moral good is the imagination.

Let us not underestimate how hard it is to be compassionate. Compassion is hard because it requires the inner disposition to go with others to place where they are weak, vulnerable, lonely, and broken. But this is not our spontaneous response to suffering. What we desire most is to do away with suffering by fleeing from it or finding a quick cure for it.

It is thus only this personal feeling of misery that we get rid of by acts of pity.

I'm very empathetic - that might be one of my superpowers.