Compassion Quotes

"A long time ago I asked myself, ‘Do I want to be right, or do I want to be kind?’. I opted for kind."

- Jane Lynch

"Our task must be to free ourselves by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty."

- Albert Einstein

"True compassion is showing kindness towards animals, without expecting anything in return."

- Paul Oxton

"Animals are such agreeable friends – they ask no questions; they pass no criticisms."

- George Eliot

"Charity bestowed upon those who are worthy of it is like good seed sown on a good soil that yields an abundance of fruits. But alms given to those who are yet under the tyrannical yoke of the passions are like seed deposited in a bad soil. The passions of the receiver of the alms choke, as it were, the growth of merits."

- Buddha

"If we fail to look after others when they need help, who will look after us?"

- Buddha

"Just as a mother would protect her only child with her life, even so let one cultivate a boundless love towards all beings."

- Buddha

"For the good of the many, for the happiness of the many, out of compassion for the world."

- Buddha

"Whatever living beings there may be feeble or strong, long, stout, or of medium size, short, small, large, those seen or those unseen, those dwelling far or near, those who are born as well as those yet to be born may all beings have happy minds."

- Buddha

"Conquer anger with non-anger. Conquer badness with goodness. Conquer meanness with generosity."

- Buddha

"Silence the angry man with love. Silence the ill-natured man with kindness. Silence the miser with generosity. Silence the liar with truth."

- Buddha

"It is not enough to be compassionate. You must act."

- Buddha

"The vulnerability we experience allows us a different experience of love. It is an act of generosity to let people be close to us, and we try to understand that they, too, are going through feelings about what’s happening."

- Narcotics Anonymous

"The ball player who loses his head, who can't keep his cool, is worse than no ball player at all."

- Lou Gehrig

"The greatest disease in the West today is not TB or leprosy; it is being unwanted, unloved, and uncared for. We can cure physical diseases with medicine, but the only cure for loneliness, despair, and hopelessness is love. There are many in the world who are dying for a piece of bread but there are many more dying for a little love. The poverty in the West is a different kind of poverty -- it is not only a poverty of loneliness but also of spirituality. There's a hunger for love, as there is a hunger for God."

- Mother Teresa

"People pay the doctor for his trouble; for his kindness, they still remain in his debt."

- Seneca

"Truth is a deep kindness that teaches us to be content in our everyday life and share with the people the same happiness."

- Kahlil Gibran

"“Caring is the essence of nursing.”"

- Jean Watson

"To feel intensely is not a symptom of weakness, it is the trademark of the truly alive and compassionate. It is not the empath who is broken, it is society that has become dysfunctional and emotionally disabled. There is no shame in expressing your authentic feelings. Those who are at times described as being a ‘hot mess’ or having ‘too many issues’ are the very fabric of what keeps the dream alive for a more caring, humane world. Never be ashamed to let your tears shine a light in this world."

- Anthon St. Maarten

"There is nothing wrong with you if there are times you get weighed down by the heaviness of the suffering in the world."

- Rachel Samson

"You gave them the one thing that was stolen from them. A chance. A chance to learn. To find love. To live. And in the end what was your reward? You never said. But I think I know: a family."

- Bioshock

"Sensitive people care when the world doesn’t because we understand waiting to be rescued and no one shows up. We have rescued ourselves, so many times that we have become self taught in the art of compassion for those forgotten."

- Shannon L. Alder

"Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter what fork you use."

- Emily Post

"If we’re destroying our trees and destroying our environment and hurting animals and hurting one another and all that stuff, there’s got to be a very powerful energy to fight that. I think we need more love in the world. We need more kindness, more compassion, more joy, more laughter. I definitely want to contribute to that."

- Ellen DeGeneres

"Relying on the power of kindness is a sensitive undertaking. The challenge is to inspire people to be kind more often without tainting the selflessness that comes from doing something nice with no ulterior motive."

- Daniel Lubetzky

"Everyone is welcome."

"I am so very sorry that’s happening; I am sending you all the love and strength I possibly can."

"Kindness Always Wins"

"Nonviolent action, born of the awareness of suffering and nurtured by love, is the most effective way to confront adversity."

"Please don't wait until the doctors tell you that you are going to have a baby to begin to take care of it. It is already there. Whatever you are, whatever you do, your baby will get it. Anything you eat, any worries that are on your mind will be for him or her. Can you tell me that you cannot smile? Think of the baby, and smile for him, for her, for the future generations. Please don't tell me that a smile and your sorrow just don't go together. It's your sorrow, but what about your baby? It's not his sorrow, it’s not her sorrow."