The
Charter For Compassion
Presented
by Karen Armstrong
The principle of compassion lies at the heart of all religious, ethical
and spiritual traditions, calling us always to treat all others as we
wish to be treated ourselves. Compassion impels us to work tirelessly
to alleviate the suffering of our fellow creatures, to dethrone ourselves
from the centre of our world and put another there, and to honour the
inviolable sanctity of every single human being, treating everybody,
without exception, with absolute justice, equity and respect.
It is also necessary in both public and private life to refrain consistently
and empathically from inflicting pain. To act or speak violently out
of spite, chauvinism, or self-interest, to impoverish, exploit or deny
basic rights to anybody, and to incite hatred by denigrating others-even
our enemies-is a denial of our common humanity. We acknowledge that
we have failed to live compassionately and that some have even increased
the sum of human misery in the name of religion.
We therefore call upon all men and women ~ to restore compassion to
the centre of morality and religion ~ to return to the ancient principle
that any interpretation of scripture that breeds violence, hatred or
disdain is illegitimate ~ to ensure that youth are given accurate and
respectful information about other traditions, religions and cultures
~ to encourage a positive appreciation of cultural and religious diversity
~ to cultivate an informed empathy with the suffering of all human beings-even
those regarded as enemies.
We urgently need to make compassion a clear, luminous and dynamic force
in our polarized world. Rooted in a principled determination to transcend
selfishness, compassion can break down political, dogmatic, ideological
and religious boundaries. Born of our deep interdependence, compassion
is essential to human relationships and to a fulfilled humanity. It
is the path to enlightenment, and indispensible to the creation of a
just economy and a peaceful global community.
