Compassion and empathy
Chapter 33
Venerable Thubten Chodron 
An Open-Hearted Life 
Aug 2, 2020 A series of talks based on An Open-Hearted Life given at Sravasti Abbey’s monthly Sharing the Dharma Day starting in April 2017. Co-written with clinical psychologist Dr. Russell Kolts, the book offers practical Buddhist and Western psychological approaches to developing compassion.
- The importance of empathy for compassion
- Compassion is not just about good intentions
- Empathic understanding
- Tips for developing empathic understanding
- Understanding the emotions of others and our own
- Reflection on empathy
- Questions
An Open-Hearted Life 32: Compassion and Empathy (download)
A guided meditation led prior to the talk can be found here.
Venerable Thubten Chodron
Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.
