Compassion, contentment are two very valuable words, because the whole life of the seeker can be contained in them. Contentment within and compassion without must be balanced. Be always satisfied within your own self and ever-compassionate towards others, never contentment based on others nor compassion for one's own self
Unrest and turbulence follows in the wake of dissatisfaction. Your mind will concentrate on all that you do not have and see only insufficiency and misery.
When there is satisfaction towards one's self, then you begin to feel and notice all that you have. And when you begin to realise all that you have, you are filled with gratitude towards existence that has given you so much.
Contentment towards oneself, and compassion towards others: give happiness and peace, whether others receive it from you or not, and don't worry or be discontented on that account -- it is your own affair. So keep it to yourself if you tried your best and could not relieve a person of his pain or suffering. Let it not dishearten you; don't reproach yourself, but maintain your contentment.
The words compassion and contentment are priceless; only change their direction and they become dangerous. If we are satisfied with our own lot we enjoy infinite peace and tranquility in life; we become wholly fulfilled. If we can be compassionate and sympathetic towards others, we shall wipe out poverty and misery. Kindness and compassion develop into a sense of service to others that fills you with prayer and worship, because it then becomes the path that leads to godliness.
If you are kind to others but dissatisfied with your own self, you will end up being a social worker; you will never become religious. If you are satisfied with yourself but have no compassion for others, you become a lifeless holy man. Having lost all that is precious and meaningful in life, such people run away to the jungles. They are satisfied with their own selves but without an iota of compassion. They succeed in finding their own happiness but they are the ultra-selfish people. If you look into their eyes there is no sign of pity, only a ruthless stare.
He who embodies both compassion and contentment -- in right proportion and direction -- attains the supreme comprehension of life. He will then know what religion is; he becomes truth incarnate. The ideal is: satisfaction within and compassion without; meditation within, love and kindness without.
Buddha describes a similar ideal utilizing the words compassion and wisdom: wisdom within, compassion without. Until such time that both of these are present, whatever the knowledge, it can only be false. The lack of either leaves knowledge incomplete.
By merely being compassionate to others you do not reach anywhere; you have to do something within yourself also. No matter how many difficulties you endure to serve the downtrodden and the sick, if you do not cultivate contemplation within, awaken your remembrance and meditate, you can reach nowhere.
Just as you walk on two feet and birds need two wings to fly, just as you need two eyes to get a proper view of the world that surrounds you, in the same manner you need two wings for the ultimate journey. The True Name, Courtesy Osho International Foundation, www.osho.com
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