This is part 4 in a 5 part series of exploring the Sutras each Sunday. Click on the links for part one, two and three.

4. Understand through compassion or you will misunderstand the times.

If I were to pick a favourite of what works really well in real life this would be it. You can muse over it as much as you want, to me there are 3 key points.

Before I go into them lets look at the words a bit more, understand through compassion or you will misunderstand the times. So often in life we jump to conclusions, judgements, create stories and let our imaginations or fears run wild, when we stop and listen, get still, to a point of understanding this other persons point of view, you don’t have to agree, you do have to start with understanding though. More things are possible. As time is mentioned too, we also have a tendency for our mind to focus on time, when what will really get us moving towards compassion is through feeling.

We can understand ourselves better when we are compassionate to ourselves. Instead of bashing ourselves on what we just did 5 seconds ago that wasn’t great practice or something we said or did that didn’t align with us soulfully, we can look at it with love and cultivate compassion. Self development says it another way – we wouldn’t talk to another person like that so why should we to ourselves! When you understand your thoughts or doings with compassion you can learn more about yourself instead of spinning a story out of control missing the present moment and feeling misunderstand what’s really happening.

Having compassion for others and I include everyone here, including the people that you don’t connect with or you find annoying, it happens. That’s a hard one to practice. Worth it though.

I’ve been practicing this recently while shopping, as the town is getting busier with people buying gifts, there is less space to move, the energy is different, people seem stressed and the focus is on material things. I was in the mall car park waiting to pay my ticket, when it was my turn I put my ticket in and inserted my card as normal. My card was not recognised as being inserted, I tried again, I tried another card, nothing. ‘Hmm..this is interesting’ I said out loud (notice I didn’t say annoying, or swear, I’m not getting myself into victim or story mode – self compassion). The man in the queue who I saw a few moments earlier glance at his ticket and swear shouted ‘Insert it again’. I said that I have and I’m a bit confused to why it’s not working, that it might happen to others too and got out of the queue. The man, sensing that I wasn’t there to make his day more annoying said ‘Yeah, I accidentally sat on my ticket so I don’t think it will work either’. I smiled and genuinely said ‘Good luck!’ and he replied thanks. That was me sharing compassion for him, we were both going through frustration and could have bounced off each other the stress we felt but didn’t. I went and got my ticket sorted and got £2 off my charge and I didn’t see him again so he must have made it through.

The holiday season is an excellent time to start practicing compassion, not just in the 12 days to Christmas or on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, but now and the whole of next year too!

Through listening to others, noticing how you feel, having compassion comes along with it. You will find you step into compassion rather than reaction and when you do there is more peace and joy than you can imagine!

Think of it as a hug you cannot see but you have put it out there for people.

What ways can you find to understand through compassion this week? Write your experiences or share with a friend, get inspired for change.

Join me back here next Sunday for the final and 5th Sutra of the Aquarian age.