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41 " You could stamp on this natural shoot of compassion, Mencius argued, just as you can cripple or deform your body, but if you cultivate this altruistic tendency assiduously, it will acquire a dynamic power of its own.23 The "
― Karen Armstrong , Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life
42 " we have come to depend on the instant rush of energy and delight we feel when we display our cleverness by making an unkind remark and the spurt of triumph when we vanquish an annoying colleague. Thus do we assert ourselves and tell the world who we are. It is difficult to break a habit upon which we depend for our sense of self. "
43 " At their best, all religious, philosophical, and ethical traditions are based on the principle of compassion. I "
44 " We are trying to retrain our responses and form mental habits that are kinder, gentler, and less fearful of others. "
45 " A myth has been well described as something that in some sense happened once—but that also happens all the time. It is about timeless, universal truth. If "
46 " advocates of evolutionary theory since Thomas H. Huxley (1825–95) have found altruism problematic. "
47 " Compassion has dropped so far out of sight these days that many are confused about what is required. It even inspires overt hostility. "
48 " Our neocortex has made us meaning-seeking creatures, acutely aware of the perplexity and tragedy of our predicament, and if we do not discover some ultimate significance in our lives, we fall easily into despair. "
49 " As the Daoists pointed out, we often identify with our ideas so strongly that we feel personally assaulted if these are criticized or corrected. "
50 " Understanding different national, cultural, and religious traditions is no longer a luxury; it is now a necessity and must become a priority. The "
51 " dialogue led participants not to certainty but to a shocking realization of the profundity of human ignorance. However carefully, logically, and rationally Socrates and his friends analyzed a topic, something always eluded them. "
52 " if we harm our neighbors, we also inflict damage on ourselves. There "
53 " You entered into a Socratic dialogue in order to change; the object of the exercise was to create a new, more authentic self. "
54 " if they did not interrogate their most fundamental beliefs, they would live superficial, expedient lives, because “the unexamined life is not worth living.”7 "
55 " it is neither helpful nor accurate to assume that other people are always responsible for our pain. "
56 " People who have been taught to despise themselves cannot easily respect others. "
57 " We should also make ourselves aware that our cultural, ethical, religious, and intellectual traditions have all been profoundly affected by other peoples’. "
58 " As we have seen, so many of the things we once took for granted have proved unreliable that we may have to “forget” old ways of thought in order to meet the current challenges. "
59 " The philosopher Karl Popper (1902–94) often remarked “We don’t know anything” and believed that this was the most important philosophical truth.16 "
60 " One of the many great sources of happiness is to get a glimpse, here and there, of a new aspect of the incredible world we live in and of our incredible role in it.”17 "