Forgiveness and Compassion

Forgiveness is often defined as giving up blaming. In the Personal View, blaming is holding someone accountable for something we believe is harmful or wrong.

In this world there seems to be much to blame others for. While blaming is a common reaction, no good ever comes from it. We are burdened with negative thoughts when we blame our parents, siblings, spouses, children, co-workers, neighbors, political leaders, groups, institu­tions and even ourselves.

Our attention remains focused on what we believe is harmful or wrong and then we are angry and not open to forgiveness.

As we continue to suffer from blaming we may become motivated to try to forgive in order to relieve our pain or because we believe it is good to forgive. However, even when we say “I forgive you,” we are still assigning blame to another and may continue to suffer from unresolved grievances. So how can we give up blaming? The only way is with the Spiritual View.

We can turn to the spiritual quality of compassion, which is understanding that when one is in the Personal View seeking to get what they want, they lack the understanding of the good of the Spiritual View. With the Spiritual View it is this Personal View that is to blame, not a person.

In the midst of the wide acceptance that the Personal View is the good of life, the compassion of the Spiritual View recognizes that the individual is in the mental prison of the Personal View.

When we see this lack of understanding of the good of life is the culprit, we no longer blame a person. A very simple example is when a 1 year old drops their toy out­side of their crib and cries like the world is coming to an end.

We do not blame the child as we see they are in the Per­sonal View where everything revolves around what they want and how they feel. Similarly when someone steals, abuses  or  lies  they  are  living  in  the  Personal View, seeking to get what they want, not understanding the good of the Spiritual View.

This is not an excuse for bad behavior, but a recognition that for all of us, life is an ongoing moment to moment search for understanding what is good, and there much we do not know.

Good comes to our life when we give up blaming people. Compassion provides the mental freedom to let go of blaming. It relieves unresolved grievances and allows gratitude, love, intelligence and goodwill to be expressed in our lives.

This is the Spiritual View.