Acts of Compassion

Today is your chance to plan your acts of compassion for everyday. Research shows that the surest way to be happy is to help others. A famous experiment conducted in a university, studied the immune response of students. They were then shown a beautiful movie of Mother Teresa, taking care of the dying in Calcutta. Mother always said, “I don’t care if the man is a rascal or a rogue or a thief. Everyone deserves to die with dignity.” After watching the movie, their blood was drawn again to study the immune response. The immune response was enhanced by 40%, just by watching Mother Teresa being kind.

The Scouts have to do a ‘good turn, everyday’. The Buddha says even the poorest of us can give. Here are the seven kinds of personal offerings: the physical offering or to offer service by one’s labor. The spiritual offering is to offer a compassionate heart to others. The third is the offering of eyes by a warm glance to give them tranquility. The fourth is the offering by a soft countenance with a smile to others. The fifth is oral offering of kind and warm words to others. The sixth is the seat offering: to offer one’s seat to others. The seventh is offering shelter: to let others spend the night at one’s home.

Imagine the gift of good health that grows out of being compassionate to others. Here are some more caring activities

1. Have a meal with an elderly relative.
2. Join a group to sing devotional songs or listen to music.
3. Pull out all the lovely clothes you no longer wear and share them with an old age home.
4. Unpack the toys your children have outgrown and give it to the children’s ward in a charity hospital.
5. On all festivals, share cakes, fruits, sweets or clothes with an orphanage.