4.3.3 The Karuṇā Bhāvanā

Karuṇā (compassion) is central in Buddhist practice—often described as the emotional equivalent of wisdom. Bhante suggests a practical test: If wisdom is deepening, am I becoming kinder, more compassionate? This week we focus on cultivating karuṇā through the Karuṇā Bhāvanā, the second of the Brahmavihāras.

Suggested Schedule for Group Meeting

  1. Report in
    • Share how your Mettā Bhāvanā practice went during the week.
  2. Explore the Karuṇā Bhāvanā
    • Read these notes beforehand.
    • Group leader leads the practice or play the guided audio by Ratnavandana.
    • Optional: read the Karaṇīya Mettā Sutta aloud beforehand (text at the end of the document).
  3. Discussion
    • How did the practice go?
    • Near and far enemies of karuṇā you noticed.
    • Positive experiences once karuṇā began to flow.
    • How to integrate Karuṇā Bhāvanā into daily life this week (make a concrete resolution).
    • Ways to imbue off-cushion life with more karuṇā in the week ahead.

Introduction

  • Karuṇā is mettā’s natural response to dukkha (suffering): a wish to relieve suffering so that beings may be happy.
  • More precisely: compassionate activity based on wisdom.
  • Karuṇā is active—a volition (saṃskāra), not just a feeling-tone (vedanā). When karuṇā is present, you feel moved to help, not merely sorry.

Volition vs feeling-tone (recap from Week 1)

  • Vedanā: pleasant / painful / neutral—fruits of previous conditions.
  • Volition: the active intention to do something now.
  • In practice we aim to cultivate the volition to relieve suffering, regardless of whether the person evokes pleasant or unpleasant vedanā.

A “painless sympathy with pain”

  • Bhante (via Tennyson) characterises a Bodhisattva’s karuṇā as painless sympathy with pain: not numbed, not overwhelmed—capable of deep empathy while remaining responsive and poised.
  • For us, some discomfort is natural; nonetheless karuṇā is a positive, enriching experience.

How to Practise (Core Approach)

  • Begin on the basis of mettā. Ensure your Mettā Bhāvanā is steady; this practice is demanding and benefits from a warm, stable foundation.
  • Set up carefully: grounded body, receptive heart, confident and content.
  • Method:
    1. Establish mettā.
    2. Bring a person to mind.
    3. Bring their suffering to mind while staying in mettā.
    4. Let your mettā touch that suffering.
    5. Allow mettā to transform into karuṇā (a subtly different “flavour”). Don’t force it—be receptive and patient.
    6. If you lose contact with karuṇā, return to mettā, then re-introduce awareness of suffering.

Common reactive patterns to watch

  • Stories like “it’s their own fault,” superiority because you’re not prone to that suffering, or dismissiveness.
  • Work kindly with these reactions; remember: they dislike suffering just as you do.

Near and Far Enemies of Karuṇā

  • Far enemy: cruelty
    • Overt or subtle enjoyment of another’s suffering (including schadenfreude).
    • Antidote: acknowledge it honestly; return to mettā; reconnect with empathy.
  • Near enemies:
    1. Sentimentality – superficial “poor you” without real engagement.
      • Antidote: re-focus on the fact of suffering and your genuine kindness.
    2. Horrified anxiety – overwhelm, numbness, despair, alienation.
      • Antidote: step back to self-mettā and steadiness; resume only when resourced.

Tone of the practice

  • Karuṇā Bhāvanā is often sober; the room may feel quieter, more tender, purposeful.
  • If lost or horrified, prioritise mettā, especially self-mettā, as long as needed. If overwhelm repeats, return to Mettā Bhāvanā for a while.

You’re practising karuṇā well if:

  • You’re in touch with your heart and stable positivity despite meeting suffering.
  • You can bear to take in the other’s suffering while remaining connected.
  • The practice feels engaging—it draws you into responsive presence.

Stages of the Practice (Six Stages)

Before the stages: take your time to settle; connect with the foundations of mindfulness and a kind, open heart.

  1. Mettā for oneself (foundation only)
    • Establish warm, unforced mettā for yourself—no need to strain for the universal; a gentle trickle suffices.
  2. Karuṇā for a suffering person
    • Choose someone whose suffering you can empathise with (physical, emotional, social, spiritual).
    • Not necessarily a close friend; avoid overwhelming cases.
    • Sequence: mettā → person → their suffering (while in mettā) → allow karuṇā to emerge.
    • Regularly check for near/far enemies.
  3. Karuṇā for a good friend
    • Recognise their real instances of suffering (no need for abstraction; everyone suffers).
  4. Karuṇā for a neutral person
    • Extend the same compassionate responsiveness to someone you don’t know well.
  5. Karuṇā for a difficult person
    • Watch for cruelty/schadenfreude and moralising stories.
    • Remember: like you, they don’t want to suffer. Return to simple karuṇā.

6a) Equalise karuṇā among all five (including yourself)

  • All suffer; all wish to be free. Open the heart equally beyond likes/dislikes.

6b) All-inclusive karuṇā

  • Expand to all beings equally (as in the Mettā Bhāvanā’s final stage).

After the meditation

  • Do a few minutes of just sitting.
  • If sadness or horrified anxiety is present, practise self-mettā until settled.

Resources

Home Practice for the Week

  • Meditate: Karuṇā Bhāvanā at least every second day, balancing with Mindfulness of Breathing or Mettā Bhāvanā as needed.
  • Reflect: Re-read these notes after practising a couple of times.
  • Prepare: Read next week’s notes a couple of days before the meeting.