Thich Nhat Hanh said, “Compassion is a Verb”

Thich Nhat Hanh is a world-renowned Zen master, global spiritual leader, poet and peace activist, and is revered for his powerful teachings and bestselling writings on mindfulness and peace.

From his “Love is Compassion in Action,” Thich Nhat Hanh writes, “Compassion is a mind that removes the suffering that is present in the other. The essence of love and compassion is understanding, the ability to recognize the physical, material, and psychological suffering of others, to put ourselves ‘inside the skin’ of the other. We go ‘inside’ their body, feelings, and mental formations, and witness for ourselves their suffering. Shallow observation as an outsider is not enough to see their suffering. We must become one with the object of our observation. When we are in contact with another’s suffering, a feeling of compassion is born in us. Compassion means, literally, ‘to suffer with.'”

He has published over 100 titles on meditation, mindfulness and Engaged Buddhism, as well as poems, children’s stories, and commentaries on ancient Buddhist texts. He has sold over three million books in America alone, some of the best-known include Peace Is Every Step, The Miracle of Mindfulness, The Art of Power, True Love and Anger.

Thich Nhat Hanh has been a pioneer in bringing Buddhism to the West, founding six monasteries and dozens of practice centers in America and Europe, as well as over 1,000 local mindfulness practice communities, known as “sanghas.”