Prepared by
Evelin Halls, DipFLC
Pennie White BA DipEd
Abhidhamma Class No. 49, 27 May 2003
Karuna and Mudita
Glossary
karuna: compassion
mudita: sympathetic joy, gladness at others' success, altruistic joy, sympathetic gladness
Dr Mehm Tin Mon (1995, pp 94-95) writes:
“There are four illimitables or boundless states. To mention them in the order they are usually practised, they are metta (loving-kindness), karuna (compassion), mudita (sympathetic joy) and upekkha (equanimity).
“…metta is included in adosa, and upekkha in tatramajjhattata…
“…In practising any one of the four illimitables, we may concentrate our attention on a single person or on all the living beings in the whole world. So they are named ‘illimitables’.
“In practising loving-kindness, we meditate “May all be happy.” In cultivating compassion, we meditate: “May all be free from miseries.” For exercising mudita, we rejoice on the prosperity of beings and meditate: “May their gain be with them for a long time”. In practising upekkha, we maintain a balanced mind and meditate: “All beings are as they are conditioned by their kamma”.
“Anyone who is pervading the whole world with loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy or equanimity is said to be living in the ‘sublime abode’ or ‘Brahma abode’. So the four illimitables are also known as “Brahma – vihara”, i.e., sublime modes of living.
“Metta is the sincere wish for the good and welfare of all. It discards illwill which is its direct enemy. Its indirect enemy is affection (pema). Benevolent attitude is its chief characteristic.
“Karuna makes the hearts of the good quiver when others are afflicted with sorrow. The wish to remove the sufferings of others is its chief characteristic. It discards cruelty or wickedness (himsa) which is its direct enemy. Its indirect enemy is grief (domanassa).
“Mudita is not mere sympathy but appreciative joy. Its chief characteristic is to rejoice in others’ prosperity. Its direct enemy is jealousy (issa) and its indirect enemy is is exultation (pahasa). It discards dislike.
“Upekkha views living beings impartially, i.e., neither with attachment not with aversion. It is the balanced state of mind. Its direct enemy is passion (raga), and its indirect enemy is unintelligible indifference. Impartial attitude is its chief characteristic.”
Bhadantacariya Buddhaghosa writes in the Visuddhimagga, Chapter IX, Description of Concentration - The Divine Abidings:
[ (2) Compassion]
“One who wants to develop compassion should begin his [or her] task by reviewing the danger in lack of compassion and the advantage in compassion.
“And when he [or she] begins it, he [or she] should not direct it at first towards the dear, etc., persons; for one who is dear simply retains the position of one who is dear, a very dear companion retains the position of a very dear companion, one who is neutral retains the position of one who is neutral, one who is antipathetic retains the position of one who is hostile. One of the opposite sex and one who is dead are also not the field for it. (Buddhaghosa IX, 77)
“In the Vibhanga it is said ‘And how does a bhikkhu dwell pervading one direction with his [or her] heart endued with compassion? Just as he [ or she] would feel compassion on seeing an unlucky, unfortunate person, so he [or she] pervades all beings with compassion’ (Vibhanga 273).
“Therefore first of all, on seeing a wretched man, unlucky, unfortunate, in every way a fit object for compassion, unsightly, reduced to utter misery, with hands and feet cut off, sitting in the shelter for the helpless with a pot placed before him, with a mass of maggots oozing from his [or her] arms and legs, and moaning, compassion should be felt for him [or her] this way: This being has indeed been reduced to misery; if only he [or she] could be freed from this suffering!
“But if he [or she] does not encounter such a person, then he [or she] can arouse compassion for an evil-doing person, even though he [or she] is happy, by comparing him [or her] to one about to be executed. How? (Buddhaghosa IX, 78)
“Suppose a robber has been caught with stolen goods, and in accordance with the king’s command to execute him [or her], the king’s men bind him [or her] and lead him [or her] off to the place of execution, giving him [or her] a hundred blows in sets of four. Then people give him [or her] things to chew and eat and also garlands and perfumes, unguents and betel leaves. Although he [or she] goes along eating and enjoying the things as though he [or she] were happy and well off, still no one fancies that he [or she] is really happy and well off. On the contrary people feel compassion for him [or her], thinking “This poor wretch is now about to die; every step he [or she] takes brings him [or her] nearer to the presence of death’. So too a bhikkhu whose meditation subject is compassion should arouse compassion for an [evil-doing] persons even if he [or she] is happy: ‘Though this poor wretch is now happy, cheerful, enjoying his [or her] wealth, still for want of even one good deed done now in any one of the three doors [of body, speech and mind] he [or she] can come to experience untold suffering in the states of loss’. (Buddhaghosa IX, 79)
“Having aroused compassion for that person in that way, he [or she] should next arouse compassion for a dear person, next for a neutral person, and next for a hostile person, successively in the same way. (Buddhaghosa IX, 80)
“But if resentment towards the hostile person arises in the way already described, he [or she] should make it subside in the way described under lovingkindness.
"And here too when someone has done profitable deeds and the meditator sees or hears that he [or she] has been overtaken by one of the kinds of ruin beginning with ruin of health, relatives, property, etc., he [or she] deserves the meditator's compassion; and so he [or she] does too in any case, even with no such ruin, thus 'In reality he [or she] is unhappy', because he [or she] is not exempt from the suffering of the round [of becoming]. And in the way already described the meditator should break down the barriers between the four kinds of people, that is to say, himself [or herself], the dear person, the neutral person and the hostile person. Then cultivating that sign, developing it and repeatedly practising it, he [or she] should increase the absorption by the triple and quadruple jhana in the way already stated under lovingkindness. (Buddhaghosa IX, 81)
"But the order given in the Anguttara Commentary is that a hostile person should first be made the object of compassion, and when the mind has been made malleable with respect to him [or her], next the unlucky person, next the dear person, and next oneself. That does not agree with the text, 'an unlucky, unfortunate person'. Therefore he [or she] should begin the development, breakdown the barriers, and increase absorption only in the way stated here. (Buddhaghosa IX, 82)
"After that, the versatility consisting in the unspecified pervasion in five ways, the specified pervasion in seven ways, and the directional pervasion in ten ways, and the advantages described as "He sleeps in comfort', etc., should be understood in the same way as given under lovingkindness.
"This is the detailed explanation of the development of compassion. [316] (Buddhaghosa, IX 77-83)
[ (3) Gladness]
"One who begins the development of gladness [mudita] should not start with the dear person and the rest; for a dear person is not the proximate cause of gladness merely in virtue of dearness, how much less the neutral and the hostile person. One of the opposite sex and one who is dead are also not the field for it. (Buddhaghosa IX 84)
"However, the very dear companion can be the proximate cause for it – one who in the commentaries is called a 'boon companion' for he [or she] is constantly glad: he [or she] laughs first and speaks afterwards. So he [or she] should be the first to be pervaded with gladness. Or on seeing or hearing about a dear person being happy, cheerful and glad, gladness can be aroused thus: 'This being is indeed glad. How good, how excellent!' For this is what is referred to in the Vibhanga: 'And how does a bhikkhu dwell pervading one direction with his [or her] heart endued with gladness? Just as he [or she] would be glad on seeing a dear and beloved person, so he [or she pervades all beings with gladness (Vibhanga 274 ) (Buddhaghosa IX, 85)
"But if his [or her] boon companion or the dear person was happy in the past but is now unlucky and unfortunate, then gladness can still be aroused by remembering his [or her] past happiness and apprehending the glad aspect in this way: 'In the past he [or she] had great wealth, a great following and he [or she] was always glad'. Or gladness can be aroused by apprehending the future glad aspect in him [or her] in this way: 'In the future he [or she] will again enjoy similar success and will go about in gold palanquins, on the back of elephants or on horseback, and so on'.
"Having thus aroused gladness with respect to a dear person, he [or she] can then direct it successively towards a neutral one, and after that towards a hostile one. (Buddhaghosa IX, 86)
"But if resentment towards the hostile one arises in him [or her] the way already described, he [or she] should make it subside in the same way as described under lovingkindness.
"He [or she] should break down the barriers by means of mental impartiality towards the four, that is, towards these three and himself [or herself]. And by cultivating that sign, developing and repeatedly practising it, he [or she] would increase the absorption to triple and quadruple jhana in the way already stated under lovingkindness.
"Next, the versatility consisting in unspecified pervasion in five ways, specified pervasion in seven ways, and directional pervasion in ten ways, and also the advantages described as "He sleeps in comfort', etc., should be understood in the same way as stated under lovingkindness.
"This is the detailed explanation of the development of gladness. [317[ (Buddhaghosa IX, 87)
"Compassion is characterized as promoting the aspect of allaying suffering. Its function resides in not bearing others' suffering. It is manifested as non-cruelty. Its proximate cause is to see helplessness in those overwhelmed by suffering. It succeeds when it makes cruelty subside and it fails when it produces sorrow. (Buddhaghosa IX, 94)
"Gladness is characterized as gladdening (produced by others' success). Its function resides in being unenvious It is manifested as the elimination of aversion (boredom). Its proximate cause is seeing beings' success. It succeeds when it makes aversion (boredom) subside, and it fails in when it produces merriment. (Buddhaghosa IX, 95)
In The Book of Analysis (Vibhanga), translated by Pathamakayaw Ashin Thittila (Setthila) it is stated:
“Therein what is compassion? That which in beings is compassion, being compassionate, state of being compassionate, compassion that is mental freedom (from cruelty). This is called compassion. (Vibhanga 653)
“Therein what is sympathetic joy? That which in beings is sympathetic joy, act of sympathetic joy, state of sympathetic joy, sympathetic joy that is mental freedom (from jealousy). This is called sympathetic joy. (Vibhanga 663)
Next week we study the last of the sobhana cetasikas pannindriya meaning wisdom or insight.
References
Buddhaghosa, Bhadantacariya, (no date), “The Visuddhi Magga”, translated from the Pali by Bhikkhu Nanamoli, Singapore Buddhist Meditation Centre, Singapore, IX: 78-87, 94, 95.
Mon, Dr. Mehm Tin (1995), “The Essence of Buddha Abhidhamma”, publisher Mehm Tay Zar Mon, Yangon, pp 94-95.
Pathamakyaw Ashin Thittila (Setthila) (translator) (1988) “The Book of Analysis (Vibhanga)”, Pali Text Society, Oxford.
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