“When we feel love and kindness toward others, it not only makes others feel loved and cared for, but it helps us also to develop inner happiness and peace.”
~His Holiness, the Dalai Lama
Whenever I see this quote (which I had as my email signature line, for a while), it always reminds me of the many ways in life where the practice of "doing onto others" effectively results in doing the same thing onto ourselves.
Butterfly in the sun
When we show love and kindness to others, it may well benefit them, and that may-- indeed-- be our primary objective.
But in showing love and kindness, we're also giving ourselves a dose of love and kindness. Think about it: It's almost impossible to feel grumpy and miserable when you are being authentically kind and loving towards someone else. So whereas the act itself may seem "selfless," on the surface, we're actually helping ourselves, as well.
The "Golden Rule,"... only better
The second half of the "Golden Rule" quote reads "... as you would have them do unto you."
Daisy in the late afternoon sun
It seems to me that a lot of the time we engage in kindly acts where the reciprocity associated with some outside "them" doing something nice for us actually comes from ourselves. When we give love, we feel more love. When we offer kindness, we experience more kindness. When we share compassion, we feel more compassionate... those "good feelings" actually come from within us, not from an external source.
And so, being kind to others is really a form of kindness to ourselves.
What do YOU think? When did you last do something kind and loving for another? Did you feel better, simply as a result of "giving," without getting anything specific in return? Does it seem to you that we can often do positive things, and still feel positive... even if we don't immediately get "something in return?" Leave a comment-- share your experience-- start the conversation!
(As usual, all text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is original content, created expressly for Steemit)