The Power of Compassion

As I was wondering what to write about this morning, an article called The Power of Compassion was forwarded to me. The article was compelling so I thought I'd share it with you.
There was a study done at Emory University in Georgia with healthy college students. One group learned and practiced a meditation technique called lojong or compassion meditation, the other had discussions about physical and mental health issues relevant to college students. The meditation group had the homework of daily meditation practice and recording the duration and frequency of their practices. The discussion group's homework was to write short opinion papers on the discussion topics. They began and ended the study with tests to measure the levels of stress by measuring levels of inflammation in the body. The researchers expected to find a difference between the two groups. There was no significant difference.
What was significant was the correlation between the frequency and duration of meditation and the body's level of inflammation measured by the stress test. Compassion not only makes us kinder, it makes us healthier.
I suggest you experiment with this practice. I did and I experienced being more peaceful and openhearted. It helped that I also knew it was helpful to my body.
Lojong or compassion meditation begins with focusing mindfully on the breath and body sensations.
Breathe deeply for a few breaths focusing on the movement of your breath in and out of your body. Then move your focus to the sensations in your body and be present with what you notice for several breaths.
Then move the focus to your own desire for happiness, breathing into your heart and being present with that experience. Next begin to shift your focus in an ever-widening circle to your desire for the happiness of your loved ones, to the desire for the happiness of other people you know, to the desire for happiness for people you have difficulty with and then to the desire for the happiness of all people everywhere. Spend a few moments breathing deeply into your desire for all beings to experience happiness.
Let yourself feel the expansion of your heart and the healing energy it brings to your body. I want to experience this practice regularly. See if you'd like to practice it again.