Compassion in teachings of sanathana Dharma

There are many people who think that Hinduism does not preach compassion and only Christianity preaches compassion. This is a misconception. There are many Hindu texts which promote compassion. For example Stanza 6 of the Isavasopanishad states that those people who see the Lord in everything and everyone will never hate anyone or anything. Those people who hate others hate themselves as the Lord is present in them as well as the person they hate.

yas tu sarväni bhütäny

ätmany evänupasyati

sarva-bhütesu cätmänam

tato na vijugupsate

He is the Super soul and is the soul of all souls. Anyone who sees the Lord as the soul of everyone and everything will never feel hatred towards anyone or anything. In the Ramayana after Lord Rama defeated Ravana, Lord Hanuman approached Sita Devi and requested her permission to kill all the Rakshashis who had tortured Sita Devi. Sita Devi refused to give her permission. She advised Lord Hanuman that Lord Rama as Narayana is present as the soul of everyone. He is also the soul of the Rakshashis. The Rakshashis had tortured Sita Devi because He had driven them to behave so in order to eradicate the accumulated karmas of Sita Devi.

There is an anecdote about Sri Vedanta Desika which illustrates this point. A person who harboured ill will towards Swami Desika took a garland made of sandals and hung it from Swami Desika’s door header so that in the morning when Swami Desika ventured out he would be hit on his head by the sandals. The person was hoping to annoy Swami Desika but was taken by surprise when Swami Desika declared that he was happy to be hit by sandals of the Lord’s devotees.

Stanza 14 of Isavasopanishad prohibits negative qualities like discriminating against others.

sambhütim ca vinäsam ca

yas tad vedobhayam saha

vinäsena mrtyuà tirtvä

sambhütyämrtam asnute

We should realise the presence of our Lord in everything and everyone. We should view this Universe as the divine body of the Lord. We should always be compassionate towards everyone and must not take pleasure in the sufferings of others. We should follow the rules laid out by the Shastras and must treat everyone equally and must never discriminate.

Thus the teachings of Sanathana Dharma (Hinduism) promote equality and make its followers to treat everyone with compassion.  Christ only borrowed the teachings of Sanathana Dharma.