These compassion quotes are must-haves if you want to live your life full of kindness and warmth.
Compassion is a word that people equate to kindness, empathy, love, and treating others with dignity and respect. But, what some fail to remember is that compassion is not just a word or a noun; it’s something that requires action and practice.
Only when our hearts truly go out to someone in pain—and when we act to help relieve their pain—do we genuinely understand compassion.
Through this, we can build strong, genuine, and meaningful connections with others. Compassion, indeed, is a tangible way of expressing our love and care for the people around us.
No one can live alone, so all parties in a community should practice this value.
Compassion can be done individually, but it holds so much more power if everyone collectively practices it.
So, read the best compassion quotes below and be inspired to spread love and kindness wherever you go!
Let’s begin.
And don’t forget to check out these patience quotes and ignorance quotes.
Best Compassion Quotes
1. “Compassion for others begins with kindness to ourselves.” – Pema Chodron
2. “Compassion is about giving all the love that you’ve got.” – Cheryl Strayed
3. “If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” – Dalai Lama
4. “Compassion enables you to reach to the heavens and look through the heart of God.” – Debbie Ford
5. “When we give ourselves compassion, we are opening our hearts in a way that can transform our lives.” – Kristin Neff
6. “Compassion is at the heart of every little thing we do. It is the dearest quality we possess. Yet all too often it can be cast aside with consequences too tragic to speak of. To lose our compassion, we lose what it is to be human.” – Anonymous
7. “True compassion means not only feeling another’s pain but also being moved to help relieve it.” – Daniel Goleman
8. “Compassion will cure more sins than condemnation.” – Henry Ward Beecher
9. “Compassion brings us to a stop, and for a moment we rise above ourselves.” – Mason Cooley
10. “No matter who we are, no matter how successful, no matter what our situation, compassion is something we all need to receive and give.” – Catherine Pulsifer
Famous Compassion Quotes
11. “Our sorrows and wounds are healed only when we touch them with compassion.” – Jack Kornfield
12. “Compassion is a practically acquired knowledge, like dancing. You must do it and practice diligently day by day.” – Karen Armstrong
13. “Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It’s a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity.” – Pema Chödrön
14. “Compassion is the key to living outside the confines of your lower self.” – Debbie Ford
15. “Compassion alone stands apart from the continuous traffic between good and evil proceeding within us.” – Eric Hoffer
16. “Compassion is the wish to see others free from suffering.” – Dalai Lama
17. “Compassion is supposed to hurt. If you can’t feel the pain of those around you, it is you who has the problem—not them.” – Josh Brendan
18. “The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness of the interdependence of all these living beings, which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.” – Thomas Merton
19. “That is what compassion does. It challenges our assumptions, our sense of self-limitation, worthlessness, of not having a place in the world. As we develop compassion, our hearts open.” – Sharon Salzberg
Also read: Famous Quotes
Compassion Quotes to Inspire Kindness and Empathy
20. “Only the development of compassion and understanding for others can bring us the tranquility and happiness we all seek.” – Dalai Lama
21. “A kind and compassionate act is often its own reward.” – William John Bennett
22. “If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.” – Anonymous
23. “We can’t heal the world today but we can begin with a voice of compassion, a heart of love, an act of kindness.” – Mary Davis
24. “In compassion, when we feel with the other, we dethrone ourselves from the center of our world and we put another person there.” – Karen Armstrong
25. “Compassion does not just happen. Pity does, but compassion is not pity. It’s not a feeling. Compassion is a viewpoint, a way of life, a perspective, a habit that becomes a discipline—and more than anything else, compassion is a choice we make that love is more important than comfort or convenience.” – Glennon Doyle Melton
Also read: Empathy Quotes, Quotes to Live By
Compassion Quotes to Live By
26. “Let our hearts be stretched out in compassion toward others, for everyone is walking his or her own difficult path.” – Dieter F. Uchtdorf
27. “Let us fill our hearts with our own compassion—towards ourselves and towards all living beings.” – Thích Nhất Hạnh
28. “Give compassion—every day the average person fights epic battles never told just to survive.” – Ken Poirot
29. “Use your voice for kindness, your ears for compassion, your hands for charity, your mind for truth, and your heart for love.” – Anonymous
30. “Have compassion for all beings, rich and poor alike; each has their suffering. Some suffer too much, others too little.” – Buddha
Compassion Quotes to Fill You With Love
31. “At the end of the day, love and compassion will win.” – Terry Waite
32. “Compassion is loving others enough to say or do what is appropriate from an empowered heart without attachment to the outcome.” – Gary Zukav
33. “Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive.” – Dalai Lama
34. “Compassion knows that choosing the higher road in any situation is the most loving option for you.” – Debbie Ford
35. “Compassion is the greatest form of love humans have to offer.” – Rachael Joy Scott
Also read: True Love Quotes
Short Compassion Quotes You Need to Read Today
36. “Until you have real compassion, you can not recognize love.” – Bob Thurman
37. “Make no judgments where you have no compassion.” – Anne McCaffrey
38. “Compassion is an action word with no boundaries.” – Prince
39. “Compassion is the basis of morality.” – Arthur Schopenhauer
40. “Human it is to have compassion on the unhappy.” – Giovanni Boccaccio
Deep Compassion Quotes to Help You Become a Better Person
41. “Compassion is to look beyond your own pain, to see the pain of others.” – Yasmin Mogahed
42. “Some people are filled with compassion and a desire to do good, and some simply don’t think anything’s going to make a difference.” – Meryl Streep
43. “This idea of compassion comes to us because we’re made in the image of God, who is ultimately the compassionate one.” – Jackie Tabick
44. “I think compassion is an important quality in people in general.” – Shannon Elizabeth
45. “From compassion springs humility. The ego is verily a gateway to hell. The person who is egoistic is far from being religious.” – Dada Vaswani
Wise Compassion Quotes That Will Guide You
46. “There is a nobility in compassion, a beauty in empathy, a grace in forgiveness.” – John Connolly
47. “One of the secrets of inner peace is the practice of compassion.” – Dalai Lama
48. “Compassion and tolerance are not a sign of weakness, but a sign of strength.” – Dalai Lama
49. “Our compassion for one another, and our individual actions to help, is what makes our nation—and our community—great.” – Kevin Brady
50. “Compassion is not weakness, and concern for the unfortunate is not socialism.” – Hubert H. Humphrey
Compassion Quotes for a More Meaningful Life
51. “As I get older, the more I stay focused on the acceptance of myself and others, and choose compassion over judgment and curiosity over fear.” – Tracee Ellis Ross
52. “When compassion wakes up in us, we find ourselves more willing to become vulnerable, to take the risk of entering the pain of others.” – Sue Monk Kidd
53. “Where there is no human connection, there is no compassion. Without compassion, then community, commitment, loving-kindness, human understanding, and peace all shrivel. Individuals become isolated, the isolated turn cruel, and the tragic hovers in the forms of domestic and civil violence. Art and literature are antidotes to that.” – Susan Vreeland
54. “When we’re looking for compassion, we need someone who is deeply rooted, is able to bend and, most of all, embraces us for our strengths and struggles.” – Brené Brown
More Compassion Quotes That You Will Enjoy
55. “Compassion is so pure, I don’t think there is any way to taint it.” – Chade-Meng Tan
56. “Compassion has enemies, and those enemies are things like pity, moral outrage, fear.” – Joan Halifax
57. “Compassion automatically invites you to relate with people because you no longer regard people as a drain on your energy.” – Chogyam Trungpa
58. “More smiling, less worrying. More compassion, less judgment. More blessed, less stressed. More love, less hate.” – Roy T. Bennet
59. “With compassion one becomes courageous. Compassion brings triumph when attacked; it brings security when maintained.” – Tao Te Ching
60. “Compassion can’t be satisfied with selfish endeavors. It needs someone to fellowship with, give to, and bless. Compassion needs someone on whom it can pour out its goodness.” – Kenneth Copeland
How Do You Practice Compassion for Others?
Sometimes, our loved ones don’t dare to share the pain and suffering they’re feeling inside. Given that, blindly saying we understand and feel the same might seem shallow and insensitive. This is why compassion is so important.
It’s easy to say we understand what others are going through, but do we? We must step into their shoes and see things from their perspectives. And, through compassion, empathize with them and do our best to help them move past their pain.
Let’s all move beyond our self-referencing and hold back our judgments. We will never fully understand the depths of our loved ones’ feelings, but maybe, simply saying that you’re there to help them rise above the challenges they’re going through is enough. Show that you’re there to support them and listen to them, no matter what.
Be present, listen actively, and be kind. These might seem simple enough to you, but you’ll never know how much love they offer those who need them. So, bookmark this list of the best compassion quotes and read through them again whenever you need advice.
Who’s the most compassionate person in your family? What are the things they’ve done for you that you’ll never forget? Please, share your thoughts below!
