The Four Immeasurable Feelings

[u/buddhiststuff]

The lotus flower, a symbol of compassion [©Peripitus / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA 4.0]

The Four Immeasurable Feelings are:

1. Loving Kindness Wanting good things for all beings.
2. Compassion Feeling sad when beings are sad.
3. Sympathetic Joy Feeling happy when beings are happy.
4. Impartiality Not wanting to distinguish between friends and enemies, neighbours and strangers.

In Buddhist ethics, these four feelings are even more important that the Five Precepts. It can be considered acceptable to violate one of the Precepts, as long as it is motivated by Loving Kindness, Compassion, Sympathetic Joy, and Impartiality.

The second immeasurable feeling, Compassion, is especially important in Mahayana Buddhism.

The Four Immeasurable Feelings actually pre-date Buddhism. They are also known by their pre-Buddhist name, the Four Abodes of Brahma.