-compassion: a pilot study and instructional guide daphna ...tonglen meditation, traditionally...
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Tonglen Meditation’s Effect on Levels of Compassion and Self-Compassion: A Pilot Study and Instructional
Guide
Daphna McKnight
Thesis Completed as Part of the Upaya Buddhist Chaplaincy Training Program
2010-2012
Author’s Note
Correspondence concerning this paper should be addressed to the author at
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Abstract
This is the first known empirical study of the Tibetan Buddhist Tonglen meditation practice, which is
intended to increase compassion, in addition to reducing fear and egotism. This small, pilot study examined
changes in self-compassion and compassion for others through a pre/post intervention study design (α=.05).
Subjects (n=9), who were novice meditators, were guided through three 18-minute Tonglen meditation
sessions, one session every 48 hours. Results, based on the Related Samples Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test,
showed a statistically significantly increase in the total scale score of self-compassion (p=.030) and in the
self-compassion subscale, Common Humanity (p=.027) as measured by the self-report questionnaire, Self-
Compassion Scale (Neff, 2003a). An increase in compassion for others after Tonglen meditation could not be
determined through the self-report questionnaire, Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale (Hwang, Plante, &
Lackey, 2008). A discussion of the findings and suggestions for future Tonglen research follows, as does an
extended literature review of a “cousin” compassion meditation practice, loving-kindness meditation (LKM)
and of mindfulness meditation (MM) as it relates to compassion. This thesis also includes a Tonglen script
and a “troubleshooting” guide for those teaching Tonglen to novice practitioners.
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Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my husband for his practice and his on-going love and support, my father and
stepmother, mother, and sisters who have faith in me even when they are not sure exactly what I am up to,
and my Grandfather, H. Glen Mills, whose parting gift allowed me to take this chaplaincy training program.
My thanks also goes out to Kevin Handley, my motivation coach, Lynette Monterio, who offered initial
support and technical suggestions, Corey Cooper who ran the statistical analysis on the data, and the
University of the West Library staff who helped me access articles quickly and efficiently. Special gratitude
also goes to Roshi Joan Halifax for creating and guiding us through such an amazing, far-reaching program,
and to Maia Duerr, Donna Kwilosz, the chaplaincy sangha, and the residents at Upaya Zen Center for their
ongoing support.
I would also like to note that a few sections of this paper have been adapted, with permission, from early
drafts of my Ph.D. dissertation, particularly the literature review and the section explaining tonglen
meditation. The Tonglen Focus Group Study is original research for this thesis as are other sections including
the Tonglen Troubleshooting Guide.
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Table of Contents
Abstract ................................................................................................................................................ 2
Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................................. 3
Preface .................................................................................................................................................. 6
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 8
Calls for the use of Tonglen Meditation ........................................................................................... 9
Tonglen and Buddhist Chaplaincy ................................................................................................. 10
Tonglen Meditation ........................................................................................................................ 11
History of Tonglen ...................................................................................................................... 11
Tonglen Preliminaries ................................................................................................................. 12
Practice of Tonglen ..................................................................................................................... 14
Literature Review ............................................................................................................................... 16
Compassion Definitions ................................................................................................................. 16
Compassion Benefits ...................................................................................................................... 23
Tonglen: Empirical Research ......................................................................................................... 24
Loving-Kindness Meditation .......................................................................................................... 26
Mindfulness Meditation .................................................................................................................. 37
Support for Study Design ............................................................................................................... 42
Tonglen Study .................................................................................................................................... 45
Research Question and Objectives ................................................................................................. 45
Assumptions and Constraints ......................................................................................................... 45
Significance of the Study ................................................................................................................ 46
Method ............................................................................................................................................ 46
Participants .................................................................................................................................. 46
Procedures ................................................................................................................................... 46
Measures ..................................................................................................................................... 47
Results ......................................................................................................................................... 48
Discussion ................................................................................................................................... 52
References .......................................................................................................................................... 61
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Appendices ......................................................................................................................................... 67
Tonglen Troubleshooting Guide ..................................................................................................... 67
Tonglen Script ................................................................................................................................ 73
Self-Compassion Scale ................................................................................................................... 77
Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale: ............................................................................................. 78
Additional Posttest Questions – Written Short Answer ................................................................. 79
Small Group Oral Questions (Conducted post posttest) ................................................................. 80
Demographic Questionnaire (Post Posttest) ................................................................................... 81
Demographic Responses Based on the 9 Participants Who Finished the Study ............................ 84
Informed Consent ........................................................................................................................... 85
Dedication of Merit ............................................................................................................................ 87
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Preface
My interest in Tonglen began in the early 2000s, when I worked as a senior training consultant at a
large corporation. I had been taught Tonglen and had read about it, but had not practiced it much. I was
definitely a novice. One day in a meeting, the animosity between two teams I consulted for flared up worse
than usual. People were at each other’s throats and nothing positive was being accomplished. I suddenly felt
a flash of anger myself, which was unusual, and I began to tell myself that these “idiots” were wasting my
time and my life. As I got all riled up, a part of me watched my reaction in a bit of shock and then realization.
Just like me, all of these people wanted to be happy, but we were all going about it in ways that were
bringing us more suffering. One woman really wanted to be at home with her newborn twins, but her
husband was out of work, and she could not afford to take a long maternity leave. Another person was a
middle aged, middle manager. She was a single parent who was terrified she would be laid off, never find
another job, and not be able to take care of her family. As I looked around the table, I saw that just like me,
everyone had problems, and we were all acting out, trying to somehow make our situation better even though
it was at the expense of everyone else and our own sanity as well.
For some reason, I suddenly started to do stealth Tonglen. No one knew what I was doing, but I felt
much calmer and more caring about myself and the others in the room. Before long, everyone had settled
down and issues were resolved much more calmly. I began to silently do Tonglen at every meeting I attended
because it made me feel better, helped me act more compassionately towards those around me, and allowed
me to take a broader perspective of situations, which was very useful for problem solving. After that one
horrible meeting, other meetings I attended, and secretly practiced Tonglen at, were very civil, and work was
accomplished fairly painlessly. I did not think much of that; however, several months later, I crossed paths
with a couple of managers who were on their way to a meeting. They told me jokingly that I was going the
wrong direction; to which, I replied that I tended to avoid meetings I did not really have to go to. Then they
both told me that they liked it when I was at meetings because when I was there people were nice to each
other and work got done. That really struck me. Tonglen was the only variable I could think of. My presence
had not made this kind of difference before doing Tonglen, and even after I had started Tonglen, my level
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and style of participation in the meetings had not changed. I was a novice Tonglen practitioner, but only a
few minutes of practice at a time seemed to make a difference to a roomful of people.
The managers’ comments have stayed with me over the years, and I was very surprised to learn that
there are no published studies on the effects of Tonglen, so this paper and my PhD dissertation have given
me the opportunity to begin to explore the possible power and benefits of Tonglen meditation.
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Tonglen Meditation’s Effect on Levels of Compassion and Self-Compassion: A Pilot Study and
Instructional Guide
Introduction
While the past decade has finally seen an inquiry into the nature and benefits of compassion,
research findings and practical applications have been slow to trickle down to the general population. Most
people have never been taught techniques for increasing their level of compassion even though studies have
shown that higher levels of compassion increase social connectedness, resilience, and satisfaction with life
while decreasing pain, depression, and feelings of isolation (Carson et al., 2005, Fredrickson, Cohn, Coffey,
Pek, & Finkel, 2008, Hutcherson, Seppala, & Gross, 2008). There is also a large body of research showing
the positive effects of the Buddhist practice of mindfulness meditation, often in the form of Mindfulness
Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), on mental and physical health (Shapiro & Carlson, 2009), but researchers
are only just beginning to examine the efficacy of Buddhist compassion practices. The Buddhist compassion
practice used primarily in research to test whether compassion can be voluntarily generated has been loving-
kindness meditation (LKM), also known as metta meditation; the origins of which are found in the earliest
Buddhist scriptures and commentaries (e.g.: Scriptures: Sutta Nipata 145, Paṭisambhidā-magga ii.30.
Commentary: Visuddhimagga, ch. IX).
Tonglen meditation, traditionally considered a compassion practice common to all Tibetan Buddhist
traditions, has yet to be empirically studied even though it has been available to the general Western public
since at least 1992 with Sogyal Rinpoche’s book, The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying (Sogyal, Gaffney, &
Harvey, 1994). Tonglen has roots in India but became more developed as part of a set of Lojong (or mind-
training) practices, which were codified approximately 900 years ago. The Lojong practices were developed
to enhance a person’s capacity for compassion as well as to end ego clinging, connect with suffering, end the
fear of suffering, and ultimately realize one’s enlightened-nature. If Tonglen truly is a meditation that
increases compassion, and it can be practiced outside of a Buddhist context, it is important to study it in order
to offer people a way to easily increase their levels of compassion and thus enhance their wellbeing as well
as that of others. This paper will look at the history of Tonglen, place it within the context of Buddhist
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chaplaincy as well as current compassion research, and through a focus group study, begin to assess novice
meditator’s experiences with the practice of Tonglen. This research will aid in the structuring of a larger
study of Tonglen’s ability to increase a person’s level of compassion, and it will inform a set of guidelines to
help Tonglen instructors deal with common teaching/practice issues that may arise for beginners of the
practice.
Calls for the use of Tonglen Meditation
Even without scientific research to back up Tonglen’s purported benefits, its reputation as a
compassion practice is being promoted, though still in small numbers, to professionals in peer reviewed
journals for use on the professionals themselves, their students, and their clients; however, the authors do not
appear to have much experience with or in-depth knowledge of Tonglen meditation, and they do not offer
comments or concerns about teaching this practice to non-Buddhists. Cameron (2006) speaks of the
relationship between ethics in nursing and the skill of listening, which requires, according to her, an open
heart. She submits that an open heart may be attained by training in the practice of Tonglen. Gehart &
McCollum (2007) suggest that new therapists be taught Tonglen to promote compassion, which they believe
is greatly lacking in Western psychological training. Another psychologist, Otani (2003) introduces the
practice of Tonglen as having “much to offer to clinicians who are familiar with hypnosis” (p. 97). And
Gorman (2005) believes that, “Infusing the essential philosophy of Tonglen into nursing curriculum may
assist us to guide our students, sending forth consummate practitioners of compassionate mind. Through
[Tonglen], we model behavior and attitudes to shape their practice” (p. 1). Thus, it is important for Tonglen’s
benefits to be studied at this time. If it does not have the benefits traditionally ascribed to it, then it could be
pointless or even detrimental to have whole nursing and psychology departments trained to use it. However,
if Tonglen does offer the benefits of increased compassion, and perhaps other as yet unknown attributes,
empirical studies will lend support to those calling for greater levels of compassion in the helping
professions, offer a tool to accomplish this, and offer suggestions for optimal ways to teach Tonglen outside
of its traditional Tibetan Buddhist context.
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Tonglen and Buddhist Chaplaincy
Compassion is one of the two wings of Buddhism, balancing the wisdom aspect and allowing the
dedicated practitioner to fly steadily along the path of awakening, yet compassion is also ultimately
inseparable from wisdom. The historical Buddha’s path to enlightenment stemmed from the compassion that
arose in him at the suffering in the world. Every Buddhist tradition has its iconic image of compassion be it
Tara, the Tibetan female Buddha or the bodhisattva of compassion known by various names depending on
the region such as Guanyin in China, Avalokiteshvara in India, Kanzeon in Japan, or Chenrezig in Tibet. The
Dalai Lamas are said to be incarnations of Chenrezig. Tonglen is a traditional Tibetan Buddhist compassion
practice, taught by various Dalai Lamas and other Buddhist teachers, which may prove to offer practitioners
the psychological and physical wellbeing that studies show those with high levels of compassion benefit
from.
This relatively simple practice may be perfect for chaplains, Buddhist or otherwise, to use for
themselves and to teach to other caretakers as well as clients. Chaplains, and most of their colleagues in the
helping professions are at great risk of burnout from stress, but those with higher levels of compassion
generally have access to more coping skills, the ability for broader perspective taking, and a greater
resilience when dealing with the seemingly endless suffering of others (Neff & Pommier, 2011).
A recent article (Spandler & Stickley, 2011) speaks of the importance of compassion in mental
health services, but it could easily apply to any healthcare environment. The authors believe that compassion
is necessary in order for healthcare providers to understand practices and services that inspire hope and
optimism in clients, and they believe it is imperative that compassion be extended beyond the individual.
They speak of the importance of nurturing compassion within the context of the healthcare system, “through
relationships, cultures, and healing environments” (Spandler & Stickley, 2011), but acknowledge that the
development of compassion is rarely, if ever, prioritized. The authors do not explain how compassion can be
increased in order to generate systemic changes in the healthcare system, but Tonglen may be a very
practical intervention. It is designed to breakdown any egoistical focus, which is not only rife in healthcare
settings, but in any hierarchical system, and it encourages the development of connections among people,
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even antagonists; thus, reducing a mentality of us vs. them and right vs. wrong. In the healthcare setting, if
chaplains, doctors, nurses, staff, patients, and families all had an easy to use technique like Tonglen to
increase compassion, reduce stress and pain, increase resilience, and generate a sense of wellbeing and social
connectedness, patients would most likely spend fewer days in the hospital, work place violence and burnout
could be greatly reduced, and the various systems within the healthcare setting may become more healthy
and resilient themselves with possibly only a few minutes of Tonglen a week. Since chaplains often have
access to all levels of people in a healthcare setting, and they are at a very high risk of burnout themselves,
they may be the perfect initial users and subsequent purveyors of Tonglen; thus, generating a healthier,
stronger climate of compassion, hope, optimism, and general wellbeing.
Tonglen Meditation
History of Tonglen
Tonglen has traditionally been taught as just one of many practices in the tradition of Tibetan Lojong
(mind-training), which is often attributed to the famous Bengali teacher, Atisha (980-1054 CE), who brought
the second dissemination of Buddhism to Tibet. The seeds of the Lojong teachings, and thus Tonglen, were
planted by classical Indian Buddhist treatises, particularly those of Nagarjuna’s Precious Garland (c. mid-
second to mid-third century CE) and Santideva’s Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life (c. eighth century
CE), (Jinpa, 2006). Despite tradition, historians have found no evidence that Atisha transmitted a cohesive
mind-training system or even used the equivalent to the English term, “mind-training,” (Kongtrul & McLeod,
2005), but it is believed that he did learn mind-training techniques from the teacher, Serlingpa, in Indonesia,
and then orally transmitted these teachings to various disciples in Tibet, including Drom-ron Rinpoche, who
became the founder of the Kadampa Lineage (Kongtrul & McLeod, 2005). Drom-ron does use the term,
“mind-training,” in his writing, but these mind-training teachings handed down from Atisha were at first not
widely taught and were not codified until about a century later when Chekawa Yeshe Dorje (1102-1176)
taught them in the systematized Seven Point Mind Training (Jinpa, 2006). Around this time, another lineage
holder from Atisha’s line organized the teachings into Eight Verses on Mind Training (Jinpa, 2006).
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The various Lojong practices were initially considered secret (Jinpa, 2006), very advanced teachings
(Berzin, 1999), which eventually became a “shared heritage of all of the major schools of Tibetan
Buddhism” (Jinpa, 2006, p. 6). Wallace (2003) describes the seven points as being “designed to shift our
attitudes so that our minds become pure wellsprings of joy instead of murky pools of problems, anxieties,
fleeting pleasures, frustrations, hopes, and fears” (p. 7). The main divisions of the seven-point mind-training
teachings are generally listed as the following (Kongtrul & McLeod, 2005):
1. The preliminaries, which teach the support for Dharma [the Buddhist teachings].
2. The actual practice, training in absolute and relative Bodhicitta [union of compassion and wisdom].
3. The transformation of adverse conditions into the path of awakening.
4. The utilization of the practice in one’s whole life.
5. The extent of proficiency in mind-training.
6. Commitments of mind-training.
7. Guidelines for mind-training.
Within the Seven Point Mind Training, Tonglen is taught as part of Point Two. Tonglen’s focus is on
developing loving-kindness and compassion in the relative world, as well as learning to confront fear and
egoistic tendencies. As a whole, though, the Lojong practices are spiritual/psychological teachings intended
to bring practitioners to enlightenment (also referred to by different Tonglen scholars, as “Bodhicitta,”
“ultimate emptiness,” “awakening/awakened mind,” “nature of mind,” “ultimate reality,” and “natural
awareness”).
Tonglen Preliminaries
Lojong teachings are often subdivided further from seven or eight main points into fifty-nine pith
instructions. The ones most directly related to Tonglen practice are instruction number eight, “Alternately
practice giving and taking,” and number nine, “Mount them both upon the breath.” But the first seven pith
instructions are generally aimed at preparing the practitioner for the practice of Tonglen, and the fifty
instructions that follow Tonglen are to direct the practitioner further along the path to realizing
enlightenment. The first of the fifty-nine subdivisions (which is also the first of the seven main points) is to
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train in the preliminaries (Gyalwa Gendum Druppa & Mullin, 1993, pp. 45–94), which is further subdivided
into
x Guru Yoga: The supplication of one’s teacher, which also invokes the blessings of the Buddha.
x The contemplation of the four thoughts that turn the mind to the Dharma:
a. The preciousness of human life.
b. Death and impermanence.
c. Karmic laws of cause and effect.
d. The unsatisfactory nature of cyclic existence [continuous birth, death, and rebirth].
The second of the seven points usually contains five sub-teachings related to absolute
Bodhicitta/Awakened Mind, which traditionally was practiced before engaging in the relative practice of
Tonglen. Prior to the absolute practices is the pith instruction translated simply as “Once you have achieved
stability, reveal the mystery” (Wallace, 2003, p. 279). This pithy statement refers to relative practices which
prepare the practitioner for the absolute practices as well as for Tonglen. These relative practices are usually
described as being mental stability meditation (Calm Abiding and Mindfulness), Loving-kindness practice
and additional types of compassion meditation (Dromtonpa, 2006). Point Two continues by giving pith
instructions on five very, very profound Buddhist practices leading to the nature of Ultimate Reality
(Wallace, 2003, p. 99).
x Regard all events as if they were dreams.
x Examine the unborn nature of awareness.
x Even the remedy itself is free right where it is.
x The essential nature of the path is resting in the universal ground.
x Between sessions, be an illusory person.
These practices develop motivation, stability, and the cultivation of insight into Ultimate Reality. It
may seem to be putting the cart before the horse to practice developing insight into the ultimate before
accomplishing the relative practices, but, as mentioned earlier, Buddhism has the two wings of wisdom and
compassion. The wisdom (insight into the nature of reality) is then coupled with the development of relative
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compassion (relative bodhicitta) through practices such as Tonglen meditation. Compassion develops the
ultimate motivation of achieving enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings (Wallace, 2003).
Practice of Tonglen
The seeds for the actual Tonglen practice are attributed to a stanza in Santideva’s Guide to the
Bodhisattva’s Way of Life: “Do not be downcast, but marshal all your strength;; take heart and be the master
of yourself! Practice the equality of self and other; practice the exchange of self and other (7.16)” (Chodron,
2007, p. 236); however, as mentioned earlier, the actual Tonglen practice was developed in Tibet sometime
between Atisha (980–1054 CE) and the codification of the Lojong practices one hundred years later. Slight
modifications continued to occur over the centuries.
The Tonglen practice traditionally begins by bringing one’s mother to mind, recalling her kindness,
and allowing that to open one’s heart to compassion (Gyalwa Gendum Druppa & Mullin, 1993). But in the
West, since many people have difficult relationships with their mothers, Tonglen instructors often have to
show students how to work with the image of their mother (Wallace, 2003), or allow the practitioners to
begin with anyone who is suffering, including themselves (Chodron, 2001, Sogyal et al., 1994). Regardless
of whom the subject is, the practitioner brings this person to mind, allowing the person’s suffering to open
the practitioner’s heart to compassion. The practitioner, with empathy, feels the suffering of the other person
and wishes to relieve the person of all suffering: physical, mental, emotional, and situational - or as
Dromtonpa wrote in the in the eleventh century: “(1) taking illness, (2) taking malevolent forces, (3) taking
obstacles, and (4) taking karma and afflictions” (Dromtonpa, 2006, p. 427). The practitioner makes a wish
such as, “May you be free of suffering and the causes of suffering,” and visualizes that all of the subject’s
suffering turns to black smoke (or tar or ash depending on the instructions). This black smoke of suffering is
inhaled by the practitioner into his or her heart where it is transformed. “In an instant both that cloud of
misery and your self-centeredness mutually extinguish each other, leaving not a trace of either behind”
(Wallace, 2003, pp. 180–181). Sogyal Rinpoche explains it in this way, “Visualize that this mass of black
smoke dissolves…into the very core of your self-grasping at your heart. There it destroys completely all
traces of self-cherishing, thereby purifying all your negative karma. Imagine now that your self-cherishing
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has been destroyed, that the heart of your enlightened mind…is fully revealed” (Sogyal et al., 1994, p. 205).
With the destruction of self-cherishing after the in-breath, the practitioner exhales pure white light (or
visualizes becoming a wish-fulfilling jewel, depending on the text), and sends a compassionate wish to the
subject (e.g. “May you have happiness and the causes of happiness.”), and then, with the visualized white
light or through the wish-fulfilling jewel, the practitioner sends out visualizations and heart-felt wishes of
anything that might bring the subject both relative happiness and transcendent joy, including love, food,
clothing, friends, money, faith, ethics, wisdom, and awakening mind. But the practitioner is also encouraged
to offer his or her own possessions, happiness, joy, health, and even his or her own body, which continues
the practice of releasing self-cherishing (Gyaltsen, 2006). As the inhaling of black smoke, transformation,
and sending out of light continues, the practitioner visualizes that this person in front of him or her becomes
happier and healthier with each breath.
After Tonglen is practiced for some period of time with one person, other people who are also
suffering in similar ways are brought into the practice (individually or in small groups). Often the
instructions suggest beginning with those closest to the practitioner (i.e. relatives and friends), then moving
to strangers, then to enemies, until the practitioner is doing Tonglen for all beings (Gyalwa Gendum Druppa
& Mullin, 1993). Tonglen may also be done quickly, “on-the-spot” or “off the cushion,” anytime the
practitioner experiences him or herself or another being suffering. The nineteenth century Tibetan Buddhist
scholar, Jomgon Kongtrul, reminded beginners that with training in Tonglen, relative compassion would
arise and ultimate awakened mind would be realized naturally in time (Kongtrul & McLeod, 2005). But the
essence of the practice, according to the texts, is not about the practitioner feeling “I have compassion for
others”, but about him or her feeling a deep “exchange of oneself for others” as the practice is often called.
The late fourteenth, early fifteenth century, Tibetan Buddhist scholar, Tsongkhapa (2002), emphasized,
If you lose the thought that your body, etc. are for other’s welfare and think that they are for your
own benefit, or if you see them as agents of physical, verbal, or mental harm to others, then stop this
way of thinking by contemplating how this previously brought you limitless harm, and how you are
still mistaken with regard to its appearance of helpfulness, which is false. If you are controlled by
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this wrong way of thinking, it produces only unbearable suffering. …Similarly, when you repeatedly
reflect on the benefits of cherishing others, you produce powerful enthusiasm from the depths of
your heart…Through affectionately viewing others as dear and beloved as much as you can, develop
an attitude that cherishes others to the degree to which you previously cherished yourself (p. 56).
Kongtrul & McLeod (2005) suggest that this may be a practice that beginners could undertake.
Tsongkhapa (2002) agrees, but seems to indicate that even the beginner must be willing to extinguish self-
centeredness for the sake of others. This stems once again from the teachings of Santideva, who is often
quoted in Lojong texts: “All the happiness that exists arises from within joy for others, and all the misery that
exists arises from wishing happiness for oneself alone. What more need be said?” (Gyalwa Gendum Druppa
& Mullin, 1993, p. 110).
Literature Review
Compassion Definitions
Perhaps because the study of compassion is so new, researchers are offering up many different
definitions of “compassion”. Before the recent interest in compassion research, the term, “empathy” was
often used interchangeably with compassion as was “altruism” (Kristeller & Johnson, 2005); thus, often
literature reviews of compassion research will include research on empathy and altruism; however, a close
reading of all of the research must be done to determine whether the same or similar concepts are being
compared. This is often not easy because definitions among terms may overlap (Monroe, 2002) or be used as
subsets of each other. For example, the Batson (1991) definition of empathy comprises a set of responses
directed toward others that includes the term “compassion” as well as “sympathy” and “tenderness”. While
Feldman & Kuyken (2011) say that compassion includes “empathy”, in addition to “kindness”, “generosity”,
and “acceptance”.
This section will look primarily at the definitions of compassion offered by the authors of the two
scales used in this Tonglen study: The Santa Clara Compassion Scale (Hwang et al., 2008) and the long Self-
Compassion Scale (Neff, 2003a); however, definitions by other researchers and by Buddhists teachers will
also be discussed.
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The Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale (SCBCS) was developed by Hwang et al. (2008) as a
psychometrically strong short version of the Sprecher & Fehr (2005) Compassionate Love Scale. Sprecher
and Fehr defined the term “compassionate love” as an “attitude toward other(s), either close others or
strangers of all of humanity, containing feelings, cognitions, and behaviors that are focused on caring,
concern, tenderness, and an orientation toward supporting, helping, and understanding the other(s)” (p. 630).
They believe that the term, “compassion” alone does not include the same emotion and transcendence that
the word “love” adds. These researchers add that compassionate love is “likely to be an enduring attitude or
dispositional variable as well as a fluctuating state that is affected by situational and relational contexts and
temporary mood states. We argue that compassionate love is distinct from empathy, a cousin concept,
because compassionate love is both more encompassing and more enduring” (Sprecher & Fehr, 2005, p.
630). Like many researchers, Spretcher and Fehr contend that their definition is consistent with Lazarus’,
who is, in a sense, a grandfather of compassion research. Lazarus (1991) defined compassion as “being
moved by another’s suffering and wanting to help” (p. 289).
Neff’s definition of compassion also falls in line with Lazarus’. Though her scale is called “self-
compassion”, she says in one early paper that she does not distinguish between self-compassion and
compassion (Neff, 2003a). According to Neff (2003a), “Compassion involves being open to and moved by
the suffering of others, so that one desires to ease their suffering. It also involves offering others patience,
kindness and non-judgmental understanding, recognizing that all humans are imperfect and make mistakes”
(p. 222). But Neff (2003b) also understands that definition to include three components that form the
backbone of her scale, which she says is Buddhist influenced: 1. kindness (understanding vs. judgment), 2.
common humanity (appreciation of a shared experience and connectedness), 3. mindfulness (an emotional
balance without over-identification with nor a detachment from another’s experience), (p. 89).
Pommier (2010), who has just developed a “compassion for others scale” based on Neff’s Self-
Compassion Scale, acknowledges similarities between the Sprecher and the Neff definitions of compassion,
but suggests the important difference is that Neff includes the attributes of common humanity and
mindfulness, and her definition is informed by Buddhism, which does not see the concept of compassion as
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incomplete in any way. Sprecher and Fehr do see the term, compassion, as incomplete; thus, their addition of
the word, “love” in the scale title. But Sprecher and Fehr’s definition of “compassionate love” is not
significantly different from Neff’s core definition of “compassion”. The addition of the traits mindfulness
and common humanity, do not contradict Sprecher and Fehr’s definition;; they add additional dimensions.
While Shapiro (Shapiro & Carlson, 2009), who has frequently used Neff’s scale, suggests that self-
compassion leads to compassion, Neff (2003a), as mentioned earlier, did not necessarily see a significant
difference between the definitions of compassion and self-compassion, except that the latter is more self-
referential;; this is born out in Pommier’s recently published compassion [for others] scale, which was
modeled closely on Neff’s Self-Compassion Scale Neff (2003a). It may be making a false distinction to
separate self-compassion from compassion, making a self-compassion scale redundant; however, this has not
yet been adequately studied in the emerging field of compassion. Pommier and Neff have more recently
discovered findings in their research to suggest that the two concepts may function at least somewhat
differently. Pommier (2010) found, during the construction of her compassion scale, that elements relevant to
self-compassion, such as judgment, isolation, and over-identification, did not make “theoretical sense” when
constructing the compassion (for others) scale. She also notes that Neff, K. Pisitsungkagarn, & Y.P.Hsieh
(2008) found that empathetic concern for others was not related to self-compassion. Neff theorizes that this
was because people can be kind to others, yet very hard on themselves; however, if a person is self-
compassionate, he will most likely be kind to himself as well as others. Pommier (2010) also suggests that
the “opposing construct to compassion tends to be disengagement while in self-compassion it is proposed to
be more likely an over-identification response” (p. 41).
Because of the lack of research correlating compassion and self-compassion, the use of two scales is
currently indicated if both compassion for self and compassion for others are to be tested for. Thus, this
Tonglen study will use both the Santa Barbara Brief Compassion Scale (Hwang et al., 2008) [with a 0.96
correlation between it and the well documented, but longer Compassionate Love Scale] and Neff’s Self-
Compassion Scale (Neff, 2003a) [which has been used in at least 60 studies] to test participants for changes
in the level of compassion for self and others, especially given that the core definitions of compassion used
19
for both scales are similar to each other and to other standard definitions such as Lazarus (1991) and Lampert
(2005).
The following researchers are cited in this paper; thus, their definitions of compassion will also be
noted. Paul Gilbert is known for his development of and research on Compassionate Mind Training (CMT)
which includes an element of loving-kindness meditation (LKM). Gilbert (2009) believes that compassion is
made up of six attributes and six skills, which are reflected in the structure of CMT. The six attributes are 1)
care for well-being, 2) sensitivity, 3) sympathy, 4) distress tolerance, 5) empathy, and 6) non-judgment.
These are not dissimilar to Neff’s larger definition, especially with the inclusion of distress tolerance and
non-judgment.
Wong (Wong & Chi, 2011) is one of only two researchers to test for compassion in the purported
compassion practice of loving-kindness meditation. Her definition of compassion entails “being open to the
suffering of oneself and others in a non-defensive and nonjudgmental way. It also encompasses a desire to
relieve suffering and to understand its cause…and behaving in a compassionate way” (p. 10). Again, the
basis of this definition fits Lazarus’, but it includes the aspects that Neff and Gilbert have added of being
non-defensive, non-judgmental, and acting compassionately. This is shown more clearly in the Gilbert
(2009) compassion skills, but Wong & Chi (2011) also add “to understand [suffering’s] cause” (p. 23). The
understanding of cause is not reflected in other researchers’ definitions of compassion, nor in the Santa Clara
Brief Compassion scale, nor in Neff’s self-compassion scale which Wong used, and which was inspired by
Buddhist thought (a major aspect of which highlights the cause of suffering in the Four Noble Truths).
Johnson (2011), who studied compassion in Zen meditators, suggests that his definition is more
complete than others because he tries to combine definitions from both the meditation and neuroscience
literature. According to his definition,
Compassion is a process that includes: 1) Enhanced attentiveness to allow increased perception of
another’s emotional experience;; 2) Modeling of the perceived emotional experience to feel or really
understand what it is actually like to be the person having the experience (empathy and Theory of
Mind); 3) The generation of feelings related to unconditional love and caring concern towards the
20
one experiencing the suffering resulting in the motivation to relieve the suffering; 4) The
apprehension that all living beings are equal manifestations of a higher spiritual power, where no
difference between oneself and others exists (p. 2).
In his paper, Johnson begins the development of his definition by quoting the Lampert (2005)
definition of compassion: “the ability to perceive the pain of another and the inclination to act to alleviate
that pain” (p. vii), but he then includes “modeling” the experience, which he defines as “to actually
experience to some degree what the other person is experiencing, and to then model what this means to that
person” (M. Johnson, 2011, p. 1). It is not clear here if one needs to actually experience what another person
has experienced or just imagine how they might feel in a similar situation (e.g. To feel compassion for
someone who has been raped, does a person have to have had the experience of rape or can he or she just
imagine what that experience might be like?). It is also unclear as for whom the modeling is done – to the
giver or the receiver of compassion? In the definition, Johnson parenthetically summarizes the modeling
aspect with the word, “empathy”. Johnson also uses the term, “unconditional love”, which significantly
raises the bar from the previous definitions, but he also includes the term “caring concern.” In the
explanation of Johnson’s forth point, he mentions transcendence and references a work by the Dalai Lama,
and Johnson’s meditation group consists of Zen meditators, yet his definition includes the phrase,
“manifestations of a higher spiritual power.” This leaves out most Buddhists who would not relate to the
concept of being manifested from a higher power. Even those who believe that Buddhas have special powers
do not see Buddhas as creators of all living beings. But Johnson is at least trying to broaden the conversation.
As part of that broadening, Goetz (2004) begins to add to the literature by devising a chart
comparing general Western concepts of compassion with general Buddhist definitions. It is thought
provoking, but taken from a sample of only four contemporary Buddhist teachers who are all Tibetan. She
does not provide much context for complex concepts, which could easily be misunderstood and thus
potentially misused, such as the suggestion that compassion in Buddhism is cold and cruel. To revise the
chart, a look at concepts such as relative and absolute Bodhicitta would need to be discussed as well as the
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backgrounds of the teachers mentioned. Additionally, the scope of the work needs to be broadened to include
the definitions of compassion from other schools of Buddhism.
However, since Tonglen is from the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, most of the Buddhist definitions
included here will be from Tibetan Buddhists. In Mahayana Buddhism, compassion can be a very complex,
multi-dimensional concept. It is an integral part of the concept of awakening or enlightenment, and it is
inseparable from the Mahayana Buddhist concept of emptiness (Williams, 2009). The Buddhist definitions of
compassion are divided into multiple subcategories. The most common division is into the two previously
mentioned categories of relative and absolute compassion (Kyabgon & Wilber, 2007, Williams, 2009), with
absolute compassion referring to Buddhist concepts of enlightenment such as emptiness, boundlessness, and
Buddha Nature. The scholar Hopkins (2001, 2008) divides compassion into three divisions of 1) compassion
seeing suffering beings, 2) compassion seeing evanescent beings, and 3) compassion seeing empty begins.
Each of these has its own qualifications and progression along the path of a Bodhisattva – a being dedicated
to the enlightenment of all sentient begins.
Anthropologist and Buddhist teacher, Joan Halifax (2011) adds much more subtlety and complexity
to her description of compassion. She speaks of non-referential compassion (which is impartial and has no
object) and of referential compassion (which has an object). Referential compassion is then sub-divided into
biologically based compassion, un-ripened compassion, attached compassion, compassion through
identification, and reasoned compassion, which is further divided into ethically based compassion and
conceptually based compassion. These often unconscious divisions of compassion may be highlighted during
practices such as Tonglen when the practice is extended from loved one, to stranger, to enemy, and then to
all beings.
Some of the less traditional Buddhist teachers in the West have been publicly provocative with their
definitions of compassion. One of the most frequently quoted Tibetan teachers is Chogyam Trungpa, but he
is frequently quoted out of context as in the Goetz (2004) article. Trungpa (2008) did call Buddhist
compassion “ruthless”, but acknowledged that the ruthless aspect could only be understood after a Buddhist
practitioner had practice in and had an understanding of Buddhist wisdom and ego cutting. In other areas of
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the same text (Spiritual Materialism), Trungpa differentiated between relative and absolute compassion by
calling one “emotional compassion” and the other “compassion compassion.” He said, “With compassion
compassion you do not necessarily feel it; you are it” (Trungpa, 2008, p. 125). In the same work, Trungpa
also variously describes compassion as “the open atmosphere in which prajna [wisdom] sees” (p. 244),
“generous fearlessness” (p. 245),”pure and fearless openness without territorial limitations” (p. 250), and
“opening without demand” (p. 251).
But when talking about relative compassion and Buddhist compassion practices, most Buddhist
teachers define compassion in ways not unlike the Western researchers. Both the current Dalai Lama (Gyatso
& Cutler, 2009) and compassion researcher and meditation practitioner Thupten Jinpa (n.d.) offer definitions
of compassion which are very similar to Lazarus (1991) basic definition. The most common relative level
definition of compassion in Tibetan Buddhism is to wish that all beings were free of suffering and the causes
of suffering, and to want to do something about it (Hopkins, 2008, Kyabgon & Wilber, 2007). Compassion is
considered a primary way to end suffering (Kyabgon & Wilber, 2007). In Mahayana Buddhism especially,
compassion plays a major role on the path to enlightenment (Hopkins, 2001), and compassion meditations
and visualizations make a difference in creating a more compassionate situation (Kyabgon & Wilber, 2007).
Despite the differences among the various definitions of compassion offered here, Kristreller’s
(Kristeller & Johnson, 2005) observation from his research would work well to summarize this section:
Apparent from this brief overview is the universality of these concepts, and common to them all is
the importance placed on the replacing of self-concern with concern for others. It is this
commonality among these concepts, rather than the differences, with which we concern ourselves
here (p. 393).
Since the essence of the definitions mentioned above boil down to the Lazarus (1991) definition,
“being moved by another’s suffering and wanting to help” (p. 289), that will be the working definition for
this paper.
23
Compassion Benefits
Compassion research was not done until after the positive psychology movement, which started in
the 1990s, had solidly taken root. Though compassion research started in the earliest years of the 21st
century, the bulk of it has only been conducted and published within the past five years or so. Yet there is
already a large body of evidence correlating those with higher levels of compassion or self-compassion with
having a multitude of benefits over those who do not. Much of this research relates primarily to self-
compassion because the Self-Compassion Scale (Neff, 2003a) was developed early in the research of
compassion and is the most validated tool for attaining a measure of compassion, or in this case, self-
compassion. More importantly, recent research has indicated that compassion is a trait that can be developed
(Gilbert, 2009, Weibel, 2007, Wong & Chi, 2011). There is evidence that the voluntary generation of
compassion increases the brain’s representations of other people’s emotions and alters the neuro-pathways
linked to empathy (Lutz, Brefczynski-Lewis, Johnstone, & Davidson, 2008, Lutz, Greischar, Perlman, &
Davidson, 2009). Crocker & Canevello (2008) looked at people’s “compassionate goals” and found that they
were related to subjects’ beliefs in the interconnectedness of all beings, zero-sum views of success, higher
levels of self-compassion, higher levels of agreeableness, and greater social support and trust. Sprecher &
Fehr (2005) find that “compassionate love” is positively connected to social support, empathy, and
helpfulness.
Higher rates of self-compassion have been positively correlated with buffering anxiety and increased
psychological wellbeing (Neff, Kirkpatrick, & Rude, 2007), happiness, curiosity, extroversion, optimism,
curiosity, initiative, positive emotions, as well as a negative correlation with negative emotions and neurosis
(Neff, Rude, & Kirkpatrick, 2007). Kelly (2010) found that people who could voluntarily generate
compassionate imagery had an increased ability to self-regulate in a compassionate manner. Gilbert (2005)
found that self-compassion protected against emotional distress and promoted wellbeing. Self-compassion
buffers people against negative feelings toward themselves in difficult situations, moderates negative
emotions, and allows people to take responsibility for their part in negative situations without feeling
inundated by negativity (Leary, Tate, Adams, Batts, & Hancock, 2007).
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Loving-kindness meditation (LKM), which is traditionally considered a compassion practice, has
been shown to increase compassion and self-compassion in the only two studies that have tested for this
(Weibel, 2007, Wong & Chi, 2011). But others have studied this compassion meditation for other purposes
and have found that the compassion practice reduces feelings of dejection and depression and increases
feelings of wellbeing, meaning in life, and a sense of common humanity (Fredrickson et al., 2008,
Hutcherson et al., 2008, Law, 2011, Wong & Chi, 2011). Carson et al. (2005) reported that subjects in the
LKM group experienced a reduction in pain, anger, and stress. The Fredrickson et al. (2008) study found that
subjects experienced an increase in positive emotions leading to greater self-acceptance, more positive
relationships, better physical health, and less depression. And greater social connectedness, increased
positive emotions, and a reduced sense of isolation were the results of the Hutcherson et al. (2008) study
using LKM.
These studies leave little doubt that higher levels of compassion and self-compassion provide great
benefits to one’s physical and mental wellbeing, but there are still few studies showing how people can
increase their levels of compassion and self-compassion relatively quickly and easily in this technophile
world, with little emphasis on contemplation or self-reflection. The following sections will look at the
literature relating to three techniques, all found in the Lojong commentaries and all purported to increase
compassion and self-compassion.
Tonglen: Empirical Research
Tonglen instructions are readily available at most bookstores through authors such as Pema Chodron
and H.H. the 14th Dalai Lama. Research on compassion is now in vogue and includes research on Buddhist
mindfulness meditation and loving-kindness meditation (to be discussed in detail later). But to date, there has
been no empirical research on the efficacy of Tonglen meditation as a practice to increase one’s level of
compassion toward oneself or others or as a method to elicit the outcomes identified in other compassion
research.
In her master’s thesis, Lichty (2009) describes her qualitative study that asks Buddhist trained
psychotherapists at risk of burnout whether they found their Buddhist practices supportive to their wellbeing.
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Tonglen was one of the practices mentioned; however, only 11 therapists were interviewed, the author never
quantified how many of them used Tonglen, nor did she record measures for how often or how long they
practiced Tonglen, nor what their experiences of Tonglen were in relation to their wellbeing.
Tonglen is mentioned in the book, On Becoming Aware: A Pragmatics of Experiencing (Advances in
Consciousness Research), (Depraz, Varela, & Vermersch, 2003) as a practice for cultivating empathy (p.
222); however, no empirical research is cited to back this up. Instead, the contemporary Buddhist teacher,
Chogyam Trungpa and the traditional founder of Lojong, Atisa, were cited. Additionally, the chapter
included Lojong alongside Tonglen as if it were a separate practice, suggesting that Tonglen was for the
cultivation of empathy (in this case) and Lojong was for the cultivation of ethics (p. 222).
Pace et al. (2009) conducted a study “examining the effect of compassion meditation on innate
immune, neuroendocrine and behavioral responses to psychosocial stress and evaluated the degree to which
engagement in meditation practice influenced stress reactivity” (p. 88). The research team called the
compassion meditation that they used, “Lojong-based”, but they gave a very limited description of the
practices employed. One practice encouraged subjects to challenge their notions of friends, strangers, and
enemies, and during the next phase of practice, subjects were to develop empathy and love for themselves
and then expand those feelings to include greater numbers of people, culminating in sending love to those
with whom they perceive a conflict – a practice that sounds like loving-kindness meditation. None of the
descriptions of the Lojong practices used included sending and receiving instructions typical of Tonglen. An
email was sent to Pace to confirm that the study did not use Tonglen, but no reply has been received.
In the Pace et al. (2009) study, 33 subjects were in the compassion meditation group. The subjects
began the six-week study with practice in mindfulness meditation before beginning the compassion
meditations. The measurement tools consisted of the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), a blood test, and the
Profile of Mood States (POMS). This study did not show a statistical difference between the control and
meditation groups; however, they did see that within the mediation group, those who meditated above the
median practice time showed a decrease in TSST- induced IL-6 and POMS distress scores than those whose
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practice time fell below the median. Pace et.al. offered several suggestions for their finding and believe that
future studies will show that compassion practices reduce reactivity to stress.
As part of the search for Tonglen studies, this author posted a query for articles on a Buddhist
scholars’ list serve. The only response was a suggestion that a Tonglen experiment had been conducted on a
Tibetan monk by the neuroscientist, Richard Davidson. A search for this research led only to a study
mentioned in the Goleman (2004) book, Destructive Emotions: A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama.
The book clearly mentioned only two types of compassion meditation 1) open compassion and 2) loving-
kindness meditation. No replies were received from Davidson or his lab in response to an inquiry about
whether Davidson had conducted Tonglen meditation. However, the Goleman book suggested that Davidson
and Lutz both conducted research on the same monk, and the two have co-authored many papers on
meditation research, including, “Long-term Meditators Self-induce High-amplitude Gamma Synchrony
During Mental Practice” (Lutz, Greischar, Rawlings, Ricard, & Davidson, 2004). The type of compassion
practice in this study was unspecified. I contacted Lutz to ask if this or any paper he had participated in or
knew of had used Tonglen. He graciously replied that to date he had not used Tonglen in any of his research.
The compassion practice used in the “Long-term Meditators” study was a form of non-referential
compassion meditation in the style practiced by Dzogchen practitioners. Lutz did not mention any other
studies that he knew of using Tonglen.
The search for empirical studies related to Tonglen meditation also included multiple database
searches at several libraries and online, searches of hardcopy journals not available on line, indexes of out-
of-print journals, websites for labs and institutes involved in meditation and/or compassion studies, and
bibliographies and literature reviews from relevant journal articles and dissertations.
Loving-Kindness Meditation
Preliminary inferences as to the effectiveness of Tonglen, may be made by studying the results of
loving-kindness meditation (LKM) studies. Wallace (2003) calls LKM the “giving” aspect of Tonglen. LKM
is often included in the Lojong commentaries as a preliminary to Tonglen practice (Dromtonpa, 2006,
Wallace, 2003). LKM is traditionally considered a practice for developing loving-kindness and compassion,
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and it has begun to be studied, whereas Tonglen has not. This section will introduce LKM and detail the
research that has been carried out using this practice.
Loving-kindness is an English translation for the Pali word, metta; thus, loving-kindness meditation
(LKM) is also known in Western Buddhism as metta meditation. In Buddhism, metta (loving-kindness) is
one of the four Brahmaviharas (Pali), often translated into English as the Four Immeasurables - qualities the
historical Shakyamuni Buddha is said to have extoled the virtues of and recommended the cultivation of. The
other three “immeasurables” include compassion (P. karuna), sympathetic joy (P. mudita), and equanimity
(P. upekkha). Metta has its own sutta, (scriptural collection of aphorisms) in the Buddhist Pali Canon (Sn
1.8, and Khp 9). It is also mentioned multiple times in the Pali Canon as part of the Four Immeasurables (DN
13, DN 17, MN 7, MN 83, MN 118).
While not specifically mentioned as one of the 59 trainings of Lojong, LKM is usually taught as a
preliminary to Tonglen in the commentaries (Wallace, 2003). The second of the seven Lojong points usually
contains five sub-teachings related to absolute Bodhicitta (enlightenment or awakened mind), which
traditionally was practiced before engaging in the relative practice of Tonglen. Prior to the absolute practices
is the pith instruction translated simply as “Once you have achieved stability, reveal the mystery” (Wallace,
2003, p. 279). This pithy statement refers to relative practices which prepare the practitioner for the absolute
practices as well as for the relative practice of Tonglen. These early relative practices are usually described
as being mental stability meditation (calm abiding and/or mindfulness meditations) and loving-kindness
meditation, in addition to other forms of compassion meditation(Dromtonpa, 2006). There are variations on
LKM, but they all generally start by having the practitioner calm his or her mind and then direct attention to
him or herself while silently saying and feeling a series of compassionate wishes, for example, “May I be
free from enmity. May I be free from ill-will. May I be free from suffering. May I be happy.” The chosen
statements are repeated again and again while the practitioner feels bathed in these wishes for him or herself.
After a period of time, the practitioner visualizes a benefactor and sends these same wishes to him or her for
a while and then does the same with other benefactors, first one by one and then as a group. The practitioner
next follows the same pattern for a loved one, then other loved ones, then a group of loved ones along with
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the benefactors. This is followed by visualizing and sending wishes of loving-kindness to strangers and then
to enemies. The practice culminates by sending wishes of loving kindness to all sentient beings.
Loving-kindness meditation has several similarities to Tonglen practice. Both were developed to
increase the practitioner’s ability for loving-kindness and compassion; both encourage the practitioner to
work with loved ones, strangers, enemies, and finally with all sentient beings (the practitioner included).
Both send out wishes of loving-kindness, happiness, and freedom from suffering. Additionally, within the
Lojong tradition, Loving-kindness meditation is considered a precursor to Tonglen, which could suggest that
if LKM has statistically significant outcomes in various studies, that Tonglen, if it works in a similar manner,
may have comparable (if not more significant) results.
The Four Immeasurables contain the separate virtues of loving-kindness and compassion. In addition
to saying that loving-kindness was the “giving” aspect of Tonglen, Wallace (2003) also said that compassion
was the “taking” aspect of Tonglen. Others differentiate loving-kindness from compassion by suggesting that
with loving-kindness the focus is on wishing well-being for others, while compassion focuses on wishing for
the removal of others’ suffering (Bodhi, 1994, Davidson & Harrington, 2001). Chodron (2001) says,
“Compassion, however, is more emotionally challenging than loving-kindness because it involves the
willingness to feel pain” (p. 49). But loving-kindness and compassion are also strongly related to and
interrelated with each other (Boorstein, 2003, Gilbert, 2005, Glaser, 2005, Salzberg & Kabat-Zinn, 2008).
Tibetan Buddhist teachers teach that LKM can generate loving-kindness and compassion, and contemporary
researchers refer to LKM as a compassion practice (Carson et al., 2005, Fredrickson et al., 2008, Hayes,
Villatte, Levin, & Hildebrandt, 2011, Hutcherson et al., 2008, D. P. Johnson et al., 2009, Lutz et al., 2008,
Pace et al., 2009). Additionally, the research of Wong & Chi (2011) and Weibel (2007), have shown that
LKM does increase practitioners’ levels of compassion and self-compassion.
LKM predates Tonglen meditation by about 1700 years, but, as mentioned earlier, it is frequently
taught in Lojong commentaries as a preliminary practice to Tonglen, and the exhaling aspect of Tonglen has
aspects similar to LKM (Wallace, 2003). Because of the close connections between these two purported
compassion practices, the investigation of studies employing LKM may indicate possible outcomes for
29
Tonglen meditation. The first LKM study was conducted in 2005, but as of December 2011, only ten LKM
studies have been published, not including Paul Gilbert’s work using Compassion Mind Training (CMT),
which incorporates LKM as just one practice of seven or more techniques for generating compassion,
including compassionate letter writing (Gilbert, 2010). While Gilbert’s many studies greatly inform the field
of compassion research, especially the much smaller arena of studies investigating ways to increase
compassion rather than just measuring it, it is not possible at this point to tease out which aspects of Gilbert’s
results can be linked specifically to LKM.
Of the ten studies that highlight LKM as a main variable, all of them use novice meditators as
subjects. Additionally, the two Lutz et al. (2008, 2009) studies test and compare the novices’ results with
those of expert meditators (those with more than 10,000 hours of practice). Surprisingly, only two of the
experiments specifically studied the compassion aspect of LKM (Weibel, 2007, Wong & Chi, 2011). Lutz et
al. (2008) tested for empathy, but his definition of empathy does not match that of the working definition of
compassion for this paper because it lacks the aspect of wanting to relieve the suffering of another.
Surprisingly, Weibel (2007) has not been cited in other LKM studies as evidence that LKM may actually be
a compassion practice (Wong’s dissertation is too new yet). It appears that all but one of the studies accepted,
a priori, that LKM is a compassion meditation. Fredrickson et al. (2008) does not call it a compassion
practice, but cites the Buddhist teachers Salzberg & Kabat-Zinn (2008) as her source that LKM increases
feelings of warmth and caring. Buddhist teachers who have direct experience of the benefits of LKM through
many hours of their own practice, and through teaching their students, have a lot to offer science and should
have their expertise studied qualitatively and quantitatively, but it was interesting that these empirical LKM
experiments seemed to take as a given that LKM was a compassion practice.
Of these ten studies, only three seem to have taught only loving-kindness meditation and nothing
else to the subjects in the LKM group (G. Feldman, Greeson, & Senville, 2010, Hutcherson et al., 2008,
Law, 2011). Two studies (Carson et al., 2005, Fredrickson et al., 2008), while not introducing other types of
meditation to the LKM group, did mix LKM with other activities such as discussions, instructions on
mindful action, reading passages from books, question and answer sessions, and skills development during
30
60 - 90 minute training sessions. These two studies asked subjects to practice LKM on their own time for the
duration of the study. The other five studies (D. P. Johnson et al., 2009, Lutz et al., 2008, 2009, Weibel,
2007, Wong & Chi, 2011) each included two or three different styles of meditation, usually mindfulness
meditation. In these cases, the possible interference of the other meditation techniques is not teased out, and
the Lutz studies do not clearly identify the other two techniques used, but one is most likely a type of
mindfulness meditation. Wong & Chi (2011) and Weibel (2007), who specifically tested for increases in
compassion and/or self-compassion, both employed mindfulness meditation, which, as seen in the next
section, may also increase one’s level of compassion;; thus, possibly confusing the analysis as to which
practice supported the outcome. However, regardless of these observations, all ten studies indicate intriguing
results which are purportedly linked to LKM practice.
The Weibel (2007) study was the first of now only two LKM studies to actually test whether the
purported compassion practice increased compassion and self-compassion in subjects. They also
hypothesized that loving-kindness meditation would reduce anxiety in the LKM group. Wiebel’s study
compared a 35 subject LKM group to a 36 member non-intervention control group. Both groups were
assessed prior to the intervention, after the intervention, as well as two months later. The LKM group
attended four 90-minute sessions, one week apart. Each session consisted of mindfulness-based stress
reduction (MBSR), processing and discussions, “psychoeducation” about meditation, and LKM. To test for
compassion, Weibel used the Sprecher & Fehr (2005) Compassionate Love Scale – The Stranger-Humanity
version. This scale was used to create the Santa Clara Brief Compassion scale that will be used in the
Tonglen study reported in this paper. Weibel also used the long Self-Compassion Scale (Neff, 2003a), which
will also be used in this Tonglen study, an anxiety inventory, a meditation diary, and a self-developed post-
test.
This study found that right after the intervention, the LKM group showed a significant increase in
“compassionate love” and self-compassion over the control group. At the two-month mark, the LKM group
still showed significantly higher levels of self-compassion than the controls, but the level of compassionate
love had dropped to a non-significant difference between the groups. The author hypothesizes that it may be
31
harder to sustain compassion for strangers and humanity than it is to sustain compassion for oneself. This
study did not look at correlations among the sub-scales of the Self-Compassion Scale. Surprisingly, though
there was not a significant difference in anxiety between the control and LKM groups during the posttest, at
the two-month mark, the LKM group did show a significant reduction in anxiety.
It is also interesting to note that this study found that practicing LKM outside of the four group
sessions did not improve the outcomes. Subjects reported practicing on their own for an average of 37.35
minutes per week using mindfulness meditation and 28.36 minutes per week of LKM, for an average of nine
minutes total each day. It was not clear how many minutes of the group sessions were spent on LKM, but it
was only one of several activities performed each week. This is promising because it indicates that even very
limited LKM may be very beneficial for increasing both compassion for oneself and others, and with so little
effort, perhaps the compassion for others could be sustained over time.
The Wong & Chi (2011) study, as mentioned earlier, was only the second study to explicitly test for
changes in the subjects’ levels of compassion, or in this case self-compassion, using Neff’s Self-Compassion
scale. This study took place in Hong Kong and included 55 subjects, 30 of whom attended a four-day
meditation retreat and the rest went on a four-day holiday. Those in the LKM group practiced meditation
over 17 sessions of 40 minutes each over a period of four days. During each meditation session, subjects
practiced mindfulness meditation (details on the type were not given) for approximately half of the 40
minutes and practiced LKM for the rest of the period. Wong wanted to investigate whether intensive LKM
training would increase a subject’s level of self-compassion, happiness, wellbeing, and sense of meaning in
life. Wong administered pre and posttests to both groups of subjects using, in addition to Neff’s Self-
Compassion Scale, the Profile of Mood States, the Brief Chinese Happiness Inventory, and the Meaning of
Life Questionnaire. She found that there was no difference in the level of happiness between the groups.
However, relative to the control group, the LKM subjects did show a decrease in the mood states of
depression and dejection and indicated an increase in meaning of life and sense of humanity.
The Hutcherson et al. (2008) study is one of only three LKM focused studies to include only loving-
kindness meditation as the intervention. The Hutcherson study compared 45 novice meditators with 48
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people in the imagery control group. The findings were based on mood, explicit evaluative responses, and
implicit evaluative responses obtained during an affective priming task. The LKM group practiced only a
seven minute guided LKM session, while the control group went through a guided neutral imagery practice
of the same length. The researchers found that verses the control group, LKM positively affected both the
explicit and implicit responses to neutral strangers even after such a short intervention. The study concluded
that LKM may be a useful technique for increasing a sense of social connectedness and decreasing feelings
of isolation. While more exploration is needed to determine whether increased positive responses to neutral
strangers actually affects one’s day to day sense of social connectedness, the Hutcherson study does suggest
that novice meditators could experience some benefit from LKM without having a background in
mindfulness meditation or partaking in long hours of LKM. This is key for spreading a practice into the
wider community, and key for this current Tonglen study.
The Law (2011) study is another of the very few studies that did not mix meditation styles or actives
with LKM practice. This study also offers support to the possibility that even short interventions of LKM can
result in positive outcomes. 59 subjects practiced LKM for a total of 10 minutes, while a control group
practiced a neutral visualization for 10 minutes in order to assess whether LKM could act as a buffer against
social stressors (both evaluative and exclusionary). The study also tried to answer 1) in what areas LKM
could offer positive outcomes, 2) which people might benefit most from LKM, and 3) how LKM works.
Though the findings for these three questions leave room for further research, the study did find that LKM
increased subjects’ level of relaxation, increased feelings of positivity towards the subjects themselves, and
buffered subjects against the negative aspects of social stress.
Carson et al. (2005) conducted a pilot study on patients with chronic lower back pain to test an eight-
week LKM program (18 subjects) vs. a usual care/cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) control group (25
subjects). Subjects in the test program participated in a 90 minute session each week, but there was no
indication as to how much of that 90 minutes was spent practicing LKM and how much time was spent on
other activities. Subjects were asked to practice the meditation at home for 10-30 minutes a day. The end of
study and follow-up analysis three months later showed no change in the control group, but significant
33
improvement in pain, and feelings of anger and distress in the LKM group. According to the researchers,
everyone in the LKM group experienced more pain and anger reduction than the control group; however,
patients who practiced LKM longer during any given day experienced less pain at the end of the day and less
anger the following day than did patients who practiced less. The researchers conclude that the LKM
program was very valuable for those with chronic lower back pain for not only reducing pain but also
mitigating feelings of anger and psychological distress.
The primary goal of the Fredrickson et al. (2008) study was to test the “build hypothesis,” which
posits that positive emotions broaden the way people relate to the world, and slowly, over time, positively
reshape the person. To test this theory, the researchers needed a way to reliably elicit positive emotions over
a period of months. They selected LKM as the appropriate vehicle. The researchers hypothesized that the
practice of LKM, over time, would increase subjects’ experiences of positive emotions, which would then
build a “variety of personal resources that hold positive consequences for the person’s mental health and
overall life satisfaction” (p. 1047). The researchers studied 67 subjects (with a weight list of 72). Subjects
attended a 60-minute group session, approximately once a week over seven weeks. Each session consisted
of about 15-20 minutes of LKM plus presentations on meditation and a question and answer period. Subjects
were asked to practice LKM using specific CDs at least five days per week. The average amount of daily
solo practice was 16 minutes. The researchers found that the meditation led to positive shifts in people’s
daily emotions over time which were then linked to increases in “mindful attention, self-acceptance, positive
relationships with others, and good physical health” (p. 1057). Meditators, practicing only an hour or more
each week, became more satisfied with life and experienced fewer depressive symptoms, thus supporting
both the hypothesis and the build theory. Though this study showed an increase in benefits over time, it also
found that even a minimum of 60 minutes of practice a week offered benefits to subjects. Additionally, this is
another study which did not teach mindfulness meditation prior to or during LKM, yet found that subjects
could perform LKM well enough to derive a benefit within a relatively short time frame.
D. P. Johnson et al. (2009) did a case study of three patients diagnosed with schizophrenia taking
part in six weekly one-hour group sessions, with a follow up session six weeks after the initial meetings.
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During each hour-long group session, subjects discussed the benefits they had perceived during individual
practice the previous week. Additionally, the group leader facilitated a question and answer session; the
group learned and practiced mindfulness activities such as mindful-breathing, eating, or walking; the leader
would read about a new aspect of LKM to the group from various books, and then the group would practice
LKM for five to ten minutes. Each subject was asked to practice LKM during the week by listening to a 20
minute CD and by doing LKM sessions as short as a few minutes throughout the day. Subjects were assessed
for psychiatric symptoms, emotions, and psychological recovery pre and post study and in a three-month
follow up. The first subject had the greatest ease with LKM. The researchers believe this was due to her
previous experience with mindfulness meditation; she also reported practicing LKM most days for an
average of five minutes a day. This subject experienced a large decrease in associability and an increase in
motivation to pursue her social and educational goals. The other two subjects had difficulty focusing on the
LKM, feeling more comfortable focusing on mindfulness activities. The researchers conclude that LKM may
be very helpful to certain people with schizophrenia, because it can improve negative symptoms by
increasing positive emotions. However, these individuals need to be selected for motivation and will
probably be more successful with prior experience in mindfulness meditation. While this case study is very
small and promotes mindfulness training as a base for LKM, which will not be included in this Tonglen
study, it also suggests that LKM can have a positive impact on emotions even when practiced for very short
daily periods over time.
The G. Feldman et al. (2010) study is different from the others in that it uses LKM to test an
attribute of another form of meditation. The researchers predicted that decentering was unique to mindfulness
breathing meditation and tested their theory against LKM and Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR). In this
study, decentering is defined as “viewing internal experience with increased objectivity;; thus, the emphasis is
on changing one’s relationship to one’s thoughts rather than trying to alter the content of the thoughts” (p.
1002). The study consisted of 190 subjects divided among the three different meditation groups. Each novice
meditator was led through one 15-minute meditation session according to the group to which she was
assigned. The study found that indeed, only those subjects in the mindful-breathing course had an increase in
35
decentering. However, that finding may be beneficial to future LKM research. LKM is not necessarily
intended to increase the objectivity of internal experiences. Though loving-kindness should ideally be sent to
all beings with equanimity, the intent of the practice is not objectivity, but to increase one’s internal
experience of compassion and wish that for oneself and others. LKM, to some degree, is intended to alter the
content of thought, unlike decentering. Though LKM practitioners do learn to change their relationship to
thoughts (e.g. not becoming attached to judgments such as she is worthy of love, but this other person is an
enemy), part of LKM does seem to involve trying to alter the content of one’s thoughts, making them more
compassionate and less egotistical and fear-based.
The two Lutz et al. (2008, 2009) studies stem from the same initial experiment which involved 16
expert meditators (10,000 – 50,000 hours of practice) and 15 novice meditators. The novice meditators were
given 60 minutes of meditation instruction per day over seven days. LKM was practiced for 20 minutes each
session as were two other unnamed meditation techniques. Both experts and novices were asked to generate
loving-kindness while there brain activity was observed using fMRI, and all subjects were exposed to neutral
and emotional sounds during both meditation and rest periods.
In the first Lutz et al. (2008) study, the researchers explored whether the voluntary generation of
compassion would impact the areas of the brain associated with empathy related to another person’s pain,
and whether the degree of response would correspond to the amount of meditation practice the subject had
completed. They found that all loving-kindness participants “exhibited stronger neural responses to all
emotional sounds…during compassion meditation than when at rest” (p. 4), and that expert meditators
exhibited stronger responses than novices. They also found evidence, based on activation in other areas of
the brain, that the practice of loving-kindness meditation may also enhance emotion sharing, perspective
taking, and the ability to read others’ mental states.
The related Lutz et al. (2009) study used loving-kindness meditation to look at the relationship
between the brain (studied in the previous experiment) and the cardiovascular system during emotional
processing. This study also compared the results between novices and expert meditators. The findings
showed correlations between heart rate and certain areas of the brain related to processing emotion. The
36
study also confirmed that the voluntary generation of compassion “enhances the emotional and
somatosensory brain representations of others’ emotions and that this effect is modulated by expertise” (p.
1038). The Lutz studies do not identify what the other two meditation techniques taught to novices were or
why they were included, nor did they explain how these other practices might support or interfere with the
study of LKM as a discrete practice. However, it is encouraging to note that even novice meditators who had
only practiced LKM for two and a third hours showed an increase in empathy while practicing the
meditation.
These LKM studies, though currently few in number, indicate that LKM affects the mind and body
in ways consistent with spontaneous companionate reactions and that its use may reduce symptoms of pain,
anger, and depression, while increasing positive emotions and possibly social connectedness. In studies
comparing novices with expert meditators, the experts exhibited greater results, but all of the studies showed
that novice meditators experienced significant changes over the control groups, and that even short periods of
meditation could make a difference. This would indicate, upon initial inspection, that relatively little
experience, instruction, or time-out-of-life is needed for participants to experience at least some degree of
positive change using some form of LKM similar to that taught in early Buddhist texts and in Lojong
commentaries. With the possible exception of the Wong & Chi (2011) study, there is no indication that the
topic of Buddhism was ever discussed or that traditional Buddhist preliminary practices (e.g. taking refuge)
where taught, showing, at least initially, that this meditation, and thus perhaps Tonglen, may be taught and
practiced successfully outside of a Buddhist context.
The results of these studies also bode well for teaching Tonglen to novices during relatively short
training sessions. The challenge will be to investigate whether the “breathing in” aspect of Tonglen proves
more difficult for novices than the “sending out” aspect which is similar to LKM. As mentioned earlier, only
two LKM studies actually included a measure for compassion rather than taking it on faith that LKM is
actually a compassion meditation as taught in Buddhism. The primary purpose of this Tonglen study is to
initiate an exploration into whether Tonglen can statically be deemed a compassion practice (based on the
parameters of the experiment). Though five of the LKM studies included a component of mindfulness
37
practice or another form of meditation mixed in with LKM sessions, five did not (Carson et al., 2005, G.
Feldman et al., 2010, Fredrickson et al., 2008, Hutcherson et al., 2008, Law, 2011), supporting the possibility
that compassion meditation techniques may be effective on their own, which may help facilitate the spread of
these potentially life-changing techniques into the mainstream. These practices will also tend to be practiced
more if they can be taught quickly and generate a benefit for the practitioner quickly. Six of the LKM studies
mentioned (Carson et al., 2005, Fredrickson et al., 2008, D. P. Johnson et al., 2009, Lutz et al., 2008, 2009,
Weibel, 2007) included at least six hour-long sessions mixing meditation practice with discussions and
didactics. While many people enjoy weekly group activities, if they are necessary for the success of a
meditation practice, that limits the ability of people to benefit. This Tonglen experiment will limit initial
explanations and discussion of the practice as did G. Feldman et al. (2010), Hutcherson et al. (2008), and
Law (2011). All of the instructions will be incorporated into the Tonglen script which will guide subjects
during the study. After the study, the subjects may use the script for ongoing individual practice. And like the
three studies above, the Tonglen practice sessions will be kept short since novice meditators become restless
quickly. The results will determine whether three short practice periods will be sufficient to generate a
significant change in the subjects’ levels of compassion.
To date, there are very few options offered to average people for increasing their level of compassion
and generating the resulting benefits. LKM research is still in its infancy, and Tonglen will be explored for
the first time in this study. One other practice which is just beginning to be explored for its ability to increase
compassion is mindfulness meditation.
Mindfulness Meditation
Mindfulness meditation (MM) in one form or another has been associated with Tonglen through the
Lojong commentaries as a method for trying to connect with or temporarily rest in one’s natural or awakened
state at least briefly, or failing that, to at least calm an agitated mind before practicing the development of
relative compassion (Kyabgon & Wilber, 2007, Wallace, 2003). But various Buddhist teachers have
interpreted the Tonglen preliminaries differently to the extent that some of the most well-known
contemporary teachers of Tonglen, while mentioning the importance of mindfulness, begin with just a brief
38
relaxation of the mind or a flash on emptiness (Chodron, 1994, Sogyal et al., 1994). No empirical research
has been conducted on whether MM actually enhances compassion practices such as LKM, and if they do,
then to what extent, and what would be the recommended “dose”. Yet the LKM literature and the
mindfulness meditation/compassion literature seem to take on faith that there is a strong connection between
MM and the development of compassion, mainly based on the writings of the contemporary Buddhist teacher
Jack Kornfield (1993) and the writings of Shauna Shapiro & Carlson (2009, 2005, 2007) and Kristin Neff
(2003a). Their contributions to the study of MM and self-compassion are very important and impressive, but
the direct correlations between MM and the development of compassion that other researchers seem to make
based on their work (especially when it involves other practices like LKM), needs additional research,
particularly since the current research on MM’s ability alone to increase compassion is very limited.
The Pali Canon, containing some of the oldest Buddhist scriptures, offers multiple definitions of
mindfulness meditation, which would even, in one case, include Loving-Kindness Meditation (Bodhi, 2011),
but other than a mention in the Karaniya Metta Sutta (Snp 1.8), mindfulness meditation is not linked to
increasing one’s level of compassion. In Western studies of mindfulness meditation, most researchers use a
very limited definition of mindfulness, if they offer one at all. Bishop et al. (2004) uses a “two-component
model” of mindfulness, which involves “self-regulation of attention…allowing for increased recognition of
mental events in the present moment” and adopting a curious, open, and accepting “orientation towards one’s
experiences in the present moment.” (p. 231). Many researchers’ (Abercrombie, Zamora, & Korn, 2007,
Birnie, M. Speca, & Carlson, 2010, Shapiro et al., 2005, 2007) definition of mindfulness meditation is based
primarily on the work of Kabat-Zinn (1996) and his Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)
techniques.
In the current MM/compassion research literature, there are concerns with definitions of compassion.
Block-Lerner, Adair, Plumb, Rhatigan, & Orsillo (2007) and Beddoe & Murphy (2004) are cited as part of
MM/compassion literature, but they focused on the study of empathy, and van den Hurk et al. (2011)
conflates the term, “agreeable” with “compassion.” The C. Feldman & Kuyken (2011) article develops a
clear, multi-faceted definition of compassion and places it within the context of mindfulness approaches, but
39
it is based more on inference than on empirical research. There are also chicken or egg discussions that are
important to academic discourse and research, but they add more questions and support the need for more
definitive research concerning the direct vs. indirect effects of MM on the enhancement of compassion. Neff
(2003a) believes that self-compassion entails mindfulness. Shapiro et al. (2005, 2007) says that mindfulness
leads to compassion. Still other researchers suggest that mindfulness increases other qualities that then lead
to compassion (Baer, G.T. Smith, Hopkins, Krietemeyer, & Toney, 2006, Block-Lerner et al., 2007,
Kristeller & Johnson, 2005), and Bishop et al. (2004) suggests that compassion is an outcome rather than a
component of MM.
The few MM/compassion studies that exist use a mix of scales, which make comparisons more
difficult. This is most likely due to the dearth of well-used and independently validated compassion scales.
The Abercrombie et al. (2007) research, the Birnie et al. (2010) study, and the Shapiro et al. (2005, 2007)
studies, all use Neff’s self-compassion scale (SCS). Shapiro & Carlson (2009) believe that self-compassion
leads to compassion for others, but this has yet to be studied. The M. Johnson (2011) research used the
Exploratory Compassion Scale (ECS), which appears to be an experimental, author-generated scale
embedded within a set of spiritual questions. van den Hurk et al. (2011), who associates compassion with
agreeableness, measured agreeableness, and thus his version of compassion, with the NEO Five-Factor
Inventory (NEO-FFI), (McCrae & Costa, 2004).
Of six actual studies on MM /compassion, four (Abercrombie et al., 2007, Birnie et al., 2010,
Shapiro et al., 2005, 2007) had participants practice Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), which
generally also includes the practice of LKM (Birnie et al., 2010, Kristeller & Johnson, 2005, Shapiro et al.,
2005, 2007). Though LKM is generally only a small part of MBSR, based on the LKM research, even small
amounts of LKM could influence results.
Only three of the six studies found on MM/compassion showed an increase in compassion,
specifically self-compassion (Birnie et al., 2010, Shapiro et al., 2005, 2007), but those three used MBSR
which included LKM as an intervention. None of these studies had large numbers of participants: the Shapiro
et al. (2005) study is based on 18 participants in the MBSR group and 20 in the control group, and another of
40
the studies (Shapiro et al., 2007) had 22 subjects in the MBSR group and 32 as controls. Birnie et al. (2010)
had no control group, but 41 pre-posttest subjects participated in the study. The M. Johnson (2011) study
showed very minimal, if not mixed results. He had only ten participants in the advanced Zen meditator
group, and 10 people as controls. Johnson found no difference in empathy between the groups and only slight
changes, in the meditators’ favor, to brain scans targeting areas known to indicate compassion.
Two studies showed no indication that MM increased compassion; however, these studies also raise
methodological issues. The Abercrombie et al. (2007) study taught MBSR and measured self-compassion
using Neff’s SCS, but only eight subjects finished the six-week program (often MBSR is an eight-week
program), and those subjects only had to attend four of the six classes. The van den Hurk et al. (2011) study
primarily set out to investigate the relationship between MM and personality, but the researchers do bring
compassion into play by suggesting that “agreeableness” was analogous to compassion. They found no
increase in agreeableness, and thus none in compassion. The study consisted of 35 “experienced” meditators.
“Experienced” included at least one subject with only three months experience, but with group means of 13.2
years of practice at an average of 3 hours per week. The control group consisted of an equal number of non-
meditators with similar demographics. The Beddoe & Murphy (2004) study looking at MBSR and empathy
showed no increase in empathy, using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI).
These MM/compassion studies are important to explore because some form of mindfulness practice
has historically been taught prior to or as part of Tonglen meditation; however, the reasons for this, though
traditional and reasonable, have not yet been empirically tested. The Tonglen transcript used for the study in
this paper will guide participants to relax their minds, but they will not have had prior training in mindfulness
practices. Five of the LKM studies (D. P. Johnson et al., 2009, Lutz et al., 2008, 2009, Weibel, 2007, Wong
& Chi, 2011) specifically looking for positive outcomes from loving-kindness meditation did introduce some
form of mindfulness meditation to the LKM subjects. When indicated, the studies’ authors attributed the
inclusion to helping participants stabilize their minds rather than helping them increase compassion, and only
one of those studies was actually testing for a change in compassion. As mentioned before, four of the LKM
studies (Carson et al., 2005, Fredrickson et al., 2008, Hutcherson et al., 2008, Law, 2011) did not introduce
41
any MM, yet still found statistically significant results (Feldman 2010 is not considered here because he was
not looking for changes to LKM). Thus when analyzing the research and developing future compassion
studies, issues of over-generalizing the success of previous studies, cross-pollination of effects from using
multiple meditation methods, the possible need for mental stability, and tradition all need to be considered,
but there is evidence that LKM, and thus perhaps Tonglen, may be successfully practiced without prior
exposure to mindfulness meditation.
But MM is also beginning to be purported as a compassion meditation in its own right, which would
be beneficial for practitioners if confirmed. But if MM 1) leads to compassion, 2) cannot be separated from
compassion, and/or 3) influences other qualities that lead to compassion, that would be important to know for
those studying other compassion practices. If Tonglen meditation increases a subject’s level of compassion
and there was prior training and practice in MM, how much of the change in compassion would be due to
Tonglen and how much to MM? Would it be a disservice to practitioners if Tonglen showed an increase in
compassion, but MM would have bumped it up even more? Currently however, there seem to be mixed
results in the new field of MM/compassion, as seen earlier. There are no best practices for the amount of time
MM should be practiced to affect compassion or even affect mindfulness when combined with other
practices like LKM.
It may also be that the qualities of MM purported to enhance compassion may also already exist
within Tonglen. The G. Feldman et al. (2010) study indicated that LKM did not increase decentering,
whereas MM did. But, as mentioned earlier, decentering would probably not be a benefit to LKM or
Tonglen; however, there are aspects of MM, which Shapiro & Carlson (2009) suggest increase compassion,
that Tonglen also seems to contain; thus, suggesting again that though MM may enhance Tonglen, it may not
be necessary for its success. Shapiro & Carlson (2009) say that compassion for others begins with developing
kindness and compassion for oneself. As one begins to relate to oneself with greater kindness through MM,
one can begin to observe how detrimental self-criticism and judgment can be. This cultivates “attunement” in
oneself which can then lead to “attunement” with others. According to Shapiro, self-attunement begins by
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developing a “witness consciousness” – the ability to step-back and observe one’s experience clearly without
interpretation or judgment.
Though MM and Tonglen are quite different practices, when Tonglen is practiced for one’s self,
which is recommended by many Western Tonglen teachers (Chodron, 1994, Sogyal et al., 1994),
practitioners see “themselves” in front of themselves. They witness themselves and their suffering. Though
the acknowledgement of suffering could be considered by some to be a judgment in itself, the witness does
not judge the sufferer, the suffering, or the causes of suffering. The suffering is simply inhaled. If concepts of
judgment arise, they too are inhaled. As white light is exhaled, the witness is supposed to offer any possible
“thing” the sufferer could want or need. Though the witness may offer a house to the sufferer, the witness is
not to judge the worthiness of the sufferer or the type of house offered. This practice, among other things, is
purported to relax ego-grasping and judgment, allowing the witness to bear witness to the workings of his or
her own mind. As the practitioner becomes more self-attuned, attunement toward others is then consciously
practiced. The hypotheses for both of these practices, MM and Tonglen, need to be studied, but there is the
possibility that similar mechanisms may be at play to generate compassion in two very different meditation
practices.
Support for Study Design
Based on the research presented in this literature review, there is a strong basis for exploring the
possible benefits of Tonglen, especially in relation to its effects on compassion. The research cited earlier
indicates that people who have higher levels of compassion and self-compassion also tend to have higher
levels of empathy, social-connectedness, social trust and support, wellbeing, optimism, creativity, and the
ability to positively self-regulate. These people also have lower rates of anxiety, distress, negative emotions,
physical pain, and self-directed negative feelings. As a whole, participants of LKM studies have experienced
all of these same benefits of increased compassion.
Loving-kindness meditation has, within the Lojong commentaries, traditionally been taught as a
relative compassion practice prior to the compassion practice of Tonglen, and its structure has strong
similarities to the “sending” aspect of Tonglen;; thus, LKM research may offer predictions as to the benefits
43
of Tonglen, or it should at least raise one’s curiosity about the benefits of Tonglen. In two previously
mentioned studies (Weibel, 2007, Wong & Chi, 2011), LKM did increase participants’ levels of compassion
and self-compassion, as well as happiness, positive mood, ability to find meaning in life, a sense of common
humanity, empathy, seeing a larger perspective, self-acceptance, positive relationships, and satisfaction with
life. Participants also saw a decrease in feelings of dejection, depression, pain, anger, and distress. All valid
reasons to test another technique which might bring similar benefits, yet offer another mode for
accomplishing these benefits.
This Tonglen study will use novice meditators, which is in keeping with all of the LKM studies. In
all cases, novice meditators benefited from the practice, even though several of the studies showed that
participants who had more experience showed greater outcomes (Carson et al., 2005, Fredrickson et al.,
2008, Lutz et al., 2008, 2009). The current Tonglen study aims to show that Tonglen can be taught and
learned quickly and easily on its own without the rest of the Lojong teachings and without multiple 60 - 90
minute sessions which mix LKM with didactics, discussions, and other types of meditation as was the case
with several LKM studies. As mentioned previously, Tonglen traditionally has been taught within the context
of the Lojong teachings, which often includes, according to commentaries, the prerequisites of mindfulness
meditation and loving-kindness meditation. These practices are to calm an agitated mind and allow a glimpse
of one’s enlightened nature, which may offer greater perspective-taking and reduce ego-clinging, as well as
begin the development of relative bodhicitta before entering a practice of breathing in other people’s pain
and suffering. However, in the West, Tonglen has been taught to Westerners, including non-Buddhists,
outside of the context of the Lojong texts, and without much, if any, pre-exposure to mindfulness meditation
or loving-kindness meditation; though, all would probably agree that prior training would be useful
(Chodron, 2001, Halifax, 2008, Sogyal et al., 1994).
Four LKM studies did not incorporate mindfulness meditation in with loving-kindness practice, yet
saw positive results in the LKM group. There is currently no empirical evidence showing that mindfulness
meditation enhances other compassion meditations, and there are mixed results regarding whether
mindfulness meditation itself increases compassion. The Tonglen script, developed for this current study,
44
does guide participants through a brief relaxation, and twice asks them to drop all thoughts and visualizations
to rest in a sense of openness. Additionally the practice begins with participants generating love and
compassion for themselves, and sending that out to others before beginning the actual Tonglen process; thus,
both aspects of mindfulness and loving-kindness are touched on in this Tonglen instruction. The more
complicated and time consuming a technique is to learn and use, the less likely it is for a person to avail
themselves of the practice regardless of how beneficial it is. Thus this Tonglen study is designed to show that
Tonglen meditation can increase a practitioner’s level of compassion and self-compassion without
preparation, training in prerequisites, or long practice sessions.
There is evidence that even brief sessions of LKM have statistically significant, positive effects on
subjects. In the Hutcherson et al. (2008) study, subjects practiced LKM for only 7 minutes, yet, according to
the study’s authors, showed an increase in social connectedness. Lutz et al. (2008) suggest that 20 minutes of
LKM over seven days increased subjects’ empathy, emotional sharing, perspective taking, and assessing
others’ mental states. The G. Feldman et al. (2010) study trained one group in mindfulness meditation and
one in loving-kindness meditation during a one time intervention of only 15 minutes before getting the
results he had hypothesized, and the Fredrickson et al. (2008) study suggests that even one hour of LKM a
week may be enough to effect change; however the study did span seven weeks of practice. Weibel (2007)
showed an increase in subjects’ compassion and self-compassion with only four short sessions (as part of
longer instructional sections) over four weeks of LKM. This study also found that the additional meditation
(a combination of MM and LKM) done individually by practitioners over the week for an average of nine
minutes a day did not predict improvements on any of the outcomes. And most recently, Law (2011) found
that only ten minutes of LKM reduced stress, increased positive feelings towards oneself, and buffered one
against negative aspects of social stress. Thus while there have been no studies indicating how much Tonglen
practice is needed to generate statistically significant results, the research on LKM suggests that even very
short interventions may reap benefits.
It is obvious that the field of practices to generate compassion is still wide open for research and
development. Tonglen has yet to be studied, research on MM/compassion, and on LKM has barely begun,
45
and Gilbert is just beginning to raise awareness of his Compassionate Mind Training (CMT) techniques. The
need is great, and with such a diverse population comes the need for diverse, easy to learn practices to bring
the benefits of compassion to the general population.
Tonglen Study
Research Question and Objectives
This is a small pilot study to assess whether Tonglen can positively increase the level of compassion
and self-compassion after short-term practice by novice meditators. Study subjects will also be queried about
their experience of Tonglen practice to aid in the development of a larger study. Additionally, a Tonglen
script and a set of guidelines, informed by this study, will be offered to help new Tonglen instructors work
with common teaching/practice issues that may arise for beginners of Tonglen practice (see appendix).
Assumptions and Constraints
It is an assumption for this study that Tonglen can be taught independently of the Lojong tradition
and of Buddhism as a whole. It is also assumed that Tonglen can be taught in a short-term research setting in
such a way that subjects need not know about Buddhism or Buddhist concepts of Ultimate Reality,
emptiness, mindfulness, cutting through ego, or Buddhist compassion practices. It is likewise assumed that
subjects can be taught how to visualize the transformation of suffering so that they do not experience undue
anxiety at the thought that the suffering has stayed in them. For this study, Tonglen will not be used as part of
a path to enlightenment, but as a practice for all people to use to enhance their wellbeing and their ability to
generate compassion for themselves and others. No disrespect is intended by taking Tonglen out of its
traditional context. There may be unintended consequences, which will also have to be studied; however,
other spiritual practices have been secularized for the benefit of the general population, and Tonglen has
previously been presented to the general population outside of Lojong by people such as Pema Chodron,
Joan Halifax, and Sogyal Rinpoche.
To date there has been virtually no academic research on the practice of Tonglen and no published
empirical studies of its efficacy for increasing compassion (or anything else). Thus there are limited
46
academic resources to use as guides for the development of this study. Due to the difficulty of recruiting
subjects in a relatively small, conservative town, the population of this focus group was small (n = 9) and
rather homogenous, and the researcher knew or knew of five of the participants prior to the focus group.
Though compassion research as a whole often overlaps with close cousins of compassion such as empathy,
sympathy, and altruism, the literature review primarily covered studies specifically looking at compassion.
Significance of the Study
It is hoped that this study will further promote the relatively new field of research on actual
compassion practices and their effects on people’s mental, physical, and social well-being. If initial empirical
studies of Tonglen show a positive outcome, this study will have introduced a centuries-old compassion
practice to the scientific and medical fields for further study and use with clients.
Method
Participants
Perhaps due to the demographics of the town, only eleven participants were recruited for the study.
Nine participants finished the study. Of those, five were female and four were male. All were Caucasian,
over 40 years old, and 88.8% had a four-year college degree or higher. 88.8% said that they took time to be
quiet and reflective at least a few times a week. Five of the subjects knew or had met the researcher
previously. A more detailed demographic analysis may be found in the appendix.
Procedures
Participants responded to a flier posted around town and sent to various groups that met in town. The
flier specifically sought people who were curious and willing to try a visualization technique. Because the
researcher did not want participants to know the study would measure compassion, but wanted them to feel
there may be a benefit to participating, the flier hinted that the study might study stress reduction (other
compassion related meditation studies have shown a reduction in stress (Law, 2011, Pace et al., 2009).
Participants came to three sessions spaced every other day. The first session lasted an hour, during which the
participants read and signed a consent form and filled out a pre-test. The pre and posttests contained five
distractor questions related to stress, which were not analyzed. After the pretest, subjects were asked to
47
follow an 18 minute guided visualization read by the researcher. The Tonglen meditation script was not
recorded because anecdotal evidence by some meditation researchers suggests that participants are able to
connect more deeply with a new meditation practice when a human being guides them verses a recorded
voice. However, the same script was read for each session in as similar a way as possible each time. At the
end of the first two sessions, subjects were told that they could ask (in public or private) any questions
regarding the visualization or the study which, if not answered, would cause them to hesitate to continue the
study. No questions were asked, and participants left with minimal conversation among themselves.
The second session was scheduled for 30 minutes, but ended early right after the Tonglen meditation
practice. The third session lasted 90 minutes. Participants were led through the meditation, and then they
took the posttest, answered seven additional brief questions about their experience, filled out a demographic
questionnaire, and then participated in recorded, small group discussions about their experience in the study
(an assistant conducted one group; the researcher conducted the other). The final session ended with a whole-
group debriefing about the purpose of the study, the background of Tonglen meditation, and a list of
resources if participants wanted to learn more about the subject or about on-the-spot Tonglen meditation.
Measures
Self-Compassion: Participants were given the 26 question Self-Compassion Scale (Neff, 2003a),
which is the most widely used scale to date to test for self-compassion, and in some cases, compassion (used
in over 40 studies), and it has a high test-retest reliability (α = 93). Participants rate their responses on a scale
of 1-5, with one being “Almost Never” and five being “Almost Always.” The Self-Compassion Scale (SCS)
allows for a whole-scale score as well as six subscale scores of self-kindness, self-judgment, common
humanity, isolation, mindfulness, and over-identification. The three negative sub-scales are reverse coded.
Mean scores were generated for each of the six subscales, and a mean total scale score was computed for
each participant pre-intervention and post-intervention. See appendices for scale questions.
Compassion: Participants were given the five question Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale (Hwang
et al., 2008), which is a shorter version of the Compassionate Love Scale for Humanity (Sprecher & Fehr,
2005). Participants rate their responses on a scale of 1-7, with one being “Not at all true for me” and seven
48
being “Very true for me.” The correlation between the original scale, which has been frequently used in other
compassion studies, and the Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale (SCBCS) version is .96. See appendices for
scale questions.
Short Written Answer Questionnaire: Participants were asked to provide short, written answers
regarding their experience of the Tonglen meditation practice and the study as a whole to 7 researcher-
generated questions such as “What was your initial reaction to breathing in the black smoke?” and “Are you
likely to practice this visualization on your own after this study? Why or why not?” See appendices for a full
list of questions.
Small Group Discussion Questions: Participants were divided into two smaller facilitated and
recorded groups to share their experiences of the meditation practice and the study as a whole. The
discussion focused on 9 researcher-generated questions such as “What was beneficial to you or something
you enjoyed?” and “What would have made the visualization instructions easier for you to follow or accept?”
See appendices for a full list of questions.
Results
Attrition: Statistical analyses were run on eight participants. Of the original 11 participants, a mother
and daughter left the study without explanation after the second of three sessions. Nine participants
completed the study. One participant (S1) exhibited idiosyncratic properties distinctly different from the
other eight participants, so this researcher excluded the participant’s responses from the final statistical
analyses. S1 was included in the review of qualitative data because the answers to those questions as a whole
will inform the design of the larger Tonglen study. Hypotheses regarding the excluded participant may be
found in the discussion section.
Self-Compassion Scale: The Related Samples Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test was used for both the
Self-Compassion Scale (SCS) and the Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale (SCBCS) because the sample size
was small (n=8) and the response options used in the scales were ordinal.
For the SCS, the Signed Rank Test was used to determine if there was a statistically significant
change in the self-reported scores for the total scale score and the six subscales from pre-intervention to post-
49
intervention within subjects using an Alpha = .05. The Signed Rank Test for the scale as a whole showed a
statistically significant increase in self-compassion in the mean response from pre-intervention (3.3077) to
post intervention (3.5240), with a p-value of .030. The Signed Rank Test for the subscale Common
Humanity showed a statistically significant increase in the mean response from pre-intervention (3.53) to
post intervention (3.9688), with a p-value of .027. Table 1 lists the findings of the Signed Rank Tests.
Table 1 SCS – Statistical Significance of Related Samples Signed Rank Test Results
Scale / Subscale P-Value Difference
Self-Kindness 0.065
Self-Judgment 0.137
Common Humanity 0.027 Post > Pre
Isolation 0.084
Mindfulness 0.608
Over-Identified 0.715
Total SCS 0.030 Post > Pre
Because this preliminary study was exploratory in nature, charts of the individual changes in total
scale scores for both the SCS (Figure 1) and the SCBCS (Figure 2) are provided (each subject’s difference
score for each scale is calculated as post-intervention minus pre-intervention). While these charts serve as a
visual representation of the relative degree of change in the scale scores for the eight participants whose data
was analyzed, their descriptive power is limited to this study.
Figure1 SCS- Individual changes in total scale scores
50
Figure 2 SCBCS- Individual changes in total scale scores
Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale: For the SCBCS, one mean total scale score was calculated for
each participant pre and post-intervention. The Signed Rank Test was used to determine if there was a
statistically significant change in the self-reported scores for the total scale score. The Related Samples
Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test did not show a statistically significant difference between pre and post
intervention scores (p = .667).
ANOVAS: Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) tests were planned for the two significant findings in the
SCS to examine how self-reported religious/spiritual beliefs and the amount of activity in each participant’s
religious/spiritual community may have contributed to changes in the Common Humanity subscale and/or
51
the total scale for the SCS, but even after collapsing the response levels of the two demographic questions,
the small sample size did not meet the minimum number of participants per group required to perform the
ANOVA tests.
Small Group Discussion and Written Answers: The following is a summary of answers given by the
nine participants who completed the study for the short answer posttest questions and the small group
discussion questions. See appendices for the list of questions. The purpose of including these questions was
to inform the design of a much larger Tonglen study and to determine if there were other issues and/or
solutions to incorporate into a Tonglen Troubleshooting guide for those teaching Tonglen to new
practitioners.
x 7 of 9 participants felt the experience was beneficial and caused self-reflection.
x 8 of 9 said it was helpful to begin Tonglen by receiving love from a loved one. 1 participant was not
sure how starting the practice by receiving love had helped.
x All 9 used real people (living or dead) at the beginning of the practice to send deep love to
themselves.
x 4 participants practiced Tonglen briefly during the week. No minutes were listed on the
questionnaire, but during oral discussion one person said they had practiced Tonglen only once and
only for only a few seconds. The other three had not kept track, but also said they had not practiced
very often or for very long (less than a few minutes total).
x Breathing in smoke was a problem for 7 of 9 people. Two people changed the imagery. One person
imagined a happy Girl Scout campfire; the other imagined that the inhalation breath extricated tiny
harmful beings (invaders who brought suffering) from the bodies of those they were visualizing. Of
the two participants who did not have a difficult time with the smoke, one had mixed feelings about
it, and the other mainly experienced curiosity. Note: The experience of inhaling others’ suffering is
traditionally not supposed to be an easy experience.
x 3 participants did not feel more comfortable with the idea of breathing in smoke after three sessions.
6 saw, to one degree or another, a shift so there was less aversion by the third session.
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x 2 participants wanted more context for the practice before beginning the study. One of them felt that
an explanation and context would have made the practice easier; the other just wanted to assuage
curiosity that persisted throughout the study.
x 3 participants had some difficulty visualizing.
x 7 participants were fine with being introduced to all stages of Tonglen (loved ones, strangers,
difficult people, all beings) from the beginning. 2 wanted a slower introduction (e.g. first day focus
on self and loved ones, the second day add strangers, the third day add difficult people and all
beings).
x 1 person said three sessions was not enough to notice any change. 8 said they noticed some change,
but felt it could vary among people based on their experiences with breathing practice and reflection.
x Only 1 person said that something might have happened to them during the week to influence results,
but the person was not positive and did not elaborate. Note: This was not the subject who was
removed from the analysis of the study nor was it a person who experienced a large increase in self-
compassion.
x 5 participants said they would probably practice Tonglen after the study; 3 said maybe; 1 said no.
Discussion
Self-Compassion Scale: While this is a small, preliminary study, it is very encouraging that the data
from such a small group of subjects, practicing Tonglen for only three sessions of 18 minutes each, showed
statistically significant results. Subjects’ levels of self-compassion increased significantly not only on the
Self-Compassion Scale as a whole, but on the Common Humanity subscale as well, which only offers 4 data
points per subject. According to Neff, who developed the SCS, Common Humanity “involves recognizing
that all humans are imperfect, that all people fail and make mistakes. Self-compassion connects one’s own
flawed condition to the shared human condition, so that features of the self are considered from a broad,
inclusive perspective” (Neff & Pommier, 2011, p. 4). This seems very similar to a definition of “compassion
for others,” except that it does not explicitly include a desire to help. Tonglen is intended to help practitioners
realize that they are not the only ones having a difficult time; everyone is suffering in some way or another.
53
Tonglen has been traditionally practiced to reduce feelings of isolation and separation from others and reduce
feelings that the practitioner is the only one in the world who is feeling discontentment or suffering. It is
intended to reduce egotistical behavior and allow the practitioner to feel connected to all beings – connected
to their flaws and difficulties as well as their joys. By breathing in the smoke of others suffering,
practitioners are becoming more aware of how interconnected everyone is, “Just like me they want to be
happy.” By transforming the suffering and sending out healing light, the practitioner is sharing everything
they have to offer with all beings, and realizing that there is no shortage of anything and no reason to horde
or isolate, thus perhaps the significant increase in the Common Humanity subscale scores.
Three of the other SCS subscales also showed high (though not statistically significant) levels of
probability that their increases (Self-kindness) or decreases (Isolation and Self-judgment) were not random.
Self-kindness had a 93.5% probability; Isolation showed a 91.6% probability, and Self-judgment showed an
86.3% probability of not being random improvements. Thus preliminary findings suggest that Tonglen may
be beneficial for increasing Self-compassion with very short amounts of practice, no preliminary meditation
techniques such as mindfulness meditation or loving-kindness meditation, very few preliminary instructions,
and no mention of Buddhism or Lojong practices.
SCS- Mindfulness: It is interesting that the SCS subscales of Mindfulness and its opposite, Over-
identified did not show a strong probability of change (Mindfulness - 39.2% chance that the results were not
random, Over-Identified - 28.5% chance). Neff is the only researcher (along with her mentee, E. Pommier)
who includes Mindfulness as part of the definition of compassion. Her reasoning is that mindfulness allows
one to be more accepting and detached from one’s difficult thoughts and feelings in a balanced way rather
than becoming over-identified with them. Those who are more mindful would then also become less self-
judgmental (Neff, 2003a).
It would be beneficial for Tonglen practitioners to be able to maintain a balanced perspective in
order to not become overwhelmed by feelings of suffering or open heartedness. But practitioners can work
with strong emotions by including them in the Tonglen meditation practice (e.g. “So this is how so many
people feel when they are afraid like I am now.” “So this is how so many people feel when their heart is
54
breaking open like mine.”). Tonglen is not meant to be a mindfulness practice, in a strict sense. As
mentioned in an earlier section of this paper, the G. Feldman et al. (2010) study showed that mindfulness
meditators experienced “decentering” while those practicing the compassion practice of loving-kindness
meditation did not. Decentering means that the meditator views internal experiences with objectivity and
changes the relationship he or she has to internal experiences rather than trying to change the content of the
experiences.
It would be beneficial for everyone, including Tonglen practitioners, to be able to change the
relationship with internal experiences, and as Tonglen practitioners learn to bring their discomfort into the
practice again and again, future research may show that this does happen with more advanced practitioners.
However, Tonglen is not a practice of objectivity. The practice is meant to “break open” a person’s self-
cherishing heart. The practitioner is meant to connect with deep suffering and with deep healing, purposely
changing the content of the experience during meditation so that deep connection and compassion are sensed
in the body, mind, and emotions. At least for beginning Tonglen meditators, too high a level of objectivity
could turn the compassion practice into a passive visualization exercise. Thus, with novice practitioners,
levels of mindfulness may go down or not increase as the heart initially begins to open wider to new and
deeper levels of compassion for oneself and others. Future research might include testing subjects a few days
after the final intervention to see if mindfulness in novices increases post study, when subjects have had time
to process their experience of Tonglen.
SCS-S1: Other issues to explore regarding both the SCS and Tonglen arose with Subject 1 (S1), who
was not included in the final analysis of the scales. S1’s scores diverged dramatically from the other 8
subjects’ (See Figure 3), leading to an investigation of this subject’s demographics. The following are
hypotheses only and based on an observation of only one participant. These theories may stimulate future
research, but cannot be generalized to a larger population.
Figure 3 SCS- Individual changes in total scale scores – with Subject 1
55
It may be that S1 read the SCS scale backward during the posttest, but since S1 had taken the SCS
pretest and did not reverse score the SCBCS during the pre or posttest, this hypothesis is unlikely. It turned
out that S1 was not a free-will volunteer, but attended at the request of another subject. S1 was also under a
lot of long-term stress and reported that the experience of Tonglen had been jarring. No mood test was given
to the subjects, but if S1 was experiencing a negative mood state during the posttest, the results could add to
the findings that Law (2011) discovered during her loving-kindness study, in which LKM increased feelings
of negativity towards oneself or others among the participants who were experiencing negative mood states.
Law did not theorize why this was the case. Thus S1 may have been in a negative mood, due to the stressors
mentioned above, and Tonglen, like LKM, may have increased feelings of negativity, leading to scores that
diverged from the rest of the subjects. More research into this possible outcome is needed.
It may also be that the trait of narcissism could affect the perceived outcome of the SCS. No
personality trait scales were given, but S1 exhibited what could be interpreted as strong narcissistic
characteristics. If this is the case, it is interesting to notice that on the SCS subscale of self-judgment, for
example, a very narcissistic person and a very compassionate person could conceivably score themselves in
the same way. For example, to the statement, “When I see aspects of myself that I don’t like, I get down on
56
myself.” A very narcissistic person and a very self-compassionate person might both give themselves a score
of 1 (See Table 2).
Table 2 Hypothetical Narcissistic Self-Judgment Subscale Answers
SCS Subscale, Self-Judgment Self-Judgment
Almost Almost never always
1 2 3 4 5 Statement Very Narcissistic Subject’s
Hypothetical Answers Very Compassionate Subject’s Hypothetical Answers
I’m disapproving and judgmental about my own flaws and inadequacies.
1 1
When times are really difficult, I tend to be tough on myself.
1 1
I’m intolerant and impatient towards those aspects of my personality I don't like.
1 1
When I see aspects of myself that I don’t like, I get down on myself.
1 1
I can be a bit cold-hearted towards myself when I'm experiencing suffering.
1 1
Tonglen practice encourages self-reflection (which S1 stated was difficult to experience, yet
beneficial). New experiences of self-reflection after Tonglen, for someone with strong narcissistic
tendencies, could increase the trait of self-judgment as it did for S1. If for example, S1 realized that not many
people had deeply loved them and realized that they had not paid much attention to people whom they knew
to be suffering (as S1 stated in the small group discussion), the new level of self-awareness could
conceivably increase self-judgment, which could then actually be a positive outcome in the case of a
narcissist. With more awareness through Tonglen practice, S1 may have become more self-aware of their
relationship with other people and thus begun to feel less self-kindness and greater isolation due to their new
introspection. If this is the case, S1 may still have significantly benefited from Tonglen, but the SCS scale
would (and did) demonstrate the opposite of this. With a large population, the number of people with strong
narcissistic tendencies would most likely be low enough not to skew the results, but with only 9 subjects
completing the posttest, one subject with narcissistic traits could easily suggest that little had happened with
Tonglen, when the opposite appears to be true. Again, this is a hypothesis based on a population of one. It
might be interesting to investigate the outcomes of this scale with narcissistic subjects in the future, but the
primary outcome of this one example is to suggest that the larger Tonglen study that is planned, and
57
compassion-practice studies in general, might benefit from administering mood and personality trait scales to
help researchers better interpret the data.
Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale: The SCBCS did not show a statistically significant difference
between pre and post intervention (p=.667). It may be that new practitioners of Tonglen increase self-
compassion before increasing compassion for others (Shapiro & Carlson, 2009); however, at least in her
earlier writings, Neff (2003a) did not necessarily see a significant difference between the definitions of
compassion and self-compassion. The lack of significant results may be that the subject pool was too small,
but it also may be because the 8 subjects, whose scores were analyzed, scored themselves (on a 1-7 scale) as
a 5, 6, or 7 on 36 of 40 possible data points for the whole group. 5 subjects rated themselves as mostly 6 or 7
on the pretest scale questions; thus, subjects already considered themselves to be highly compassionate prior
to the intervention, with little room to move up in the scale (“ceiling effect”).
Another issue may have been that the five questions on the SCBCS were very obvious as to what
they were looking for and primed the subjects to answer in a way that would make them look good to the
researcher and/or match the perceived level of caring someone of their profession should have (“demand
characteristics”). Two scale items included the term, “compassion”, as in “When I hear about someone (a
stranger) going through a difficult time, I feel a great deal of compassion for him or her.” It may be that the
subjects did feel they were already very compassionate (one is a doctor, two are therapists/counselors, one is
a volunteer chaplain, one was a self-proclaimed “do-gooder”, and one was a “spiritual seeker”). But because
the subjects knew that the researcher would be able to connect test scores with subjects and their professions,
it’s possible that subjects may have intentionally or unintentionally inflated scores so that their level of
compassion would match what might be perceived as a good score for someone in the helping profession. As
mentioned earlier, this is a preliminary study of Tonglen with very few test subjects, and the field is wide
open for additional research on Tonglen and compassion. But because the SCBCS is written in such a way
that subjects know they are being measured for compassion and know what a “good” answer is, the
researcher will consider using a different scale to measure compassion for others, such as the longer
Compassionate Love Scale (Sprecher & Fehr, 2005), when conducting the larger Tonglen study.
58
Small Group Discussion and Written Answers: The answers from the small discussion groups will
also inform the larger Tonglen study that is planned for some time in the next year. It was interesting that all
the subjects chose to visualize a person they knew or had known personally to send them boundless love
before the beginning of the Tonglen practice. In the researcher’s previous experiences teaching Tonglen and
watching Tonglen being taught, a number of new practitioners had trouble finding a real person they knew of
to receive love from and needed to instead imagine an animal or a universal loving energy. That is why the
Tonglen script suggests so many different options.
Breathing in the black smoke of other people’s suffering is traditional Tonglen imagery, but with
such a large number participants having difficulty with the smoke (7 of 9 subjects), it may be beneficial in
the future to use slightly less difficult imagery with new practitioners in populations where cigarette smoking
is known to be highly unhealthy, subjects often know several people who have died from smoking-related
illnesses, and more positive images of smoke such as from campfires or winter fireplace fires are rarer
occurrences. Other imagery for breathing in suffering might include dense, heavy fog or heavy hot air -
something which is still symbolic of suffering and difficult to breath in, but which holds fewer negative
connotations for Westerners. If Western practitioners do not have to struggle with their associations with
smoke, it may be easier for them to learn Tonglen more quickly and not be resistant to practicing it on their
own after they have been trained. Additional research may also be done to see what percentage of a larger,
more diverse population also reacts very negatively to smoke.
Seven of nine participants were very comfortable practicing with all of the stages of Tonglen (loved
ones, strangers, difficult people, all beings) in one session from the beginning because, according to them,
the script was paced well. They did not feel rushed or overwhelmed. Two people wanted a slower paced
introduction to the practice with the stages introduced gradually over the three sessions. Both options seem
valid ways to introduce Tonglen; however, since most people felt comfortable with the pacing of the script, it
will remain the same for the larger future study.
The two people who were uncomfortable with the pace of the script were also two of three
participants who said that they were not visualizers and had some difficulty with visualizing. One of the three
59
(who also wanted a slower pace) felt frustrated trying to hold some form of visualization for the whole 18
minute meditation. The recruitment flyer alerted participants that they would be participating in a
visualization practice, in order to attract people who would be open to such a practice and who might know
in advance that they can visualize. But non-visualizers can practice Tonglen too. One of the non-visualizers
said that they did the practice using words to talk themselves through the practice quietly in their mind.
Practitioners may also use other senses such as smell (acrid smell of smoke, smell of a sunny spring day), or
touch/body sensations (feeling of pain in the body, feeling of joy in the body). In this case the researcher
wanted to show that the practice could be done with a very minimal amount of prior instruction or
background, but it might be very beneficial if a few minutes were spent before or right after the first session
to inform participants of the non-visualization techniques they may also want to try to better deal with any
difficulties that arise. This study offered participants the chance to ask questions about the practice after each
session (in public or private), but no one asked for clarification. It may be that with such a new practice, they
did not know what to ask or understand that there might be options to help them. A troubleshooting guide to
teaching Tonglen to beginners is included in this paper.
Subjects were briefly told how to do on-the-spot Tonglen after each meditation session, but were not
strongly encouraged to or discouraged from trying it on their own. The researcher wanted to see if any of the
participants would try a shorter version of the practice on their own during the “rest” day between sessions. It
was not expected that the subjects would practice enough to influence the study. Four of the nine subjects
reported that they did try the on-the-spot version of Tonglen, but only very briefly - in one case, only for
several seconds. The small group discussions suggested that the subjects were not clear about whether they
should practice Tonglen at home or not during the study. For the larger study, this researcher will not
introduce on-the-spot Tonglen until the debriefing. At that time, subjects will be walked through the process
and given additional Tonglen resources. It would be interesting for future research to determine to what
degree on-the-spot Tonglen influences levels of compassion or other variables, and if individuals continue to
practice Tonglen on a longer-term basis if they are comfortable using short Tonglen sessions on a daily basis
verses fewer, longer meditation sessions.
60
Limitations: This was a very small exploratory study with a somewhat homogenous set of mature
subjects, most of whom were interested in practicing a visualization technique and already included spiritual
practices, reflection, and compassionate activities, like volunteering, in their lives. This preliminary study did
not include measures of personality or mood to aid in interpreting the results of the data. The study’s scope
was very limited, and it is uncertain how long increased levels of self-compassion will last or if this study
can be replicated since there has been so little research done on compassion practices and none, prior to this
study, on Tonglen.
Conclusions/Future Research: The ideal outcome of this study would be to have it encourage
conversations in various arenas about the use of Tonglen to increase compassion and to inspire wide-ranging
research into the benefits of the practice. It is hoped that future research will support these initial findings and
show that Tonglen benefits the greater wellbeing of individuals, and by extension those around them, without
the practitioner having to take part in long instructional periods, engage in frequent long practice sessions, or
learn about Buddhism or preliminary meditation practices. Tonglen has never been empirically studied
before, so the field is wide open. This study begins the Tonglen conversation by offering statistically
significant findings that even very brief interventions of Tonglen, practiced by novices, can increase self-
compassion as a whole as well as aspects of self-compassion, as defined by Neff, such as Common
Humanity. Future study is imperative because, though recent compassion research has documented the great
benefits of having high levels of compassion, the average person does not have easy access to tools which
would allow them to build compassion in order to garner benefits such as a greater sense of wellbeing, social
connectedness, psychological health, healthy coping strategies, positive social relationships, empathy,
personal resources, positive emotions, and life satisfaction in addition to decreases in stress, self-criticism,
anxiety, stress, depression, and pain. The 900 year old Tibetan Buddhist meditation of Tonglen may be a
modern day tool that almost anyone can use to develop compassion and enhance their wellbeing.
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Appendices
Tonglen Troubleshooting Guide
While Tonglen is easy to teach, has been practiced for about 900 years, and may prove to be a very
beneficial practice to the general public in the West, concerns often do arise during the learning process.
While it is highly unlikely that all of the issues below will arise in one group of people, each of these has
been mentioned to this author by the focus group referenced in this paper, by previous people the author has
taught, or by people receiving instructions from other teachers when the author of this paper was present.
These troubleshooting suggestions are based on this author’s experiences.
1. Increased emotion due to reflection: Tonglen will generally cause people to become more self-
reflective and think more deeply about suffering, compassion, mortality, how they have been treated
in life, and how they have treated others. For some people, this could be very emotional at first. Let
practitioners know that this could happen and remind them that every thought and emotion that
comes up becomes a perfect opportunity to do Tonglen for themselves and others, whether in a
longer session or on the spot. In some cases, if a person is very concerned about the content or
intensity of the thoughts or emotions that have arisen through Tonglen practice, he or she may want
to talk with a counselor.
2. Fear of sickness: Fear is one of the most common concerns that can come up when people are first
learning Tonglen - fear that other people’s black smoke, sickness, poverty, depression, etc. will get
stuck in them and cause them to get sick or have bad luck. Buddhist practitioners may use this
practice to look at their fears in relation to emptiness and ego clinging, but that is a much more
advanced practice. Most people can overcome the fear if the process and purpose of Tonglen is
explained prior to the practice and it is emphasized clearly and often that every tiny particle of smoke
is transformed in the heart into healing light. Nothing negative remains. The smoke breaks open a
hardened, guarded heart, and that open heart instantly transforms the smoke into loving, healing
light, a sunflower, sunbeams, rainbow light, whatever works for them.
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3. Black smoke aversion: Some people may be fine with Tonglen in general, but may have a very
strong aversion to breathing in black smoke due to deaths in the family from smoking related
diseases or childhood traumas stemming from fire or abusers smelling like smoke. In a focus group
of nine people, seven initially had difficulty with the traditional imagery of black smoke. This
concern may be averted by telling people that when you guide them to breathe in smoke, they may
want to substitute the smoke for a black cloud, a dust cloud, or hot, humid air. Or throughout the
whole script, substitute the black smoke for a different image. However, do not use imagery that is
too comfortable. This aspect of the visualization is supposed to be a bit challenging, since part of
building compassion, opening the heart, and relaxing ego-grasping is the willingness to bear witness
to other’s suffering and take it into the heart, without shutting down.
4. Fear of draining away good luck: Some people are afraid that they will give all of their good luck,
good health, etc. to other people and have nothing left for themselves. Some of this stems from
people who have heard of “New Age” healers becoming sick themselves after expending all of their
energy helping others. Again, explaining the practice before starting it helps, as does beginning the
practice by having a loving being send a never ending supply of love to the practitioner. It also helps
to include reminders in the Tonglen guided instructions that there is no ending to the compassion in
their hearts. The black smoke is a source of fuel for the fire of compassion. With every in-breath of
smoke, more compassion is generated in the heart as the heart transforms the smoke into healing
light. There will always be a renewable source of compassion, healing, etc.
5. Feeling the practice is too superficial: Beginners often understand the concept of suffering in terms
of loss and illness and may only think to offer more superficial fixes. To deepen the practice it may
be beneficial to include discussions about the causes of suffering (i.e.: aversion, clinging, and
ignorance) and the causes of happiness (freedom from aversion, clinging, and ignorance). If
practitioners understand deeper levels of suffering, they may feel greater compassion for themselves
and others and begin to work with these issues through Tonglen. Additionally, having a deeper
understanding of happiness may also mitigate feelings of superficiality. Prompting practitioners to
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offer deep love, feelings of community, safety, spiritual fulfillment, and freedom from aversion,
clinging, and ignorance may prove to be more transformative than just offering “things.”
6. There is no change in the visualized people: Guide the practitioners to visualize, with each out
breath of love and compassion that the people in front of them are standing up straighter, smiling,
feeling happy, and feeling fulfilled. This helps with the transformation process and the feeling that
something positive is happening in the meditation.
7. Tonglen is for sissies: Some people may fear that compassion meditation will make them weak, that
it isn’t macho, and that if they become more compassionate they won’t be able to defend themselves,
so people will take advantage of them. Discuss with them how building the “muscle” of compassion
gives them more options, not fewer. Remind them the research shows that compassion practices
make people more emotionally resilient when difficult things happen, and compassion helps broaden
people’s perspective, allowing them to recognize and weigh their options more quickly and
effectively. Also, as the practitioner’s energy changes, the energy of those around him/her will
probably change, so people may become less reactive to begin with, thus there is less of a need to
keep defenses up.
8. The practice is BS and changes nothing: Every once in a while someone may initially feel that
Tonglen is just a bunch of BS – that it is all about mind games and nothing really happens; people do
not really get happier or healthier, so what is the point in doing it? Remind them that this practice is
not about curing other people but about changing their own heart and mind to make them more
resilient, more focused, more perceptive, more compassionate, and better able to handle anger or
other strong emotions. As the practitioner’s heart and mind strengthen, their energy will change,
which will then affect their interactions with other people. If they walk into a room with a very angry
person, they know that the anger changes the energy of the room, making everyone angry and/or
scared. When a strong Tonglen practitioner walks into a room, that strong, compassionate strength
can also change the atmosphere in a room, but for the better.
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9. Egocentrism: Occasionally a person may begin to feel egotistical doing this practice. They may
think, “I have the power to change the lives of others. Aren’t I wonderful for doing this practice for
others.” This can also lead to the meditator feeling that others should feel grateful to them, and/or
they may experience a major let down when others are not miraculously healed. Remind people that
this practice is to increase their own heart and mind’s capacity for healing, not to fix others or waste
energy on an ego trip.
10. Can’t visualize: Some people have trouble visualizing and may feel a bit frustrated. It may help if
the person silently describes to themselves what they are doing and says with each in-breath, “May
you be free from suffering and the causes of suffering,” and with each out-breath, “May you have
happiness and the causes of happiness.” Also have them sense into their body, noticing the breath
and the opening of their heart. Both of the suggestions above may be very beneficial for all
practitioners to incorporate.
It may also be helpful to find out what other senses are stronger for the person and have
them use those instead of trying to visualize. If the person has a strong sense of touch, they can
imagine what each type of suffering would feel like tactilely and what it feels like to breathe in hot
suffering and breath out cool healing. They could also “feel” themselves hugging someone or
passing a flower to them. If the person has a strong sense of smell, they could smell the acrid smoke,
smell rotting flesh, smell the stale room of a depressed person who won’t leave the house. On the
positive side, they could smell sunshine, flowers, and other things that “smell happy.” Non-
visualizers can do Tonglen effectively, they just have to find the strongest sense that they can use to
connect with and embody the practice.
11. “Compassion fatigue” – there is nothing left to give: Some people may think they cannot do
Tonglen because they feel too drained and exhausted from daily life and have nothing left to give. It
helps if each Tonglen session begins by visualizing an infusion of love from a person, animal, or
being who has given the practitioner boundless love in the past or present. Practitioners can feel that
this deep love is bottomless, so even if they are not feeling compassionate themselves, the love can
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go through them to the people they are practicing with. This preliminary practice alone can break
hearts open and give people strength, but the Tonglen instructor may have to help the practitioner be
creative. In traditional Tonglen, the person generates initial compassion by thinking of the selfless
love of their mother, but that often does not work in Western culture.
Ask the person to search their past or present for someone (living or not) who loved them
and wanted the best for them very deeply (using the term, “unconditional” can be difficult for many
people). They might bring to mind a grandmother, teacher, childhood friend, neighbor, etc. If no
person comes to mind, see if there was an animal who loved them. If no living or formerly living
being comes to mind, the practitioner can visualize a spiritual figure they connect with like a saint or
a Buddha. If there is no spiritual figure, they can imagine a loving energy or imagine what it would
be like if they had someone love them deeply. What would the person look like (old/young,
male/female, etc.). What would it feel like to have that person smile at them with totally loving eyes
and beam love into them from their heart? Spend a couple of minutes before doing Tonglen to soak
in this love.
12. Still not getting the hang of it: Practice generally makes Tonglen easier with each session, but some
people might find practicing loving-kindness meditation helpful to do before continuing with
Tonglen. Loving-kindness meditation gives people a chance to practice the sending out aspect of
compassion before adding the smoke aspect, and the instructor can get an idea of problems that
might come up for people beginning to open themselves up to compassion. In the Lojong tradition,
the loving-kindness meditation was practiced before Tonglen was taught.
Loving-kindness Meditation: There are variations on LKM, but they all generally start by
having the practitioner calm his or her mind and then direct attention to him or herself while silently
saying and feeling a series of compassionate wishes, for example, “May I be free from enmity. May I
be free from ill-will. May I be free from suffering. May I be happy.” The chosen statements are
repeated again and again while the practitioner feels bathed in these wishes for him or herself. After
a period of time, the practitioner visualizes a benefactor and sends these same wishes to him or her
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for a while and then does the same with other benefactors, first one by one and then as a group. The
practitioner next follows the same pattern for a loved one, then other loved ones, then a group of
loved ones along with the benefactors. This is followed by visualizing and sending wishes of loving-
kindness to strangers and then to enemies. The practice culminates by sending wishes of loving
kindness to all sentient beings.
13. Too busy to practice Tonglen: Practitioners can use on-the-spot Tonglen anytime to deal with
strong feelings that suddenly arise (e.g. anger or hopelessness) and to work with emotions that come
up when they see people who have hurt them or people who are suffering. On-the-spot Tonglen can
be done throughout the day in just a few seconds. If feelings of anger or desperation come up, the
person can take a moment to feel the emotion, then say, “So this is what so many other people in the
world feel.” Really imagine other people in the world feeling the same way. This generally lessens
feelings of “poor me” and broadens one’s sense of compassion and empathy. Then doing Tonglen
for each/all of these people can ease the intense emotions and help the person take a broader
perspective.
If there are sudden strong feelings towards someone like an abusive father, the person could
do Tonglen for themselves, briefly imagine all the other people in the world who have been abused
by their fathers and do Tonglen for them. But this person could also do Tonglen for the father as he
was as a child, who may also have been abused. It might be hard to do Tonglen for an abusive adult
father, but seeing the father as an innocent child who was being abused himself may be a way to do
Tonglen for the abuser and thus open a door for compassion and the possibility of forgiveness. This
may help break unloving patterns in the next generation, and may help the practitioner recognize and
work with his/her emotions more effectively. Tonglen can also be practiced towards people one
passes on the street, strangers in the checkout lines, crying kids, etc. Each on-the-spot Tonglen
session can help a person practice compassion, work with emotions, and broaden perspective taking
in only a few stealthy seconds.
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Tonglen Script
Grounding
1. Get comfortable in your seat. Sit with your back straight. Your eyes can be closed or open and looking down with a soft gaze, whichever feels more comfortable. Feel your back firmly supported against the chair. Feel the sensation where your thighs rest against the seat of the chair. Feel the floor against your feet. Take a deep breath in. Let it out. Take two more deep breaths at your own pace. (Approximately 1 minute total time)
Compassion for Self and Priming the Pump of Compassion [Note: // = pause]
2. Bring to mind a loving person or being who at some time in your life has wished you deep love and happiness. It could be a real person from the past or present like a teacher, an aunt, or friend.// If no person comes to mind, you could picture a spiritual being you feel connected to like a saint or spiritual guide.// If you are still searching for someone, you could bring to mind a beloved pet and feel their adoring eyes looking at you, or you could even just sense a loving energy. If no one comes to mind, for whatever reason, just imagine what it would feel like to have such whole-hearted love and kindness directed towards you. Feel this person, being, or energy wishing you the deepest peace, // the deepest wellbeing, //and the deepest joy. // Breathe this wish in like sunlight. Let beams of kindness and wellbeing fill your body. Know that you are loved and know that the source of this love is boundless. As your heart fills with the never ending warmth of peace and wellbeing, imagine yourself sending those feelings from your heart out to others who need to feel comfort and joy. The supply is never ending. You will never run short as you share this loving energy with others.// Now dissolve the visualization and rest for a few moments in the vast openness of peace and wellbeing.// (3:30 min total)
Practice Breathing in Smoke, Transforming in the Heart, & Breathing Out Healing Light
3. Now bring to mind a person you care about who is suffering or unhappy in some way. // They may
have an illness or physical discomfort. They may be going through a divorce, afraid they will lose their job, wonder where money will come from. Maybe they have a bad back or have just lost someone close to them.// As you think about this person you care for, notice all of the difficulties in their life. // See each aspect of their suffering as a cloud of black smoke. This person may have several clouds of black smoke around them now. // You care about them and want to rid them of this black smoke and bring them happiness.
4. Remembering that you will never run short of the love you generated a few moments ago, without fear, breathe in the black smoke from your loved one.
5. As you breathe in the black smoke, notice that it meets the shell of fear, self-cherishing, and closed-
off-ness that may surround your heart.// As you breathe in again, the black smoke cracks open the
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shell of separation around your heart and allows your heart to break open in loving white light. // Every single particle of black smoke is transformed into healing, loving light. Just as turning on a light completely transforms a dark room. Every bit of pain and suffering that you breathe in is transformed.
6. Breathe in and watch your loved one as the black smoke of discomfort or despair leaves him or her
and gets breathed into your heart to be transformed.
7. Breathe out, sending this person the white light of healing and anything you have or can imagine that might make this person happy.
8. Breathe in the black smoke of their mental or physical pain and fear. Watch as every last bit is
transformed in your open, loving heart.
9. Breathe out any type of healing and happiness this person could want in the form of white light. You might send them freedom from pain, send them the love they never got from their parents, send them a new house, money, a hug, a cup of tea. Send them a deep spiritual life, send endless love and healing.
10. Continue to breathe in smoke with the in-breath. Watch it being transformed in your heart; then, send
it out on the exhale as endless gifts of healing and joy in the form of white light.
11. As you do this, imagine the person you care about beginning to smile. // See joy come to their face as all the suffering leaves their body and mind and enters your heart to be transformed.
12. Allow yourself to feel joy at this transformation of the person you care about. There is no end to this
transformation and healing that you are seeing.
(8:00 min total)
13. Continue to breathe in the black smoke of suffering, and breathe out the white light of healing gifts. Notice your heart becoming more and more open, and your loved one feeling more and more amazement and joy. //Breathe in and out at your own pace for a few moments.
14. Now that you know this transformation and healing light is boundless, bring to mind 3 or 4 more
people you care about who are suffering in some way. One of these people could even be you if you want. Look at each face and acknowledge their suffering, their discontentment or hurt.// It doesn’t matter if the problem is big or little. // Notice the black smoke surrounding their unhappiness or pain and breathe that in to your heart.
15. Watch your heart transform the black smoke into every healing thing these people could want or
need, and send that out to them with the radiant white light. // It doesn’t matter if you know exactly what they want, just send out anything you could imagine them wanting or needing - even things as simple as a hug or bouquet of flowers // or as big as a new heart or a renewed faith in something.
16. Breathe in the black smoke of suffering, watch it transform in your heart, and then breathe out
healing white light.
17. There is no end to this healing light. It is fed by the transformation of the suffering that happens in your own heart. Breathe in the black smoke of suffering. Transform every last particle of it in your heart, and as you exhale, send happiness and healing.
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18. As you breathe in and out, watch all of these people stand up straighter, smile bigger, and find a deeper happiness than they have ever known before. (11:30 min total)
19. As your confidence grows, bring to mind more people, 10 or 20 of them. Even those you barely
know like the cashier at the grocery store, the security guard at the bank, the other drivers you passed on your way here.
20. Just like you, all of these people have known suffering, pain, and disappointment, and just like you,
they want some kind of happiness.
21. Even though you may not know how these people are suffering day to day, see black smoke begin to surround them. Breathe this in, knowing that no matter how many people you see or how much black smoke you inhale, your open heart will always be able to transform it all. // Every particle of smoke will be transformed into white light, delivering everything each one of these people could want or need.
22. Breathe in the smoke of their suffering, transform it in the vast, open, kindness of your heart, and
exhale all of the love, happiness, and possessions everyone could possibly want.// Send out chocolate, music, flowers. See everyone being hugged. // See them being raised by loving parents. See them having enough money. Picture them robust with health. Maybe even see them playing with puppies or kittens. // See them wholly content, happy, loved, and loving.
23. Imagine that whatever you send out makes everyone a happier, healthier person. Watch all of these
people stand up straighter and become more joy-filled. There is no end to the transformation.//// (14:30 min total)
24. Now that you have gained confidence, maybe even bring to mind someone you dislike a little at the moment, and add him or her to the group. This person too is suffering, and this person too just wants happiness but doesn’t know how to get it.
25. Breathe in their suffering with everyone else’s. // See it transformed in your heart, which has room for everything. // Breathe out kindness and anything that might ease this person’s suffering as well as the suffering of everyone else in front of you.
26. Breathe in, transform, and breathe out at your own pace for a few moments. //
27. Now one last time, expand the number of beings who are suffering to include all of the people,
animals, birds, even insects in the world who are suffering or unhappy in some way. // The suffering seems endless, but so is the transformational ability of your heart.// Breath in all of the suffering of the world; see it enter your heart, but the un-clinging love in your heart has the power to transform this suffering and discontentment into everything anyone could want or need.
28. Breathe out this wish-fulfilling light to all beings in the world. There will always be enough. //
Breathe in the black smoke, transform it in your heart, and breathe out the white light, sending it around the world to all beings again and again, feeling everyone becoming lighter and more joyful.//
29. Breathe in, transform, and breathe out at your own pace, while visualizing this amazing
transformation of yourself and all beings.//
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30. Now, dissolve this visualization and just rest in a vast sense of open-hearted healing and love for yourself and all beings.
31. Dedicate any benefit this practice generated to the deepest peace, wellbeing, and happiness of all
beings who, just like you, want to be happy and live in peace, but have no idea how to do it.
(17:30 min total)
Return
32. Now notice your feet on the floor, the sensation of your thighs against the seat, and your back being supported by your chair. Take a deep breath, and when you are ready, bring your full attention back into this room and take a moment to stretch if you’d like. (18:00 min)
On the Spot Visualization
33. In your daily life, you can do an on-the-spot visualization anytime you see someone, including yourself, suffering, or you notice yourself feeling angry at someone. Just look at them (or yourself) and think, “Just like me, they want to be happy”. Then breathe in their suffering in the form of black smoke, transform it in your heart, and send out white light to them, picturing that you are sending everything that will ease their suffering and yours. This can be done in 15 to 30 seconds, and no one has to know. Stealth visualization!
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Self-Compassion Scale
The Self-Compassion Scale was used for the pretest and the posttest.
Neff (2003c). http://www.self-compassion.org/scales-for-researchers.html
HOW I TYPICALLY ACT TOWARDS MYSELF IN DIFFICULT TIMES Please read each statement carefully before answering. To the left of each item, indicate how often you behave in the stated manner, using the following scale: Almost Almost never always 1 2 3 4 5 _____ 1. I’m disapproving and judgmental about my own flaws and inadequacies.
_____ 2. When I’m feeling down, I tend to obsess and fixate on everything that’s wrong.
_____ 3. When things are going badly for me, I see the difficulties as part of life that everyone goes through.
_____ 4. When I think about my inadequacies, it tends to make me feel more separate and cut off from the
rest of the world.
_____ 5. I try to be loving towards myself when I’m feeling emotional pain.
_____ 6. When I fail at something important to me, I become consumed by feelings of inadequacy.
_____ 7. When I'm down and out, I remind myself that there are lots of other people in the world feeling like
I am.
_____ 8. When times are really difficult, I tend to be tough on myself.
_____ 9. When something upsets me, I try to keep my emotions in balance.
_____ 10. When I feel inadequate in some way, I try to remind myself that feelings of inadequacy are shared
by most people.
_____ 11. I’m intolerant and impatient towards those aspects of my personality I don't like.
_____ 12. When I’m going through a very hard time, I give myself the caring and tenderness I need.
_____ 13. When I’m feeling down, I tend to feel like most other people are probably happier than I am.
_____ 14. When something painful happens, I try to take a balanced view of the situation.
_____ 15. I try to see my failings as part of the human condition.
_____ 16. When I see aspects of myself that I don’t like, I get down on myself.
_____ 17. When I fail at something important to me, I try to keep things in perspective.
_____ 18. When I’m really struggling, I tend to feel like other people must be having an easier time of it.
_____ 19. I’m kind to myself when I’m experiencing suffering.
_____ 20. When something upsets me, I get carried away with my feelings.
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_____ 21. I can be a bit cold-hearted towards myself when I'm experiencing suffering.
_____ 22. When I'm feeling down I try to approach my feelings with curiosity and openness.
_____ 23. I’m tolerant of my own flaws and inadequacies.
_____ 24. When something painful happens, I tend to blow the incident out of proportion.
_____ 25. When I fail at something that's important to me, I tend to feel alone in my failure.
_____ 26. I try to be understanding and patient towards those aspects of my personality I don't like.
Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale:
The Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale was used for the pretest and the posttest.
Hwang et al. (2008). The Development of the Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale: An Abbreviation
of Sprecher and Fehr’s Compassionate Love Scale. Pastoral Psychology, 56, 421-428.
http://www.scu.edu/cas/psychology/faculty/upload/Pastoral-Psyc-Compassion-2008.pdf
Please answer the following questions honestly and quickly using the scale below: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
not at all true of me very true of me _____ 1. When I hear about someone (a stranger) going through a difficult time, I feel a great deal of compassion for him or her. _____ 2. I tend to feel compassion for people, even though I do not know them. _____ 3. One of the activities that provides me with the most meaning to my life is helping others in the world when they need help. _____ 4. I would rather engage in actions that help others, even though they are strangers, than engage in actions that would help me. _____ 5. I often have tender feelings toward people (strangers) when they seem to be in
need.
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Additional Posttest Questions – Written Short Answer
1. If you are willing to say, who/what did you picture at the beginning of the visualization when you were asked to bring to mind a person, being, or energy to send you unconditional love?
2. In what way, if any, did bringing this person, being, or energy to mind and feeling the unconditional love affect the rest of the visualization process?
3. What was your initial reaction to breathing in the black smoke?
4. Did your feelings about breathing in the black smoke change by the second or third session? Why or
why not?
5. Did you practice this visualization during the week, outside of the focus group? If yes, for how many minutes do you think you practiced?
6. Are you likely to practice this visualization on your own after this study? Why or why not?
7. Between the pretest and posttest, did anything really good or really bad happen in your life that
might have influenced your answers on the posttest?
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Small Group Oral Questions (Conducted post posttest)
1. What was beneficial to you or something you enjoyed?
2. What were you unsure about or uncomfortable with? (If it is not mentioned, ask how they felt about breathing in the black smoke on the first day – on the last day).
Note: One of the main things being studied in this research is whether this visualization can increase one’s level of compassion. Please keep this in mind as you continue to answer these questions.
3. Would it have been easier if you had been introduced to the parts of the meditation more gradually such as day one focusing only on yourself and loved ones, day two increasing the visualization to include strangers, and day three increasing the visualization to include difficult people and the whole universe?
4. 1) Was it easy for you to visualize? 2) What would have made the visualization instructions easier for you to follow or accept? 3) Was there too much guidance/talking? 4) Did you have enough time to visualize each section?
5. 1) Did you feel that three sessions were long enough to test for an initial change in compassion,
stress, or any other benefit? 2) If not, what would have been a better timeframe?
6. 1) Was it beneficial in any way to do the visualization every other day? 2) Would it have been better for you to practice for three days in a row or once a week for three weeks? 3) What would be an ideal way to learn and practice this visualization? 4) What would be an ideal way to teach and test these things in the spring with a larger group?
7. What was your reaction to the Pre and Post Questionnaires?
8. 1) What are some additional comments you have that would improve the study next time (atmosphere of the place, the people, organization, other suggestions)? 2) Would there have been a better way to introduce the on-the-spot visualization (rather than doing it right after the long visualization)? 3) Would there have been a better way to end each session (e.g. no talking, everyone just leaves)?
9. Tell me anything else that comes to mind about your experience.
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Demographic Questionnaire (Post Posttest) Your name/identity will not be revealed and no identifying information will ever be connected to your name. Honest answers to these questions will help the researcher and statistician determine if any of these factors has an effect on the outcome of the visualization.
1. What is your gender? 1) Female 2) Male 3) Other _________________
2. What is your age? Please select an age range.
1) 14-17 2) 18-21 3) 22-25 4) 26-29 5) 30-39 6) 40-49 7) 50-59 8) 60-69 9) 70-79 10) 80 – older
3. What is the highest level of education you have completed?
1) Less than high school or GED 2) High school or GED 3) Some college or trade school 4) 2-year college degree (Associates) 5) 4-year college degree (Bachelors) 6) Some graduate level courses 7) Master’s degree 8) Ph.D.
4. What is your current marital status?
1) Single, never married 2) In a committed relationship beyond dating, not married 3) Married 4) Separated 5) Divorced 6) Widowed
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5. What is the race/ethnicity you most identify with? 1) Latino/Hispanic 2) White/Caucasian, non-Hispanic 3) African-American/Black 4) Asian 5) Native American/American Indian 6) Pacific Islander 7) Other ____________________
6. Which religious/spiritual tradition most closely matches your beliefs?
1) Christian - Protestant (more traditional) 2) Christian - Protestant (more Evangelical) 3) Christian - Catholic 4) Christian - Eastern Orthodox 5) Christian – Other _________________________ 6) Jewish 7) Muslim 8) Hindu 9) Buddhist 10) Pagan 11) Personal spiritual beliefs but not religious 12) Atheist 13) No religious or spiritual preference 14) Other _____________________________
7. How active do you consider yourself in the practice of your religious or spiritual beliefs?
1) Very active 2) Somewhat active 3) Not very active 4) Not active at all 5) No religious or spiritual preference
8. How often do you set aside some quiet time to be reflective, contemplative, or meditative?
1) Everyday 2) A few times a week 3) A few times a month 4) A few times a year 5) Rarely or never
9. How often do you volunteer outside of your work or home?
1) A few times a week 2) A few times a month 3) A few times a year 4) Rarely or never
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10. Where would you put yourself on the scale below?
My feelings are my own I always try to tune and don’t reflect how into the feelings of others feel. those around me. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
11. To what extent does your work allow you to directly and positively affect the mental, physical, and/or spiritual wellbeing of others on a daily basis?
Almost none Almost 100% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
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Demographic Responses Based on the 9 Participants Who Finished the Study
Topic Responses in %
Gender Female - 55.6 % (n=5), Male - 44.4% (n=4) Age 40-49 - 11.1% (n=1), 50-59 - 22.2% (n=2), 60-69 - 33.3% (n=3), 70-
79 - 22.2% (n=2), 80+ - 11.1% (n=1) Race/Ethnicity Caucasian – 100% (n=9) Note: One person selected “Other” and
wrote “American”, but this person was also Caucasian. Education Some college or trade school (post high school) - 22.2% (n=2), 4-
year college degree (not higher) - 11.1 % (n=1), some graduate courses but no master’s 11.1% (n=1), master’s degree - 44.4% (n=4), doctorate - 11.1% (n=1)
Spiritual Beliefs Christian - 33.3% (n=3), Buddhist - 22.2% (n=2), Personal spiritual beliefs but not religious 33.3% (n=3). No religious or spiritual preference - 11.1 % (n=1)
Spiritual/Religious Activity Very Active - 33.3% (n=3), Somewhat active - 33.3% (n=3), Not very active - 11.1% (n=1), not active at all - 11.1% (n=1), No spiritual/religious preference - 11.1% (n=1)
Quite time to be reflective, contemplative, or meditative
Daily - 55.6% (n=5), A few times weekly - 22.2% (n=2), A few times a year - 11.1% (n=1), Rarely or never - 11.1% (n=1) Note: Anyone who meditated, if they meditated, did so for less than 1 hour a week.
Volunteering Few times a week – 33% (n=3), Few times a month – 11.1% (n=1), Few times a year – 11.1% (n=1), Rarely or never – 44.4% (n=4).
1-7 scale, from 1= never allowing other’s feelings to affect one’s own feelings vs. 7 = always trying to tune into the feelings of those around oneself
4 on Scale – 11.1% (n=1), 5 on Scale – 33.3% (n=3), 6 on Scale – 22.2% (n=2), 7 on Scale 33.3% (n=3).
1-7 scale on the extent to which the subject’s work allows for a direct and positive affect on the mental, physical, and/or spiritual wellbeing of others on a daily basis?
1 on Scale – 11.1% (n=1), 4 on Scale – 22.2% (n=2), 6 on Scale – 11.1% (n=1), 7 on Scale 55.6% (n=5).
Current profession Therapist/Counselor 22.2% (n=2), Medical Doctor 11.1% (n=1), Business Owner 22.% (n=2), Accountant – 11.1% (n=1), Odd jobs/volunteer 11.1% (n=1), Unemployed (and also ordained minister) 11.1% (n=1), Technical Field– 11.1% (n=1)
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Informed Consent 1. What is the purpose of the study?
The purpose of this focus group study is to test-run procedures in preparation for a larger study to take place in 2012 and to collect feedback from participants about the visualization and the study experience as a whole in order to improve the process for the larger study. This focus group is probably too small to generate valid statistical results, but statistics will be run as part of the test-run and participant feedback will be incorporated into the larger study and into the instructions for teaching the visualization to others. This focus group study will also be written up as part of a larger project for another training program I am participating in. Thank you for helping me explore the benefits of this visualization!
2. What activities/procedures does participation in the study involve?
On the first day, the participants will fill out a 36 question “pre-questionnaire” (answers will be based on a scale from 1-5 or 1-7) and then follow instructions for a short visualization. Afterwards participants may ask basic clarifying questions if they have any concerns that might deter them from continuing the study. On the second day, the participants will follow instructions for a short visualization. Afterwards participants may ask basic clarifying questions if they have any concerns that might deter them from continuing the study. On the third day, the participants will follow instructions for a short visualization. Afterwards, they will take a 36 question “post-questionnaire” (answers will be based on a scale from 1-5 or 1-7), briefly answer 7 open ended questions about the process in written form, fill out a demographics questionnaire, and participate in a brief oral discussion (possibly in two smaller groups), giving any feedback they have about the process and/or the visualization. The oral discussion will be recorded through written notes and/or a digital recording. Finally, the researcher will give more background about the study and answer any final questions.
3. How much time will my participation take?
The first day should take no more than an hour. The visualization itself should take about 18 minutes. The second day should take no more than 30 minutes. The visualization itself should take about 18 minutes. The third day should take no more than an hour and 15 minutes. The visualization itself should take about 18 minutes.
4. Will I be paid to participate?
There is no form of payment for participation in this study.
5. What risks or discomforts can reasonably be expected due to participating in this research?
No serious risks are anticipated. Some participants may experience some initial discomfort visualizing the sadness or discomfort of themselves or others during part of the visualization, but this should dissipate as positive aspects are visualized and as the practice becomes more familiar. The participant may ask questions to clarify the practice or voice discomfort at the end of each session. The participant is also free to discontinue the visualization at any time.
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6. What potential benefits can the research offer to me?
Participants may find that this visualization increases wellbeing in a variety of ways. This is based on historical commentaries and studies done on visualizations with similar characteristics.
7. What potential benefits does the research offer to society?
This study will improve the process and procedures for the larger study. These studies should verify some of the benefits of this type of visualization and show that people can easily learn this visualization and benefit from it without a lot of training.
8. How will the confidentiality of my data be maintained?
Your name and identity will not be revealed and no identifying information will ever be connected to your name. Results of the study (with no individually identifying information) may be used as parts of a dissertation, written projects, and journal articles that may be submitted for presentation or publication to scholarly journals, educational websites, and books.
Participant’s Rights
1. Your participation in this study is voluntary. 2. You have the right to withdraw from the study at any time, for any reason, without any penalty. 3. Any information derived from the research project that personally identifies you will not be voluntarily
released or disclosed without your consent. Participant’s Mental Clarity
You certify that a) you have no serious mental health issues, or if you do, they are well-managed with the assistance of a health professional, b) you are not currently under the influence of mind altering drugs and/or alcohol, and will not be for any of the study sessions.
Questions About the Study
A paper that may incorporate aspects of this focus group study should be posted around April 2012 at Upaya.org. Put my name, Daphna McKnight, into the search bar. If you have any other questions regarding this focus group, you may contact me, Daphna McKnight, M.Ed., M.A., at 301-802-1135 or [email protected]. The [email protected] email will no longer be in service. I have read the above, agree to participate in this study, and agree to hold harmless any person or entity connected to this study or the place where it is being conducted. Participant’s Signature: ________________________________________________________ Date:____/____/____ Participant’s Printed Name:_____________________________________________________
Parent or Guardian’s Signature if Participant is Under 18: ____________________________ Date:____/____/____ Parent or Guardian’s Printed Name:______________________________________________
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Dedication of Merit
May any benefit generated from this research be dedicated to the deepest wellbeing, peace, and happiness of
all beings who, just like me, want to be happy and live in peace, but have little idea how to do it.