“The good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge” — Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) “Dard-e-dil kay waastay paida kia insan ko…” (Translation: Human beings were created for compassion) — Khwaja Mir Dard (1720-1785) There are very rare instances when volumes of research and hard work are squeezed in a nutshell but to a mystic poet of the Delhi school, Khwaja Mir Dard, and to British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, writer, social critic, political analyst and Nobel laureate Bertr and Russell, this came very easily. Using few words, they have expressed the real purpose of man’s creation and the gist of one’s attitude towards attaining a good life. Persons People who have the talent of writing either prose or poetry should be appreciated for transcribing in words, difficult concepts and many of the emotions which people experience but find difficult to express. Both these gentlemen belonging to totally different regions, cultures and eras appear to have reached their individualistic conclusion noting it in a single line. For Russell, a heart filled with love and a mind gifted with knowledgeable wisdom are secrets to a good life that is probably fraught with blessings but above all, has a high level of happiness and contentment. The most interesting aspect to this statement is that if it is understood by one and all in the same vein as Russell desired, it can have a positively revolutionising effect, defying all existing ideologies, isms and even religions but are we humans programmed to share a common way of thinking? In short, given the versatile and multi-faceted approach of human beings to any single issue, keeping in view the variance in levels of their intelligence and understanding, this seems a far cry. For example, the very concept of a good life may be different for a bohemian and something else for a saint. While the term ‘knowledge’ may not be highly disputable, the word ‘love’ can have uncountable shades of meaning.While at one end of the scale, it could be confined to self-love, on the other, it can drive a criminal mind to grotesque acts of violence. With the emotion connected to the many interpretations mentioned by these thinkers, one wonders exactly which form of love (of course combined with knowledge) was Russell actually referring to as being inspiring when he declared it as leading to the good life! Not surprisingly, believing in the goodness of humanity, he has admittedly included all the pleasant ones like maternal, paternal, fraternal, filial, romantic, fatuous, companionate, etc. but what about the negative aspects? “I love telling lies” or “I love to play pranks on people,” or worse still, “I love killing.” Still, even the softer forms cannot be ascribed to what love is generally understood as. This implies that where a woman is filled with love for her child, she may not necessarily experience the same kind of emotion for her neighbour’s baby. Similarly, the emotional attachment a person has for his colleagues at work may not be as strong as his feelings for his relatives. Where someone is asked to make a choice between hiring a native or a foreigner, a patriot’s love would probably force him to go for his fellow countryman. The brutalities inflicted on any living being, are not on account of absence of love but purely for lack of compassion Apparently, this is quite normal as one cannot be expected to ‘love’ every single person who crosses his path. With due regard to the illustrious Russell, love as an inspiration for all men and women to achieve the good life is questionable since there are uncountable instances where this very emotion is absent. Thus, when tending to an injured stranger or an animal on the road, it is not love but sympathy that invokes our attention. Quite remarkably and most certainly oblivious from Russell’s keen perusal of any South Asian literature plus a couple of centuries before, Khwaja Mir Dard came up with a proposition that seems more workable. Instead of going for an erratic emotion as love which may or may not be present, he suggested that man was created to practice ‘compassion.’ Now this seems a more plausible emotion which if replaced by ‘love’ in the quote, appears to make more sense. Thus, “The good life is one inspired by compassion and guided by knowledge.” Compassion has been described as sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others. The heart that can feel the pain others are going through can hardly be filled with cruel notions unless it is beating in a psychopath’s chest. The brutalities inflicted on any living being, are not on account of absence of love but purely for lack of compassion. Even a fiend like Adolph Hitler who unleashed a reign of terror on helpless human beings, had a soft spot for his girlfriend, Eva Braun and most probably his parents too. Those who also fall in this category are suicide bombers, malicious revenge seekers, ruthless mercenaries, drug traffickers, dishonest money makers and mass murderers whose love for a cause, money or someone strip them of compassion for their hapless victims. In other words, these people lack the compassion that is the hallmark of humanity. Where there is compassion, there will always be thoughtfulness, empathy, understanding, regard, selflessness, and care for one and all. A kind heart will always place others’ interest before it satisfies its own. It characterizes a generous and loving nature which emanate from compassion. Being considerate towards everything, animate or inanimate that beautifies this world, helps to humanize the society, establishes tolerance, creates an environment congenial for all to breathe freely and feel secure in each other’s company. The lesson of compassion needs to be spread around, taught in educational institutions, promoted by the media, the government, the private sector in a way that it reaches every person. Maybe then we would succeed in ameliorating the epidemic of suffering and unrest that has engulfed our planet, preventing us from leading a good life. The writer, lawyer and author, is an Adjunct Faculty at Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) Published in Daily Times, July 27th 2018.