The Cause of Happiness and Suffering: Ourselves   Though so much of our understanding of compassion is directed outward – we feel compassionate to a cause, or the struggles of another person prompt us to reach out to help them – compassion itself seems to be linked deeply with our own understanding of ourselves. As touched on during our discussion of Ahimsa and Ram Dass’s ideas about what it takes to be truly helpful, it turns out that before we can truly practice compassion for another, we must “practice compassion for ourselves” (Dass 83). Choki Nyima Rinpoche also emphasizes the importance of first understanding and showing compassion to the self, before one is able to show true compassion to others             One of Rinpoche’s main points in this matter seemed to be that it is impossible for us to understand and help others if we do not and can not understand ourselves first. He approaches this understanding necessary for compassion by developing a thorough description of suffering – the root cause of all unhappiness and the reason we act with compassion in the first place. Though we almost always pin the source of our suffering on outside forces and naturally try to place the blame on someone other than ourselves, what in fact causes suffering, in Buddhist thought, is our own reaction to the events that happen. Pain is always present, but it is our own reaction to that pain that causes our suffering. Rinpoche explains a similar idea, clarify that “our attitude is what creates this sense of suffering. We could have an attitude that doesn’t make a big deal out of our pain. An alternative attitude could be that we make it into a huge problem, even if it is actually quite minor…Everything has to do with attitude” (29).             If we look at our understanding of suffering again with the acknowledgement that our attitudes greatly affect our perception and experience of suffering, suddenly our suffering no longer purely the fault of whatever or whoever caused our suffering. Rather, the responsibility comes to rest on us to deal with the suffering using a mature and open-minded attitude. It is difficult, because of course it is easier to put the blame on someone else and use it as an excuse for self pity. Once we have the weight of that placed on us, we are forced to change our attitude and the way we think.             One important consequence of this is a changed perspective about our surroundings. If, as before, we see everything as a negative force working against us, “it makes no difference how exquisite your surroundings are,” (Rinpoche 27), because we will constantly make ourselves miserable. If we are unaware and do not understand our own actions, this misery can be entirely consuming without us realizing we can control it. If, on the other hand, we can learn to see the situation we are in for what it is, understand our thoughts, emotions, and feelings, and “cultivate the ability to appreciate” (Rinpoche 27), everything is suddenly within our control. All of this understanding of ourselves helps us immensely in our ability to help others. We more genuine, more calm, more positive thinking and more in control of our reactions and emotions. So much of what it takes to be compassionate focuses on simply being aware: being aware of how we are feeling, of our actions, of our thoughts, what others are saying, and how they are feeling. If we have practice being aware, understanding, and dealing with our own emotions and actions, it will be infinitely easier to help others do the same.