Nurturing Compassion for a Better Tomorrow (#1000speak)
Where does compassion begin? If charity begins at home, shouldn’t compassion begin with ourselves? How can we be compassionate to others, if we are not compassionate to ourselves?
Being a genetics company, our team members were keen to learn about the role of nature in developing compassion. They found an interesting scholarly article which claims that a genetic variant of a marker of the oxytocin gene receptor can make people more compassionate. Incidentally, oxytocin is the hormone found in abundance in women during pregnancy and lactation.
The role of nurture has been known from time immemorial. That we learn compassion during childhood needs no proof. Most of us learn about being compassionate from various sources. Do we pass on this knowledge to our future generations? If yes, why do we see increased instances of remarkable lack of compassion? There is probably a gap between teaching and learning.
A good place to start would be being compassionate to ourselves. In our quest for excellence, we neglect our bodies’ needs. In moments of “good times”, we fill our bodies with toxins. In procrastinating fitness, we clog our arteries. In our impatience to fill more than 24 hours in a day, we neglect sleep. In the race to success, we neglect our values.
And their consequences: ill health, cancers, heart diseases, mental problems, increased crime rates, neglected children, anarchy, environmental disorders.
Clearly, the onus for a healthier society, nation, and planet is on us. If we nurture compassion today, the future generations will be naturally compassionate. Therefore, let us take the first steps toward compassion today. Let us aim for a healthy body and home. The rest follows.
Works Cited: Kogan, Aleksandr, et al. “Thin-slicing study of the oxytocin receptor (OXTR) gene and the evaluation and expression of the prosocial disposition.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 108.48 (2011): 19189–19192.
Your Genes Shape More Than Your Health
From oxytocin receptors to stress response, your DNA influences how you connect with others and navigate the world. Genomepatri by MapmyGenome reveals the genetic traits that make you uniquely you — including personality, behaviour, and wellness markers.
