P R E F A C E I I
What Do We (Not) Mean by Training
Boris Bornemann and Tania Singer
“Master, master, how long do I need to enlightenment?”
“Well, maybe 20 years.”
“And if I try really hard?”
“Then 40.”
- Buddhist joke
In this section and
(“Training Programs of Compassion”), we often use the word “training”
when referring to practices that enhance our capacity for compassion. Let us make a brief
comment on the use of this word in the context of compassion and contemplative practices.
In the scientific literature of psychology and neuroscience, contemplative practices are usually
referred to as “mental training
This term was coined to denominate various forms of mental
activity such as memory training
and motor skills training by using imagination
Research into
mental training was an established scientific field that served as an alley for meditation research to
enter the conceptual world of psychology and neuroscience. Translations of classical Buddhist
texts have also sometimes referred to contemplative practice as “mind training” (e.g., the lojong or
Seven Point Mind Training)[4].
In general, training refers to the systematic acquisition of knowledge, skills, or competences and
can extend over short durations such as hours, days or months to years or to a whole lifetime. In
this sense, the use of the word training in the context of cultivating compassion is certainly
appropriate. However, some connotations of the word “training” may produce misconceptions
leading to an understandable resistance to the use of the word and even to the practices
themselves. Let us briefly address and clarify these connotations.
Although commitment and a firm motivation are necessary to engage in contemplative practice on
a regular basis, these mental practices are not to be approached with a tense mind. Even for basic
mind focusing and balancing type of meditations (shamata), emphasis is placed on relaxation as
the ground on which stability and vividness of the mind can develop[5]. Relaxation is even more
important for more affectively focused practices such as loving-kindness meditation[6]. We cannot
force ourselves to be more compassionate; the very application of force is opposed to the
disposition that we want to bring about. An attitude of wanting to achieve can thus be
counterproductive. This is mirrored in the lojong proverb “Give up hoping for results”[4]. Also, as
Barry Kerzin discusses in
, instead of directly aiming to become more compassionate, it
may sometimes be wiser to develop virtues such as patience, generosity, and forgiveness, which
support and give rise to compassion.
The view that too much wanting can be counterproductive to compassion is also supported by
neuroscience. As discussed in
and
compassion is rooted in the motivational
system of “care” and not “achievement.” Although both systems can work in cooperation, many of
their mechanisms and produced states are in opposition (e.g., contentment and quiescence versus
activation and goal-directed drives)[7]. It may thus be paradoxically true that in order to become
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