--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Compassion makes you feel sadness…" description: "\"Compassion makes you feel sadness. Sympathy only makes you feel pity.\" — Anonymous" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f48/anonymous-1_compassion_compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympat_1385622.jpg" --- # Compassion makes you feel sadness. Sympathy only makes you… ![“Compassion makes you feel sadness. Sympathy only makes you feel pity.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f48/anonymous-1_compassion_compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympat_1385622.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f48/anonymous-1_compassion_compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympat_1385622.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f48/anonymous-1_compassion_compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympat_1385622.jpg) > “Compassion makes you feel sadness. Sympathy only makes you feel pity.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Compassion involves sharing another's suffering, leading to sadness; sympathy keeps distance, resulting in pity. **In simple terms:** Compassion shares pain, sympathy feels pity. Key Takeaway Cultivate compassion for deeper connection. Themes empathy emotional intelligence relationships Mood reflective empathetic Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - counseling - volunteering - conflict resolution - support groups Key Concepts compassion sympathy emotional resonance Questions to Reflect On - How does sharing pain affect you? - When does pity become harmful? A Different Perspective Compassion can be overwhelming without self-care. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Compassion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compassion/) [Feel Pity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel-pity-427776/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Pity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pity/) [Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness/) [Sadness Sympathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness-sympathy-4813058/) [Sympathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathy/) [Sympathy Makes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathy-makes-4813059/) ## Related quotes > [There's a natural instinct embedded in friendship, a sympathy that makes us willing to fight for someone we like when they are treated unjustly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/there-s-a-natural-instinct-embedded-in-friendship-a-sympathy-that/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [The wonder of an artist's performance grows with the range of his penetration, with the instinctive sympathy that makes him, in his mortal isolation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/the-wonder-of-an-artist-s-performance-grows-with-the-range-of-his/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [I feel pity for him, and that is a poor sign of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-feel-pity-for-him-and-that-is-a-poor-sign-of-love/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Pity is such a shabby thing. I can torment myself with wanting to feel pity, and yet I don't succeed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-klemperer/pity-is-such-a-shabby-thing-i-can-torment-myself-with-wanting-to-feel/) [Victor Klemperer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-klemperer/) > [When you visualized a man or woman carefully, you could always begin to feel pity -- that was a quality God's image carried with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/when-you-visualized-a-man-or-woman-carefully-you-could-always-begin/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [“Dil-e naazuk pah uske raham aata hai mujhe Ghalib, Na kar sar-garm us kaafir ko ulfat aazmaane mein. (I feel pity for her delicate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hasan-suhail-siddiqui/dil-e-naazuk-pah-uske-raham-aata-hai-mujhe-ghalib-na-kar-sar-garm-us/) [Hasan Suhail Siddiqui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hasan-suhail-siddiqui/) > [If a man is tongue-tied, don't laugh at him, but, rather, feel pity for him, as you would for a man with broken legs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/if-a-man-is-tongue-tied-don-t-laugh-at-him-but-rather-feel-pity-for/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [“All terrible things are more terrible if they give us no chance of retrieving a blunder—either no chance at all, or only one that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/all-terrible-things-are-more-terrible-if-they-give-us-no-chance-of/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [What would you do? Would you jump? Would you feel pity for yourself? Would you think about your family and your childhood and your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-brien/what-would-you-do-would-you-jump-would-you-feel-pity-for-yourself/) [Tim O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-brien/) > [“If you are my food, how am I supposed to feel pity towards you? That would mean starvation for me. “A hungry leopard told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/if-you-are-my-food-how-am-i-supposed-to-feel-pity-towards-you-that/) [Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/) > [“When we perceive aliens as a joke to be laughed at, they feel so pity for us on the success of their plans.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/when-we-perceive-aliens-as-a-joke-to-be-laughed-at-they-feel-so-pity/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [“Did she feel pity for me, did she want me to suffer? The next morning she led me to the coat closet, which faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/did-she-feel-pity-for-me-did-she-want-me-to-suffer-the-next-morning/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [“she did at least feel pity for me, pity for a lost soul. And if once a girl’s heart is moved to pity, it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/she-did-at-least-feel-pity-for-me-pity-for-a-lost-soul-and-if-once-a/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [I feel pity for Mayawati that joined hands even with rival Akhilesh Yadav only in an attempt to stop Narendra Modi.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaya-prada/i-feel-pity-for-mayawati-that-joined-hands-even-with-rival-akhilesh/) [Jaya Prada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaya-prada/) > [“In the strangely simple economy of the world people only get what they give, and to those who have not enough imagination to penetrate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/in-the-strangely-simple-economy-of-the-world-people-only-get-what/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Compassion quotes > [Half the misery of human life might be extinguished if men would alleviate the general curse they lie under by mutual offices of compassion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/half-the-misery-of-human-life-might-be-extinguished-if-men-would/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [“I fight with love and kindness as my weapons and compassion as my defense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debasish-mridha/i-fight-with-love-and-kindness-as-my-weapons-and-compassion-as-my/) [Debasish Mridha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debasish-mridha/) > [I really enjoy making people laugh; I've discovered that's a great technique. That's as powerful as stirring their sorrow, stirring their compassion, because that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/i-really-enjoy-making-people-laugh-i-ve-discovered-that-s-a-great/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [“If you refuse to use physical force, then you will be at the mercy of your oppressor!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/segun-magbagbeola/if-you-refuse-to-use-physical-force-then-you-will-be-at-the-mercy-of/) [Segun Magbagbeola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/segun-magbagbeola/) > [For some reason, we are truly convinced that if we criticize ourselves, the criticism will lead to change. If we are harsh, we believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geneen-roth/for-some-reason-we-are-truly-convinced-that-if-we-criticize-ourselves/) [Geneen Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geneen-roth/) > [I could not have slept tonight if I had left that helpless little creature to perish on the ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-could-not-have-slept-tonight-if-i-had-left-that-helpless-little/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [We are puzzled and bewildered whenever we see suffering in this world because we have become accustomed to the mercy and the long-suffering of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/we-are-puzzled-and-bewildered-whenever-we-see-suffering-in-this-world/) [R. C. Sproul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul/) > [“Helpers in every corner, helpers in every hood. That's how we'll make the move, to reform from rude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/helpers-in-every-corner-helpers-in-every-hood-that-s-how-we-ll-make/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [There are a number of qualities which are important for mental peace, but from the little experience I have, I believe that one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/there-are-a-number-of-qualities-which-are-important-for-mental-peace/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [May the gods have mercy on whoever pisses them off, because Zarek and Jericho will have none for them. (Madoc) You’d better be glad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/may-the-gods-have-mercy-on-whoever-pisses-them-off-because-zarek-and/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [When you need empathy, you cannot give empathy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-b-rosenberg/when-you-need-empathy-you-cannot-give-empathy/) [Marshall B. Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-b-rosenberg/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“No one has any right to tell you that the way you perceive yourself is wrong. Because by doing so, they also discourage the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/no-one-has-any-right-to-tell-you-that-the-way-you-perceive-yourself/) [Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/) > [“la ilaha ilallah muhammadun rasulullah, alaihi salatullah wa alihi wal ahibba "shine your mercy like the sun, and be gracious as the earth let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/talib-al-habib/la-ilaha-ilallah-muhammadun-rasulullah-alaihi-salatullah-wa-alihi-wal/) [Talib al Habib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/talib-al-habib/) > [The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-love-for-all-living-creatures-is-the-most-noble-attribute-of-man/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) [Browse all 9,892 Compassion quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compassion/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Compassion makes you feel sadness. Sympathy only makes you feel pity.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympathy-only-makes-you-feel-pity/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Compassion" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympathy-only-makes-you-feel-pity/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f48/anonymous-1_compassion_compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympat_1385622.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f48/anonymous-1_compassion_compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympat_1385622.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f48/anonymous-1_compassion_compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympat_1385622.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Compassion makes you feel sadness. Sympathy only makes you feel pity.” — Anonymous", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Compassion makes you feel sadness. Sympathy...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympathy-only-makes-you-feel-pity/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/compassion-makes-you-feel-sadness-sympathy-only-makes-you-feel-pity/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```