Compersion, also called the "opposite of jealousy," may be described as a feeling of joy or of other positive emotions experienced when you witness or are aware of your romantic partner sharing in romantic or sexual intimacy with another. Compersion, or vicarious joy, was coined by the Kerista Commune in the 1970s specifically to talk about polyamorous relationships.
Previously the ancient Buddhist practice of mudita, or unselfish joy, and the modern Hebrew "to give firgun," or "to not begrudge," begin to describe the lineage of a concept and a way of feeling that today may be either too buried in past traditions or too new in budding communities to be widely recognized, understood, or taught.
Any way you name it, the joy that comes through us inspired by the delight and blessings of others, is a feeling that I think the world deserves to know more about. I want to start collecting the compersion stories of the world. I want to capture them in writing and share them broadly. Let's find out about compersion together, and then let's teach the world.
Because I believe that love helps make up everything, I am offering this project in part in that frame. Tell me why you love when others love. Tell me about the joy you experience when others find their bliss. What gets you to understand others' joy and moved to stoke the embers of others' positive experiences and connections? How do others know that you want them to be happy? What delights you about others' excitement and pleasure?
Do you have a compersion story? Share it here and I'll be in touch about getting it published on the site!
Lalalaloveyou! ~anna
Previously the ancient Buddhist practice of mudita, or unselfish joy, and the modern Hebrew "to give firgun," or "to not begrudge," begin to describe the lineage of a concept and a way of feeling that today may be either too buried in past traditions or too new in budding communities to be widely recognized, understood, or taught.
Any way you name it, the joy that comes through us inspired by the delight and blessings of others, is a feeling that I think the world deserves to know more about. I want to start collecting the compersion stories of the world. I want to capture them in writing and share them broadly. Let's find out about compersion together, and then let's teach the world.
Because I believe that love helps make up everything, I am offering this project in part in that frame. Tell me why you love when others love. Tell me about the joy you experience when others find their bliss. What gets you to understand others' joy and moved to stoke the embers of others' positive experiences and connections? How do others know that you want them to be happy? What delights you about others' excitement and pleasure?
Do you have a compersion story? Share it here and I'll be in touch about getting it published on the site!
Lalalaloveyou! ~anna
