Renunciation as Compassion

Many of us don't like the word 'renunciation' because we associate it with rejecting things we hold dear, such as our families and enjoyments. Of course, that's not what it means in Buddhism, where it's defined as a wish to abandon suffering, particularly the suffering of future lives. It's a joyful mind.

We're taught that before we can generate compassion for others, we need renunciation for ourself. For our compassion to be grounded, we have to understand the true nature of the world we live in, which is suffering. I was one of those who wanted to jump ahead to compassion for others without generating renunciation for my own suffering.

I've been pondering whether we can bring it back around, so that we think of renunciation as compassion for ourself. That isn't technically correct, but I wonder if it's sometimes helpful to see it that way. (Maybe I've lost track of which mountain I am, This or That, Me or You : ) Heh, heh - I don't think so.)
You could certainly say we want to develop renunciation out of kindness for ourself.

A few years ago when Jindak was leaving her job, transitioning to become a nun, she taught a lunch-time meditation class, I think it was, where she compared renunciation to the last days of work after you've given notice. (This was back in the days when people often left a job for a better one.) If you're conscientious, you're still doing all the tasks you used to, but you're not bothered anymore by the petty criticisms, office politics, and gossip - because you're out of there. That's the feeling of renunciation. It's liberating!

Last Sat we had the Empowerment of Avalokiteshvara, the Buddha of Compassion. He is one of my favorites - probably the first Buddha I connected to, even more than Buddha Shakyamuni, who was like a kind father; Avalokiteshvara was like a friend.
Richard and I did some traveling in Asia - Japan, China, Hong Kong (when it was a British colony), Thailand - and looking back I think seeing Buddha statues all over helped draw me to Buddhism. In a lot of those places, the Buddha of Compassion is female, so sometimes I used to forget and think of Avalokiteshvara as female.