Great examples the likes of Jesus, Sathya Sai Baba, Prophet Mohammed Nabi(Peace be upon Him) and others spontaneously empathised with all people, without distinction between people, as per gospels.
Empaths sense subtle energy and absorb this energy into their bodies, allowing them to internalise the feelings, pain and various physical sensations of others. Some empaths also have profound spiritual and intuitive experiences.
- Affective empathy, also known as emotional empathy, is about actually feeling an emotion that another person is experiencing. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) exhibited this beautiful quality of empathy with everyone that he encountered.2.
- Jesus, was able to sense the needs of those around him, before they said a word. This is illustrated over and over again in the gospels as people came to him for healing. In one scene, we see the haemorrhaging woman grab the hem of his robe, and Jesus immediately felt power go forth from his body. And, of course, the ultimate scene where he absorbed others energy was on the cross, when he took upon himself all the sin and evil of all time. Take a moment and imagine what that must have been like for him. I don’t think we can, because there is nothing else to compare it to. It goes without saying that Jesus experienced profound spiritual and intuitive experiences. When he was baptised, the skies opened up and a voice declared him his beloved Son. Later, during the Transfiguration, with Peter, James and John, his appearance was transformed before their eyes and he talked with Moses and Elijah, who were also there. For those who identify as empaths or highly sensitive people in today’s world, it can be difficult to navigate life. With constant stimulation coming from all angles, empaths need to find a way to shield themselves at times from the energy of others, so they can continue to live autonomously. It’s likely Jesus knew how to do this, as when he cast out demons, he was often unfazed by their response and spoke to them with authority. A cursory study of the gospels shows that Jesus was perfect when it same to sensitivity to others. This sensitivity has attracted billions of followers down through the ages as they recognise that Jesus understands them thoroughly and is a safe place of refuge and healing.
- In December 1970, Sathya Sai Baba was so ill, 7th December A medical team surrounded the sick bed; their report read as follows, “history of pain in right lower quadrant of the abdomen since 3 p.m. on the 7th December. To begin with, the pain was all over the abdomen, progressive in intensity; towards the night, it localised in the umbilical region, and the right lower quadrant. Had difficulty in extending the right lower limb. Pain is exaggerated by movement.”
8th December morning, had nausea and fever.At 8 o’clock that night, the doctors reported, “Lying supine in bed, with legs drawn up. On examination, the right side of the abdomen not moving with respiration; abdomen tender on the right side, and the lower flank…, point of maximum tenderness in lower flank…, no rebound tenderness.. . guarding present over right lower quadrant, with rigidity of flank. Temperature 100 F; pulse 100 /m; respiration 16/m. Total blood count 22,000; neutrophils 88%. A diagnosis of acute paracolic appendicitis was made. Unwillingness for surgical intervention.”
On 9th December, the doctors decided to put tubes down the nose to relieve the hiccough, which was complicating matters, for taking the gas out of the stomach. They talked also of the urgent need that had arisen to puncture the lump and syringe off the pus from the abscess. It must indeed have given a terrible gash of pain for Baba, every time the hiccough pulled the muscle tight and affected the lump round the inflamed appendix! But eventually the doctors left the Raj Nivas with their tubes and bottles, as Baba refused to accept their proposals.
On the 10th, a Bhajan/Prayer meeting had been announced at Government House, and word had gone round indicating that Baba would attend the meeting! Baba too said “Yes! Arrange it.” The doctors could not believe their ears. They did not foresee any possibility of a public appearance that day.
Baba’s condition may be described “The doctors were unanimous that an immediate operation was necessary, or they would not be held responsible for what might happen. They said the inflamed appendix had burst, and the pus had entered the blood – a situation that is fatal for all mortals!”
At 5 p.m. Baba on His request was led into the bathroom, and twenty minutes later He came out of it, clean shaven, wearing a new robe! Fresh as a new blossomed rose.
When the doctors examined Him again, they could not locate any abscess, nor could they find any trace of big lump of flesh near it. The whole area of the appendix was as soft and as normal as it could be.
Baba spoke for over forty minutes with His usual emphasis and élan. The gathering listened spellbound, for it was a message of triumph, benevolence, and benediction.
His words, “The illness that was witnessed by you during the last two days was quite different. That was an illness taken over by Me, voluntarily put on, in order to save a victim who could not have survived it! His continued existence, in good health is desirable for the task dear to Me. Pouring Grace on the devout is one of the functions of the Avatar. The appendix was inflamed, it turned into an abscess which the doctors could cure only by removal… He could not have survived it, I know. I have come with this Body in order to save ‘other bodies’ from pain.
I had to go to the rescue of a person who had surrendered to Me – even his judgment. I took over his illness and went through it. It shall not recur again in him. You refer to this incident as a miracle, but remember – every breath is a proof of the Providence of God. Every event is the consequence of Divine Omnipotence.”
So with empathy one can absorb some one’s pain and make it easy for the other person and many times than not, they can even cure the patient. The emphasis is if one can feel the pain of others with empathy and want to take over so that the other person should feel less painful, it can happen. For the empath, Love without any expectation or distinction is the condition for this to happen.