The purpose of life is to find the seed of your own compassion and then to help grow that seed in others, says Zen Master Soeng Hyang. My daughter agrees…

What is the purpose of life? That may change from moment to moment. But helping others to be able to live out their purpose, too, is probably a big part of it.

Here is the unifying theory for living a good life and helping the world that summarizes everything I wrote in my book How To Be Alive: Give more energy to what is True for you; give less energy to what is not True for you.

What if, in conflict, we thought as no person is our enemy? What if it is misunderstanding, extreme desire and anger that cause poor behavior? Then, are not misunderstanding, extreme desire and anger are our only enemies? So if we want to stop conflict, shouldnt we reduce misunderstanding, extreme desire and anger?

This is the principle I believe should underlie all enterprise, from personal to commercial to educational to religious to governmental: Becoming and helping others to become.