Karuna is the Sanskrit term for compassion. Compassion in Buddhism is the longing to alleviate the suffering of others, ideally all others. Karuna is one of the two core values in Mahayana Buddhism, along with Wisdom.
Karuna is considered necessary for enlightenment. Wisdom is the direct perception of reality, and totalizing wisdom, or union with the wisdom mind, is essentially synonymous with enlightenment. Without compassion, however, we lack the driving force to remain on the path until realization. In other words, enlightenment is not easy. It takes many lifetimes of effort. Therefore we need compassion to motivate us. We need to deepen this compassion in meditation and action to generate merit. This merit becomes fuel for our path.
