Mutual Recognition as the Foundation for Compassion

Objectives: Research on compassion has been overwhelmingly undertaken from the healthcare perspective, and discussions on compassion from the philosophical perspective are meagre. This paper aims to contribute to the understanding of compassion through philosophical discussions and proposes that compassion has an intimate relationship with mutual recognition, which harnesses it as an ideal element for the foundation of a theory of social relations. Method: A Hegelian German idealistic perspective on mutual recognition was adopted as the conceptual framework for this paper. Literature on research and discussions on the theoretical foundations, empirical results, and discussions on compassion from various disciplines was reviewed and analysed. Results: The prevalence and traces of mutual recognition as social bonding described in Hegel’s philosophy were identified. More specifically, mutual recognition results in a sense of respect and dignity to others, a sense of common humanity, mindfulness, an awareness of one’s shortcomings and failures, empathy, and the formation of a positive relational connection, which are core elements of compassion and self-compassion. Conclusions: A Hegelian mutual recognition needs to be placed as a core constituent of compassion for collective human consciousness to realise human freedom fully. Hegelian mutual recognition should also be promoted as the foundation of a theory of social relations.