During the Chinese invasion, many Tibetans were imprisoned in the gulags, where they were tortured for years.
Some of them after spending 18, 20, 25 years in prison for some reason succeeded to get out and return to India, so I met them and exchanged our experiences.
Among them was a monk I knew very well before the 1959 occupation.
When we escaped he stayed there and was subjected to torture in the gulag for 18 years.
When he came to see me at the beginning of the 80's I asked him "Tell me what happened".
"There have been some really difficult situations: two or three situations in which there has been a lot of danger".
I thought he was referring to the danger to his life. "What danger did you have?" I asked him.
"There was a danger that I would lose my compassion for the Chinese."
This is how these people consider compassion.
They consider it a danger to lose compassion for our enemy.
They have an attitude of such strong compassion that, despite extremely traumatic, insurmountable situations, they succeed to maintain their peace of mind.
And the result is that they are happier.
(Tenzin Gyatso, XIV Dalai Lama)