About

Strengthen your compassion, empathy, and kindness.

A compassionate attitude can greatly reduce the distress people feel in difficult situations,
which becomes a profound personal resource in times of stress.

Compassion Cultivation Training™ (CCT) is an 8-week course designed to develop the qualities of compassion, empathy, and kindness for oneself and others. Through instruction, daily meditation, mindfulness, and in-class interaction, CCT combines contemplative practices with contemporary psychology and scientific research to help you lead a more compassionate life.

CCT was developed by a team of contemplative scholars, researchers, and psychologists at Stanford University School of Medicine.

Compassion

Compassion is a process that unfolds in response to suffering. It begins with the recognition of suffering, which gives rise to thoughts and feelings of empathy and concern. This, in turn, motivates action to relieve that suffering.

Cultivation

Humans have a natural capacity for compassion. However, everyday stress, social pressures and life experiences can make it difficult to fully express this capacity. Each of us can choose to nurture and grow the compassionate instinct, like a plant that is carefully cultivated from a seed. This process requires patience, steady care, proper tools, and a supportive environment.

Training

The process of cultivating compassion involves training our own minds, developing specific skills in how we relate to others, and ourselves and intentionally choosing compassionate thoughts and actions. In CCT, the training process includes (1) daily meditation practices to develop loving-kindness, empathy, and – compassion, (2) a two-hour weekly class that includes lecture, discussion, and in-class partner and small-group listening and communication exercises, as well as (3) real-world “homework” assignments to practice compassionate thoughts and actions.

About the Instructor

Adam Burn, MA

BeCompassion Founder and Principal Facilitator

Adam is a Certified Compassion Cultivation Teacher who trained at Stanford University’s School of Medicine at the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE). He is a proud veteran of the United States Air Force and holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Arizona State University and a master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from the Arizona School of Professional Psychology. While engaged in graduate studies, Adam became intrigued by research into the neuroscientific bases of contemplative practices as empirically demonstrated avenues toward well-being for persons suffering from trauma, depression, anxiety, and burnout. He has served in patient support capacities in neuropsychological assessment and therapeutic services at the Mayo Clinic, Stanford University Medical Center, community-based mental health agencies, private psychology practices, and in detention facilities. Adam currently serves the Palo Alto VA Health Care System and is particularly interested in the cultural and holistic treatment implications underlying complimentary and alternative methodologies for veterans in need. He has found compassion meditation practice to be a deeply empowering vehicle, through which resilience and thriving can be achieved in the face of life’s inevitable challenges.