Does violence always win? It may seem so, in the short term. The violence that is sudden and brutal can do so much harm that it is horrendous. Babies killed. Millions displaced. Massive starvation occurs with so much suffering. Natural disasters happen that cause such immediate harm. The human suffering is so immense that the only way to be able to deal with this if you or your family is not affected is to try your best to help if you can.

There is another way to look at these horrible things that are more up lifting. There are examples where compassion overcame violence in such a magnificent, almost miraculous way.

No matter what happens to be your political or religious persuasion, no matter your nationality, no matter how strongly you feel about issues, you will have to admit our collection of how compassion overcame violence is very compelling. Please do not be judgmental. Instead, be open to seeing the examples of how kindness is stronger than violence; no matter what the culture or the traditions.

Some of these stories seem like fairy tales, yet we assure you that they really did happen.

In times of global confrontation, when it seems we are on the verge of World War III, it is comforting to see when compassion triumphs violence and take some solace in knowing that in the end “good wins.”

This is our list of the top 25 times that compassion triumphed violence, which includes, human tragedies, horrific abuses, natural disasters, accidents, and all kinds of possible adversity. To rise above this is to have a happy ending. Please do not be offended by any references to any specific religious traditions. What we were looking for in this article were things that make common sense. Our goal was very simple. It was to answer the question: “In the end, does good prevail over evil?” The good news is we found 25 really heart-wrenching true stories where compassion was the ultimate winner.

Here are the 25 best stories of where being kind overcame violence!

25. Dog Buried Alive Is Saved

A French man was walking his dog and his dog became very disturbed. It pulled on the leash and pulled the man off the walking trail into the woods to find another dog buried up to its neck but still alive. This is a modern version of the story from the Bible of a Good Samaritan who helped a man who was mugged.

The kind man gave the buried dog some water from his bottle and then, by hand, dug him out of the hole where he had been buried. Not only was this dog buried alive, it had injuries from stones thrown at its head to try to kill it. The dog was rescued and it recovered. They found the owner who tried to kill this dog in the most brutal way possible by stoning it to death, who now has been charged with a crime. The dog is fine, fully recovered, and living with the family of the dog that rescued him. The horrible previous owner is now facing fines and possible time in jail for what he did.

24. Love Your Enemies

Love your family. Love your friends. Love your country. Love yourself. However, can you actually love your enemies? This is what Jesus said to do and many seem to forget he said this. “Love your enemies as yourself.” Really? That sounds crazy. However, this is the pathway to find peace on earth for everyone. Love your enemies exactly like Jesus said. This does not mean that we love what they do. Instead, it means to refuse to meet evil with more evil because that just makes everything worse. We stand up against evil. We stand strong. In a non-violent way, we shame evil until it finally surrenders. Good creates more good. Evil eventually runs completely out of energy after it has destroyed everything including itself. This process is excruciatingly painful; however, there is no other way to proceed in the face of pure evil.

23. Rumi Convinces Genghis Khan To Spare Town

Genghis Khan was one of the most brutal aggressive warmongers in world history. He annihilated any opposition that came in his way. However, there is the story of when Genghis Khan met Rumi. Rumi was a Sufi mystic and the army of Genghis Khan approached the town where Rumi lived. The massive army waited on the outskirts of the town where Rumi lived and Genghis Khan went to talk in person to Rumi. Rumi had no military defense but he had a spiritual defense. He talked with Genghis Khan for about 18 hours, all through the night. Afterward, Genghis Khan passed the small town where Rumi lived and left it unharmed. Genghis Khan continued on to conquer the rest of the world with brutal domination. Rumi published his love poems to God, which are still powerful statements of love and compassion to this day! Rumi was a follower of Islam. If anyone thinks that the love of Allah and his prophet Mohammed means a jihad of war and destruction, they would do well to first read Rumi’s writings.

22. Buddhist Monk Gives His Life To Feed A Tiger’s Babies

There is a true story about a Buddhist monk who came upon a tiger in the forest. The tiger was fierce and was a female. The reason she was so fierce is that she had babies who were extremely hungry. This gentle monk laid his body down in the path and gave his physical body to her so she could feed her babies. He had no fear because he knew he would either reincarnate again to come right back with a new life or pass from this realm to a higher realm of Nirvana (the realization of the “Buddha” state). The point is, he immediately realized that he was not able to fight the physical attack of a tiger, so instead he surrendered to the obvious condition and accepted his death without attachment to his body at all. In this way, he died completely at peace.

21. Gandhi Protests Taxation Of Sea Salt

Gandhi taught the world about passive resistance that the New York Times noted was continued thereafter by Martin Luther King Jr., the Dali Lama, and others. Non-violent protests sometimes make the truth very clear in a certain situation of unfairness. By through this method, he was able to liberate his country of India from the colonial British rule. One of his initial acts of civil disobedience was that he walked to the sea and took, by his own hand, some sea salt that was readily available on the coastline for anyone that needed to use it. The British tried to implement a tax on the sea salt to charge the poorest people of India for something that they normally got for free. In this act of civil disobedience, so well orchestrated in the movement led by Gandhi, hundreds of protesters were beaten down, without resisting, until the British soldiers themselves got so ashamed of hurting the innocent people that meant them no harm. After the soldiers could not harm the innocents anymore, the violence stopped. This is the strength of compassion that triumphs evil. This is how Gandhi liberated his country from the rule of the British.

20. Martin Luther King Sees The Dream On The Mountain

Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream. He saw in his dream that all people of all races and colors would be treated equally in the United States. God bless him because he was the staunch representative of the truth for racial equality that we are still fighting for to this day. The truth was obvious but not easily accepted. Many were harmed and some were killed during the civil rights movement. Dr. King himself was shot. How this happened is still a controversy and yet his legacy is that he saw the future when he said: “I have a dream.”

19. Protester Puts Flower in Soldier’s Rifle

During the 1960’s, America was going crazy. After the end of WWII, you would think there was no desire to continue any more wars. But the powers to be wanted to have a new war in Asia and then make our previous American ally of Russia during WWII into our enemy under the guise of fighting Communism. Over 50,000 American soldiers died in the Vietnam War. It is estimated that over three million Vietnamese died as well. At home in the U.S., the young people started a major national protest movement. They did not support the status quo that wanted to kill and bomb so many Vietnamese people. After massive protests all over the country that eventually arrived in Washington, D.C., where the Peace Protest movement persuaded the U.S. government to withdraw from Vietnam. They young fought the establishment with all the “flower” power of love they could muster and with this movement overcame the evil and stopped the war.

18. Mother Teresa Creates Cease Fire in Beirut to Save Disabled Orphan Children

Mother Teresa became aware of an abandoned orphanage with disabled children in Beirut, Lebanon. The children had been left neglected because of the fighting in that area. The caregivers ran away and there was no way to take care of the children who could not be safely moved through the war zone. Mother Teresa arrived on the scene and said there would be a cease fire to allow her and her assistants to rescue the disabled orphans. At the time, everyone of lesser faith thought her idea was too dangerous. However, her story was picked up by the local news and got published in the newspapers. After that, there was a cease fire and the Sisters of Mercy led by Mother Teresa were able to bring the disabled orphans to safety and after that, the fighting resumed. The children grew up with wonderful love and all were saved thanks to Mother Teresa’s intervention during this horrible war.

17. ‘Tank Man’ Stands Up To Chinese Brutality

The brutality of the Chinese government’s attempt to subdue the democratic insurrection in Tiananmen Square during 1989 was stopped for a moment by a single man who is now called “Tank Man.” He stood up to the invasion of Beijing by tanks in the street with nothing more than his purchases from shopping that he was carrying home. No one, to this day, knows the identity of this man or what happened to him after this courageous act that was captured on video and went viral when the video was posted online. The soldiers driving the tank could not bring themselves to drive over the man and crush him to death. Even they realized how evil this would be. After a standoff of some considerable time, onlookers ran to grab the man and pull him to safety. This is one of the most iconic moments in world history where a single person was able to stand up to super power military dominance.

16. Mother Teresa Opens The First AIDS Hospice In New York

Mother Teresa came to New York during the 1980’s to set up an AIDS hospice for gay men who were dying. Mayor Koch was instrumental in getting a fast-track approval of the use of a small hotel in Greenwich Village and get all the permits approved for the new use as a hospice. For his efforts to help Mother Teresa, he was quoted as saying, “What else could he do but help when God’s representative walked into his office?” At this time, the Catholic Church had the official position that AIDS was a plague of the heathen gay men caused by their evil fornication and they deserved to die. The White House, under the guidance of Ronald Reagan, did not even talk about AIDS. It was not until more than just gay men were dying, like the boy Ryan White, who contracted HIV/AIDS from a blood transfusion that mainstream society began to pay attention to AIDS and see it as the devastating world pandemic that it eventually would become.

15. Modern Good Samaritans

Do you think there is no one out there to help you? Well, if you think this is complete truth, you are very wrong. There are so many stories of modern good samaritans who step up to help another person in need, even if there is a risk in doing so. People give their lives to help others that are their family members or friend and may even help a complete stranger. There is a motivation in some individuals that simply tells them what to do in emergencies. Some have professional training that helps them do this, such as emergency rescue workers or firefighters who run into a blaze to save those trapped inside, while others are running out. There are a few individuals who seem to have amazing courage to help others when faced with a horrible situation with obvious life-threatening and adverse consequences. Some stop a robbery. Others save a baby from death. Many kept a person alive, by grabbing them just before they leaped to their death in an attempted suicide. No matter what they do, they do this for altruistic motives, not for just themselves but for the compassion that they have for other people.

14. Endangered Species Saved

There is a great benefit to us when we try to protect valuable species from extinction. The biodiversity of planet Earth is what makes it such a marvellous place where billions of life forms can thrive. Once a species dies out completely, it is lost forever. There are so many species subject to this problem. It is estimated that about one and a-half million species disappear from our biosphere every year. It is only by our good luck that we are not one of the ones that disappear. There is no guarantee that our good luck will continue. In fact, we may already be creating the environmental conditions that bring about our own demise. By understanding the major impact of climate change and how it is likely to be responsible for a mass extinction event that may include us, we still have some chance to try to do something about it.

13. Abandoned Baby Is Saved

This stray dog found an abandoned fetus that was birthed and then thrown into the trash by someone. The dog pulled the baby out of the trash and did not harm it in any way. Instead, very gently without damaging the human child, it took it to get the attention of the passers-by in order to save the baby. The baby survived and the stray dog was also welcomed into the home of the family that adopted both the dog and the abandoned child.

12. Organs Donated Saved Three Lives

A guy, who was shot in a drive-by shooting, donated his organs to help his own mother to survive as well as two strangers. He already had agreed in advance to let his organs be donated by simply indicating his intentions on the form when applying for a driver’s license. His mother needed to a kidney to survive and two strangers needed other organs as well. He was a kind young man, living in a very bad neighborhood. But he did not engage in the gang behaviour that ultimately got him killed. In fact, he did everything he could to avoid the gangs. He died in a tragic accident of being hit by gunfire intended for others. However, his live-sustaining donations of his organs helped not only his own mother survive but also two others who will be forever grateful for his kindness. One thing is certain; a donated heart is already full of love.

11. Dog Nurtures Babies From Another Species After Mother Is Killed

Sometimes the mothering instinct is stronger than a species delineated instinct. This is the case where a mother of another species rears babies from another species as if they are her own. This is very nice to see because the babies are lost and their mother is gone. Without the surrogate mother to take over the babies would likely have died. In many cases, the surrogate mother takes over to help rear the babies in ways that are so nurturing and gentle. Scientists are fascinated that the mothering instinct is so much stronger than any other determinant characteristics.

10. Man Sacrifices Everything To Save Family

There is nothing more severe than when a man gives his life to save his family. This man faced a terrible choice. He had to put himself in harm’s way and save his family or watch them die. He did not hesitate. He jumped into the danger and removed all his family and pulled them safely away from harm. He was then killed. However, his legacy is very strong, because he saved all of his family, even having to give his own life to save them.

9. Young Soldiers Put Down Arms

The death of ISIS now leaves many young soldiers without any thing to do, confused, and with nowhere to go. These children are orphans who were conscripted to serve in ISIS. Some are as young as 6 years old. These children were indoctrinated to be soldiers in the army of ISIS against their will to fight for a cause that they do not completely understand. Most would prefer to be in school. They are children who do not know what to do. Efforts are being made to bring them back into normal society and rebuild the damaged regions where they used to live.

8. Buddhist Monk Faces Death, Yet Refuses to Harm Insects

Buddhist monks try their best not to harm any sentient beings. This includes insects. To do this is not so easy because many of the Buddhist monks live in areas of the Asian jungles where there are many insects. Mosquitoes bring malaria and other deadly diseases. It is not easy for anyone to be kind to them. However, true Buddhists are kind to everyone and they make a special effort not to harm insects as part of their traditions. Even though this monk, Bhikkhu Buddha Dhatu caught malaria from a mosquito bite that put him into a coma for weeks and almost killed him, he says he holds no grudges against insects and that, “There is no need to be angry with ignorance.”

7. Native Americans Risk Their Lives Because They Love Mother Earth

Native Americans were the first people in what is now the USA, Canada, Central, and South America. They have a right to be here. They love Mother Earth and have a special relationship with her. The invasion of Europeans brought so many troubles to the Americas that continue to this day. However, the elders of the native people know that there will be a day when the Earth will be free once again from this aggression and the people remaining here can live in harmony with the Earth.

6. Woman Protects Pigs From Slaughter

This woman had enough of the horrific killing of pigs. For those who butcher pigs and are not sufficiently humane, they kill the pigs by stabbing them. When this is done, the animals screech for about a half hour in excruciating pain, while they slowly bleed to death. Pigs are very intelligent and the baby ones can be very cute. It is hard to believe that they can be killed so brutally. Animal rights activists work hard to get more humane slaughtering practices in place; however, in many parts of the world, the killing methods that are used are completely unregulated.

5. Women Help Other Women Escape Abuse

Women benefit when they get together to help each other because an abused woman can find the best help from another female who can empathize with her condition and help her get the resources she needs to escape the abuse. This is the goal of any woman who was previously abused to help another woman escape the same fate because they know what it is like and how hard it is to escape. We’re not saying the men cannot help women when they are in trouble – they should and they do – but women understand each other’s pain in a way that men can’t truly understand. It is this sense of empathy that allows women to look out for each other when possible.

4. Abolitionists Help Slaves Escape to Freedom

Many people do not know there was a very active resistance to the slave trading in the Southern part of America that ultimately led to the Civil War in the USA. Many people risked their lives to help slaves break free and move north to the states where slavery was prohibited. This was an active resistant movement and very powerful in freeing many people who would otherwise not have any chance to escape. Harriet Tubman was one of the preeminent leaders in this resistance movement who is credited with creating the “Underground Railroad,” allowing thousands of African-American men and women escape the South.

3. Transgender Man Fights Discrimination To Father A Baby

A transsexual man who was transitioning from female-to-male got pregnant and had a baby with his husband who is also a transsexual female-to-male person. This proves that gender identity is fluid and the biological past does not necessarily reflect a person’s own gender identity. On the other hand, the couple who enjoyed having this baby is very satisfied and loving to each other and to the child. The new father said about his partner: “She is my wife and my husband and not necessarily exclusively male or female but perfect in every way.”

2. The Summer of Love Returns

This year of 2017 marks the anniversary of the “Summer of Love” in San Francisco. There was just a big event held there to celebrate a “Love In” called The Sound. Fifty years ago was a time when many of the young people “tuned in, turned on, and dropped out,” following the advice of Dr. Timothy Leary who was an early scientific researcher in the use of LSD. Mind-altering chemicals also made massive societal changes possible. The generation gap was about the expression of love versus the warmongering and anti-communist sentiment of the establishment. It seems like we are repeating similar things today.

1. Global Nuclear War Is Over Before It Starts

Recently 1290 nations signed a global peace treaty to eliminate nuclear weapons from Earth. The only countries who did not participate were those that are all the major powers, which have nuclear weapons. The message is clear for the future survival of the human race. There is no need for any nuclear weapons. Human beings do not want them. Using them would be genocide on a scale as to be intolerable. In a major world war, which includes a massive nuclear exchange, the world’s population would be annihilated. Any survivors would face a long, painful pathway to death from the radioactive fallout and massive starvation that comes afterward because the entire world would be contaminated. The majority of the human race is coming to sanity and will not tolerate violence propagated by nuclear weapons.