"How do we not lose our humanity? How do we not demonize others and realize how we are all responsible? How do we see this terrible brutality and not split the world in two? Into us and them?
To the man who was killed and to the people who killed him, who are they? What leads someone to do that? How do we safeguard the teachings throughout our life with rigorous care and protection?
To me, safeguarding the tradition means making sure that even in these terrible moments, we’re not losing compassion, wisdom, love, and connection."
I teach secular mindfulness and becoming a town councilor really tested what it means to be mindful in the middle of conflict, trauma, competing needs, and limited resources as a small town. Politics became my teacher. I realized despite seeming differences we often had the same underlying needs and values, just our lived experiences were different. Coming to the present moment, we're seeing different movies as Van Jones puts it. We're being fed different narratives and millions go into creating the political divide.
To be able to see through this illusion, practice is so important and the guidance of wise teachers. Thank you for your teachings _/\_
I'm full of contradictions. Even watching my own reaction to this death specifically. Excruciating to watch, yes, but a nurse?! I'm a nurse! Extra outrage, and maybe now it's getting personal. What if he were an unemployed man living with his mom and playing video games all day? Is there an outrage downgrade?
What helps me align is to ask myself questions and to try and be vulnerable enough to be truly honest about myself. And really specific. You asked last week about giving without recognition. For all my kvetching about my crumbling, painful body, I somehow motivate myself to prepare food for 3 feral colony cats that live around the corner and go out at like 10pm in 10 degree weather and sit there until they finish so I can clean up after them. They never say thank you, BTW. Literal eat and run. I have thought, many times, "now translate this effort and attitude to humans" (like a mantra even). Or pin it as a reference for when I find myself wanting to make excuses in other areas of life. And quickly, to add, I read here for a while before ever commenting, and the story was that I know nothing about Zen practice so don't crash this party because I don't know the rules, the lingo, the proper way to address, worried how I would be/am viewed. I say this out loud because maybe there are other readers who want to share something but feel exactly like I do...
Thanks for the inspiring post! Lately I’ve noticed myself out of alignment when I’m entering spaces of not knowing. I get tense and start to retreat into my own fears and insecurities.
To bridge this gap and loosen up the knot I’m practicing getting curious about those fears. I’m also attempting to dive into the emotion or sensation without resisting it to build up more courage.
“I do not know how many of you watched the killing of the nurse in Minneapolis. I found it excruciating. An emergency room nurse.
How do we not lose our humanity? How do we not demonize others and realize how we are all responsible? How do we see this terrible brutality and not split the world in two?”
By opening one’s heart, always and at every time. In love and joy, and gentle self reflection, rather than self aggression.
By moving away from judgment, always and at every time.
Including those whose lives we know little of in many ways, but who might seem to us culpable of many things, including excuse-making.
Especially when we might be more concerned with their own practice — for whatever reason — then we are concerned with our own.
Your words really spoke to me. Especially this:
"How do we not lose our humanity? How do we not demonize others and realize how we are all responsible? How do we see this terrible brutality and not split the world in two? Into us and them?
To the man who was killed and to the people who killed him, who are they? What leads someone to do that? How do we safeguard the teachings throughout our life with rigorous care and protection?
To me, safeguarding the tradition means making sure that even in these terrible moments, we’re not losing compassion, wisdom, love, and connection."
I teach secular mindfulness and becoming a town councilor really tested what it means to be mindful in the middle of conflict, trauma, competing needs, and limited resources as a small town. Politics became my teacher. I realized despite seeming differences we often had the same underlying needs and values, just our lived experiences were different. Coming to the present moment, we're seeing different movies as Van Jones puts it. We're being fed different narratives and millions go into creating the political divide.
To be able to see through this illusion, practice is so important and the guidance of wise teachers. Thank you for your teachings _/\_
I'm full of contradictions. Even watching my own reaction to this death specifically. Excruciating to watch, yes, but a nurse?! I'm a nurse! Extra outrage, and maybe now it's getting personal. What if he were an unemployed man living with his mom and playing video games all day? Is there an outrage downgrade?
What helps me align is to ask myself questions and to try and be vulnerable enough to be truly honest about myself. And really specific. You asked last week about giving without recognition. For all my kvetching about my crumbling, painful body, I somehow motivate myself to prepare food for 3 feral colony cats that live around the corner and go out at like 10pm in 10 degree weather and sit there until they finish so I can clean up after them. They never say thank you, BTW. Literal eat and run. I have thought, many times, "now translate this effort and attitude to humans" (like a mantra even). Or pin it as a reference for when I find myself wanting to make excuses in other areas of life. And quickly, to add, I read here for a while before ever commenting, and the story was that I know nothing about Zen practice so don't crash this party because I don't know the rules, the lingo, the proper way to address, worried how I would be/am viewed. I say this out loud because maybe there are other readers who want to share something but feel exactly like I do...
Thanks for the inspiring post! Lately I’ve noticed myself out of alignment when I’m entering spaces of not knowing. I get tense and start to retreat into my own fears and insecurities.
To bridge this gap and loosen up the knot I’m practicing getting curious about those fears. I’m also attempting to dive into the emotion or sensation without resisting it to build up more courage.
“I do not know how many of you watched the killing of the nurse in Minneapolis. I found it excruciating. An emergency room nurse.
How do we not lose our humanity? How do we not demonize others and realize how we are all responsible? How do we see this terrible brutality and not split the world in two?”
By opening one’s heart, always and at every time. In love and joy, and gentle self reflection, rather than self aggression.
By moving away from judgment, always and at every time.
Including those whose lives we know little of in many ways, but who might seem to us culpable of many things, including excuse-making.
Especially when we might be more concerned with their own practice — for whatever reason — then we are concerned with our own.