it is reasonable to conclude that from single shooters to those in the highest offices, in our indifference & inaction, we are addicted to a culture of violence rather than a love for life.
we are at no loss having scapegoating, deflections & distractions at the ready, but are seemingly consistently devoid of any lasting effort to find real solutions.
prayers that are not seeds for meaningful action are empty of love & empty of value when faced with the continual slaughter of children by guns that are weapons of mass destruction.
“Destiny itself is like a wonderful wide tapestry in which every thread is guided by an unspeakably tender hand, placed beside another thread, and held and carried by a hundred others.”
~ Rainer Maria Rilke
you are not alone.
it’s important to remember this, especially at this time as whole groups are targeted & divisive tactics are used by those in power. there is a great river of interdependence flowing throughout history that connects us all. when we are joined in our hearts with love, we express this unseen truth with beauty & resilience. it is a flow of love beyond space & time. not to diminish any harm being done or our need to respond to such harm with fierce compassion, but ultimately no outside force can disturb the flow of love which is always moving forward, opening, opening, opening.
in this moment, i come home to myself. body & mind in union, with all life.
take a moment at the opening & closing of each day to love yourself, to simply sit & breathe, to feel the earth beneath you, rooted & held. to feel your lungs fill with air, receptive & open. to feel the air exhale, with freedom & release.
“We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
Dr. King in his awareness & wisdom, is recognizing the truth of reality, that interdependence is the foundation of life as we know it – all things including people are interrelated, there is no separate “other.” Buddhism is really good at naming this directly & with clarity, but i would also suggest Jesus is saying something at least similar when he says, “Whatever you have done to the least of these you have done unto me.”
when we create & name a separate “other” it is far easier to assign blame there or scapegoat & even dehumanize. we can dismiss the harm being done as having nothing to do with us. however, this is a short sighted & self-centered view, that further solidifies the idea of a separate self from the “other”. simply put, it isn’t the truth & isn’t in harmony with the truth of how life is, or how life works, & it creates & supports a container for doing immense harm. we see this currently all over the world, but prominently in Gaza, & in our own streets with the scapegoating of immigrants, the tearing apart of families, & disappearing of people, & in devaluing the worth of others by taking away food assistance & healthcare.
holding a view of separation, that there is some “other” separate from us, we are in danger of becoming indifferent to harm at best, & contributors at worst, but both complicit in harm.
we should practice holding the view that “there is no other” for the benefit of all.
when we are honest with ourselves about who we exclude from our view of the sacred – through our thoughts, words, & actions – we will see how we are complicit & contributing to harm, through support of systems & structures that marginalize, oppress, & destroy life, often manifesting within us simply as indifference.
a closed heart is an indifferent heart, so we must keep our hearts open to others – especially for those we feel resistance towards. otherwise we feed into the continual cycles of violence. this love is not the warm fuzzy feelings of a Hallmark card. this love is the very real & gritty choice to not exclude or harm.
though i didn’t study with Larry directly, his writing, his teaching and especially his poetry & his inclusion of his Christian teaching with Buddhadharma have had deep resonance for me on my own journey.
with deep bows of gratitude, may his journey onward be filled with ease and love.
~j
â•ď¸Źâ™Ąď¸Źđź™ŹđźŹĽ
Posted @withregram • @thelotus_institute
Dear friends and beloved community,
This morning, Tuesday, August 19, our beloved teacher and wise elder, Larry Ward (True Great Sound), passed away in his home in Rhode Island. Larry had faced some health challenges recently, yet he continued to live and teach fully in each moment. He was always quick to share his morning practice of the Five Remembrances, and how he started every day, before his feet touched the ground, in contemplation of our impermanence and oneness.
Larry is a lighthouse of love, laughter, and wisdom for countless people across generations, cultures and faiths. His voice, the lion’s roar, grew even louder this year as we all faced the challenges of a world on fire. His expression of the Dharma was at once rebellious, accessible and drew on teachings across Christianity, Buddhism and beyond.
Through it all, his radiant smile, joyful belly laughs, and boundless compassion made us feel safe and at home—reminding us that we are doing our best, and that we are enough, just as we are. At Lotus, in team meetings and events, he’d always encourage us to go outside, be in the company of birds, deer, and trees, and sit in the natural wonder of this world—and try not to worry too much.
Peggy is being held in the loving care of family and friends. Please keep her in your hearts and prayers.
Soon, we will have an opportunity to gather and remember Larry and the things he loved: music, poetry, stories, and laughter. For now, we ask you to join us in providing your collective energy and support to Larry in this time of transition.
in the long run, authoritarianism, fascism, dictatorship – by whatever name we give such darkness – don’t stand a chance.
stay with love & all that it engenders: openness, empathy, tenderness, kindness, compassion. these are the values born of truth, that already reside within the depths of our being, in the spark of who we truly are before & beyond delusion, grasping, & aggression, the values that bind us together in healing & purpose, beyond reproach.
The Metta Garden 