Dear all
I have recently had a few people ask me how we practice with the world as it is, in terms of national and international politics and conflicts. It can be scary both for ourselves and our loved ones for and all sentient beings both close at hand and in countries far away, and we can often feel powerless to change what is going on.
As students of Zen, what we do about this? How do we practice when it seems that the world is on fire?
Firstly, I would say that this is samsara, and our time, although it may feel like it, is not special. Humanity has always been going through conflicts of some kind or other, and there have always been despots, dictators and rulers who do not have the best interest of their people at heart.
Reading accounts of our own patriarchs, many of them practiced during really hard times, through revolutions and periods when practicing Buddhism was itself subject to suppression or even outright prohibition. During Shakyamuni's time, there were wars and conflicts between rival tribes, and it was said that one king, Bimbisāra, was even assassinated by his own son, Ajatashatru, in c. 493 BCE
Samsara and the influence of the three poisons is the reason why we practice and not an obstacle. Although times may feel hard and we have personal struggles to attend to, it is during these times when both we and the world need our practice. However, that said, having a way to look at practice during challenging times has been helpful to me, and I would like to offer one such way here, using the three tenets of the Zen Peacemaker Order (ZPO) as a guide.
Bernie Glassman’s Zen Peacemaker Order has been one of the foremost Buddhist approaches to engaged practice during the time of the dharma coming to the west, and they devised three tenets on which to base their practice. These are:
1. Not Knowing
As I imagine most of you are aware, not knowing does not refer to wilful ignorance, but rather the Zen sense that we can never know the complete picture of what is going on and, even less, predict what is going to come next. At times we all have a tendency to think of some of the most damaging consequences of what is happening, and at times those may come to pass. But at other times, events will take twists and turns that lead us away from seemingly unpreventable disaster.
Through practice, especially of Zazen, we can leave space to not know, allowing for events to unfold as they do, rather than fixing our minds into a mindset of doom which, admittedly, can sometimes seem wholly justified.
In terms of remaining informed, I think that the degree to which we do this varies from person to person, and event to event. I tend to be of a mindset that I like to stay informed, but that doesn’t mean clicking on news channels and media every few minutes or even every hour. It is good to know what is going on, but also good to have space away from becoming fixated. I think we all know this but it can sometimes be hard to stop clicking.
2. Bearing Witness
In terms of engaging with news media, I feel that it is important to not look away from what is happening in the world, and bearing witness to the suffering of all sentient beings. Similarly to above, this does not mean staying glued to world events, but when we do watch the news, to allow our hearts to open to what is happening. Practicing metta or tonglen can give us a practice framework to do this.
If you really do not have the personal capacity to do this, it is fine not to, and there will likely be periods in all of our lives when we do need to just take care of ourselves and our loved ones.
In evolutionary terms, our minds are still those of hunter-gatherers, who would receive information about their local environment and the closest few tribes to them, not of what is happening on the other side of the planet. So, being overwhelmed by the amount of information now available is not a surprise and we need to take care of that.
3. Taking Action
In the Green movement I have been a part of for the past three or so decades, we have long had a slogan – Think Global, Act Local. When we think of world events, our human minds tend to jump either to what we can do to affect large scale happenings, or else become paralysed by a sense of powerlessness.
Taking a step back, we can instead focus on what we need to do for ourselves, our loved ones and our community, before we even try to take any action to affect world events (which may include writing to political leaders, supporting charities and offering solidarity to those affected).
In times of division and conflict, one of the best things we can do is be a source of kindness and acceptance, offering a listening ear to those who need it, and not leaping to judge the views of others. When there is separation, connection is a radical act.
What we do may seem like a drop in the ocean of world events but each drop gradually becomes a wave.
As this is a Zendo it will probably come as little surprise to any of you to note that just sitting in Zazen provides a point of peace in a world where that is often lacking and as Dōgen says in Bendōwa:
This may be hard to rationalise when things are as they are, yet, it is true that even when the world is at conflict and filled with suffering, there is also a sense of wholeness and completeness that underlies everything that is happening, and not one thing is out of place. Finding that place of peace for ourselves, we can take it into the world and act from that stillness. It we cannot find that peace within, it is even harder to find it outside. Taking time to sit in difficult times is another radical act, and just as important as anything we might take off the cushion.
If the bodhisattva vow is to mean anything, when things get hard is when it is most important for us to show up. Who else are the hands of Kannon except for you and I?
As an endnote, I am fully aware that I write this from a place of relative ease. My country, the UK, is not currently at war, and, aside from being disabled, I am not at huge risk of being targeted for who I am, either personally or politically. I know that many of you here are not in this position and we have members in active warzones and whose identity presents a risk factor in their home country. For those of us in a more secure position, supporting those who are not should, for me, also form part of practice, and looking out for those folk both in our community and outside of it.
May all beings be well.
May all beings be happy.
May all beings be free from suffering
and the causes of suffering.
Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday/lah-
I have recently had a few people ask me how we practice with the world as it is, in terms of national and international politics and conflicts. It can be scary both for ourselves and our loved ones for and all sentient beings both close at hand and in countries far away, and we can often feel powerless to change what is going on.
As students of Zen, what we do about this? How do we practice when it seems that the world is on fire?
Firstly, I would say that this is samsara, and our time, although it may feel like it, is not special. Humanity has always been going through conflicts of some kind or other, and there have always been despots, dictators and rulers who do not have the best interest of their people at heart.
Reading accounts of our own patriarchs, many of them practiced during really hard times, through revolutions and periods when practicing Buddhism was itself subject to suppression or even outright prohibition. During Shakyamuni's time, there were wars and conflicts between rival tribes, and it was said that one king, Bimbisāra, was even assassinated by his own son, Ajatashatru, in c. 493 BCE
Samsara and the influence of the three poisons is the reason why we practice and not an obstacle. Although times may feel hard and we have personal struggles to attend to, it is during these times when both we and the world need our practice. However, that said, having a way to look at practice during challenging times has been helpful to me, and I would like to offer one such way here, using the three tenets of the Zen Peacemaker Order (ZPO) as a guide.
Bernie Glassman’s Zen Peacemaker Order has been one of the foremost Buddhist approaches to engaged practice during the time of the dharma coming to the west, and they devised three tenets on which to base their practice. These are:
- Not knowing
- Bearing Witness
- Taking Action
1. Not Knowing
As I imagine most of you are aware, not knowing does not refer to wilful ignorance, but rather the Zen sense that we can never know the complete picture of what is going on and, even less, predict what is going to come next. At times we all have a tendency to think of some of the most damaging consequences of what is happening, and at times those may come to pass. But at other times, events will take twists and turns that lead us away from seemingly unpreventable disaster.
Through practice, especially of Zazen, we can leave space to not know, allowing for events to unfold as they do, rather than fixing our minds into a mindset of doom which, admittedly, can sometimes seem wholly justified.
In terms of remaining informed, I think that the degree to which we do this varies from person to person, and event to event. I tend to be of a mindset that I like to stay informed, but that doesn’t mean clicking on news channels and media every few minutes or even every hour. It is good to know what is going on, but also good to have space away from becoming fixated. I think we all know this but it can sometimes be hard to stop clicking.
2. Bearing Witness
In terms of engaging with news media, I feel that it is important to not look away from what is happening in the world, and bearing witness to the suffering of all sentient beings. Similarly to above, this does not mean staying glued to world events, but when we do watch the news, to allow our hearts to open to what is happening. Practicing metta or tonglen can give us a practice framework to do this.
If you really do not have the personal capacity to do this, it is fine not to, and there will likely be periods in all of our lives when we do need to just take care of ourselves and our loved ones.
In evolutionary terms, our minds are still those of hunter-gatherers, who would receive information about their local environment and the closest few tribes to them, not of what is happening on the other side of the planet. So, being overwhelmed by the amount of information now available is not a surprise and we need to take care of that.
3. Taking Action
In the Green movement I have been a part of for the past three or so decades, we have long had a slogan – Think Global, Act Local. When we think of world events, our human minds tend to jump either to what we can do to affect large scale happenings, or else become paralysed by a sense of powerlessness.
Taking a step back, we can instead focus on what we need to do for ourselves, our loved ones and our community, before we even try to take any action to affect world events (which may include writing to political leaders, supporting charities and offering solidarity to those affected).
In times of division and conflict, one of the best things we can do is be a source of kindness and acceptance, offering a listening ear to those who need it, and not leaping to judge the views of others. When there is separation, connection is a radical act.
What we do may seem like a drop in the ocean of world events but each drop gradually becomes a wave.
As this is a Zendo it will probably come as little surprise to any of you to note that just sitting in Zazen provides a point of peace in a world where that is often lacking and as Dōgen says in Bendōwa:
If a human being, even for a single moment, manifests the Buddha’s posture in the forms of conduct [body, speech and mind], while sitting upright in samādhi, the entire world of Dharma assumes the Buddha’s posture and the whole of space becomes the state of realisation.
If the bodhisattva vow is to mean anything, when things get hard is when it is most important for us to show up. Who else are the hands of Kannon except for you and I?
As an endnote, I am fully aware that I write this from a place of relative ease. My country, the UK, is not currently at war, and, aside from being disabled, I am not at huge risk of being targeted for who I am, either personally or politically. I know that many of you here are not in this position and we have members in active warzones and whose identity presents a risk factor in their home country. For those of us in a more secure position, supporting those who are not should, for me, also form part of practice, and looking out for those folk both in our community and outside of it.
May all beings be well.
May all beings be happy.
May all beings be free from suffering
and the causes of suffering.
Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday/lah-
I will keep this in mind.
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