Dear Friends,
This week Camille will facilitate.
At our Sangha on December 16 and January 6, Annie and Andy respectively shared a conversation around racial and social justice, discussing how to work with these issues through the lens of the mindfulness and Buddhist practice and through the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh. In preparing for our discussion, we watched portions of the first ARISE webinar (originally offered in November). (click here to access a recording of the webinar.) ARISE (Awakening through Race, Intersectionality, and Social Equity) - is a sangha made of practitioners and monastics who come together to heal the wounds of racial injustice and social inequity, beginning with looking deeply within ourselves and using the energy of compassion, understanding, and love in action. Part of their mission is to guide those of us in the larger community in how to do this work as well.
On Monday, we will watch or listen to another portion of the webinar. (Please feel free to watch the entire webinar before Monday to enrich our discussion.)
A helpful guideline for social justice and the sangha is the tenth of the fourteen mindfulness trainings, where Thay writes:
Aware that the essence and aim of a Sangha is the practice of understanding and compassion, we are determined not to use the Buddhist community for personal gain or profit or transform our community into a political instrument. A spiritual community should, however, take a clear stand against oppression and injustice and should strive to change the situation without engaging in partisan conflicts.
In this 3rd portion of the ARISE Webinar, one of the participants talks about “remembering who we are,” and remembering the deep intersections of who we are. And that the intersectionality is like what Thay talks about when he describes “interbeing”. When we look at one another – recognizing that we are not just a “blank person” but we embody all those intersections and collections of all our different identities and experiences and energy that we all share, including all our ancestors - blood, spiritual, and land.
I often feel angry and lost when I see how we have exacerbated oppression and continue to marginalize individuals. I wonder if I am doing enough in advocating for social justice and social equity or if I am adding to what our speaker calls “repeating what has been happening for centuries”. So why then do I and others sit with this discomfort without actively engaging in changing our systems, structures, and even our privileges. I am hoping by working and making changes - with others, our mindfulness community, and the Dharma, we can change the situation as Thay suggests "without engaging in partisan conflicts" but by engaging in compassionate ways to heal.
After our meditation period we will listen to another part of the webinar and then share our reflections on social justice and mindfulness practice. We can continue to reflect on how racial and social equity fit into our spiritual practice and think about what our community's role in healing racial and social injustice is. And what can we do to change the systems and structures that want to create more social injustice?
I look forward to being with you on Monday night.
With love,
Camille