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This week Camille will facilitate and we will continue to explore the practice of Engaged Mindfulness.
Last week we were introduced to Samanthabhadra, the Bodhisattva of Great Action, as a resource or reminder to "act wisely" and with understanding. And as Annie suggested last week in her write up, in the practice of engaged mindfulness we wish to learn
to practice "skillfully" to understand the suffering of another before we can act and try to help. Her sharing of Thay's mantra that "our happiness depends on the happiness of all other beings" - is what really resonates with me and sometimes eludes me.
I am often one to rush out to a cause, join a protest or march, feed a sick friend, and fill my day with acts to help others and then realize I have not really taken care of my own suffering and need to slow down. Over the last year I have suffered from a good deal of pain and discomfort in my gut and joint issues. And at the same time I have felt a lot of despair of the suffering in the world in terms of oppression, violence, and destruction of our ancestral lands. So much of my practice is trying to remember this mantra to not only skillfully understand the suffering of others but to remember mine as well and that I am not separate from others. Only then can I act with true compassion and understanding and find happiness.
When Thay was asked a question at a retreat about what one can do while holding our own suffering and the world's suffering, he said:
"We want to do something to help the world to suffer less. But we know that when we’re not peaceful, when we don’t have enough compassion in us, we can’t do much to help the world. We ourselves are at the center. We have to make peace and reduce the suffering in ourselves first, because we represent the world. Peace, love, and happiness must always begin here, with ourselves.There is suffering, fear, and anger inside of us, and when we take care of it, we are taking care of the world."
"Imagine a pine tree standing in the yard. If that pine tree were to ask us what it should do, what the maximum a pine tree can do to help the world, our answer would be very clear: “You should be a beautiful, healthy pine tree. You help the world by being your best.” That is true for humans also. The basic thing we can do to help the world is to be healthy, solid, loving, and gentle to ourselves. Then when people look at us, they will gain confidence. They will say, “If she can do that, I can do that too!”
Lately I have been practicing giving myself more space and more free time. This is a hard concept for me. My kids always say, "Mom, you never sit still." They remind me, like Thay, to be more loving and gentle and forgiving myself.
These reminders feel good and I feel more alive enjoying my time to sit, walk, and really enjoy the beauties of life. This is when that feeling of happiness begins to flush through my veins. Then I am ready to listen, hear, understand, and act.
This week I had the opportunity to join a protest following Indigenous Peoples' Day - "People vs Fossil fuels" - with the Plum Village Earth holders sangha community and our OHMC community to support those impacted Indigenous, Black, Brown, and low-income communities directly affected by dangerous fossil fuels. I gave myself space and time without rushing, and without feeling guilty, to join the event later in the day. While a good part of the action was over, I had the opportunity to listen to those who are greatly affected by the poisons of fossil fuels, to hear them talk about their anger and fear, hear them chant, and hear the water protector drum.
With my heart more spacious and open, I know I could hear the suffering more clearly and generate an intention for wise action in the future. The compassion I have for myself helps me bring more compassion into my care for others.
Thay says, "With mindfulness, we can protect ourselves, our families, and our society; and we can ensure safety and happiness, now and in the future."
Some questions or ideas to consider are below. Further down you can read OHMC's Engaged Mindfulness Vision Statement.
-How can we take care of ourselves so that we may be there for others?
- What brings you joy and happiness?
- How do you see our happiness depending on the happiness of others?
- How might we practice engaged mindfulness in ourselves and with others to encourage bring peace and happiness?
I look forward to seeing you all on Monday.
With love,
Camille
Engaged Mindfulness Vision Statement
As a community of practice in the Plum Village tradition, Opening Heart Mindfulness Community aspires to be an inclusive community that embodies three core values: mindfulness, compassion, and community.
Mindfulness is the awareness and transformation of not only our own suffering, but of the suffering around us. Therefore, we will look deeply into our society and will speak out against injustice and oppression. We will offer beneficial services and spiritual support to those who are at risk or who have been harmed. We will strive to change such situations by joining others in nonviolent movements and direct actions that genuinely have as their aim justice, reconciliation, peace, and love.
In pursuing engaged practice, Opening Heart Mindfulness Community will not support political parties or causes or take sides in political disputes. We welcome into our community all people who support the three values at the core of our community regardless of their personal characteristics, such as socio-economic status, race, gender, sexual orientation, or political beliefs.
We encourage loving speech and compassionate listening at all our gatherings as we endeavor to embody Thich Nhat Hanh’s teaching that no one is our enemy, that the moment we understand and feel compassion towards our enemy, they are no longer our enemy. We will endeavor to understand deeply the views and suffering of those with whom we disagree just as we endeavor to understand our own views and suffering. We know that peace and nonviolence do not mean non-action but that we are proactive in our love and compassion, that as a community we must demonstrate that peace is the way.