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Photo credit: Einar Ingi Sigmundsson
I am left with questions. Will my children be welcomed in this world to be who they are? Will the potential my wife and I see be met with encouragement, or will they be encouraged to silence themselves, for fear that their true expression will be misconstrued for disrespect or turn them into a threat. Will their beautiful skin be accepted as God’s gift or a symbol of sin and shame?
Read moreMan reigns supreme with his dominion over nature. He is white. He believes in and owns property. His relationship with the earth and other life is motivated by profit. He has no regard for ways of life not his own. Women and children have been spared no mercy. He does not remember the song of the birds or the feel of the wind. He does not remember his connection to the earth, our first Mother, who births and sustains life.
Read moreThis is the key that Gandhi and other peace messengers have brought to us. The transformation of bad seeds into good fruit grows from one’s ability to suffer for others. The seeds of good take time in the dark to bring the fruit of life to light.
Read moreIf one wishes to dismantle white supremacy in our education system, one must first confront the oppressor within. It is not a matter of feeling different about white supremacy; rather, one must do something with the power and privilege granted to those who are white. While this process can be assisted by black and brown people, the burden of this work rests firmly in the hearts, minds, and hands of white people.
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Death is the great remover of illusion. It brings awareness to our consciousness of what is true and real. In this way, death is a great teacher. It comes to us only when it is time for us to transform once again. It does not come a moment too soon or too late. From the moment we incarnate through birth, we are walking towards death. And since death is the remover of illusion, death brings us to freedom.
Read moreIt is our idea of what is happening in our body that brings us to the place of pain. The arising and passing away of painful sensations in our body is like a wave. We can ride these waves with our breath. As we ride these waves, we move beyond suffering, towards insight. The nearer to the source of suffering one arrives, the deeper one is able to penetrate as insight.
Read moreTuệ Trung Thượng Sĩ’s, “The Eccentric’s Song”
Nature is immense
I wander in great freedom
Nature is immense,
I wander in great freedom,
To the lofty mountains where the clouds hide,
And to the deep waters of the great oceans.
When I am hungry I eat and eat .
When I am tired, I sleep in the village—village of nowhere.
Photo credit: Mariusz Szmerdt
When I feel like playing music, I use a flute without a hole,
I burn incense of detachment when it is serene,
And I sleep on the ground of delight when I feel tired.
I quench my thirst with a portion of leisure.
Let me enjoy my joy
Let me enjoy my accentuation
Because, listen—wealth and glory are as fleeting as the clouds floating in the sky,
Alas! time is going by!
The mandarin [politicians] career is perilous, why then should I venture in it?
One should offer one’s service when called upon
But should retire into seclusion when wanted.
What shall I do then because people are not constant?
One should take off one’s clothes to cross deep waters and roll up one’s clothes to walk shallow waters.
One should offer one’s service when called upon but should retire into seclusion when wanted.
One should not cling to one’s body composed of the four elements,
And attain insight in this very life and cause all wandering.
Thus one fulfills one’s vow: to discover one’s real home
And to reach beyond the pressure of birth and death.
Now, seven years past, I look at this garden and see a reflection of my inner world; a symbol of my spiritual life, the flowers being the many gifts God has blessed me with: family and community, the chance for meaningful work, the freedom to choose what to make of my life, and most precious of all the knowledge of what is worthwhile in this life.
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