to lessen hostility and extreme reactivity

 

 

 

 

Today, November 6, 2020, the United States, my home, 

is a nation divided against itself, with all sides striving to win.

 This is the karma of white supremacy and colonization

 manifesting in the midst of a global pandemic and climate crisis.

 I live in California, a state that is, literally, on fire.

The Buddha said this:

Winning gives birth to hostility.
Losing, one lies down in pain.
The calmed lie down with ease,
having set
winning & losing
aside.

“Winning gives birth to hostility.”

 Another translator more colloquially put it this way:

 “The winner sows hatred because the loser suffers.”

I believe in strategic political action and liberatory movement-building. 

I have cast my vote. And these are my Bodhisattva vows as I move with you

 into the coming months and years:

 What actions can I take to lessen hostility and extreme reactivity,

 and to encourage civil discourse and respectful democratic process?

May we all complete the great journey of awakening together.

 

 

~  Mushim Patricia Ikeda, 

East Bay Meditation Center