Dear Friends,
A core attitude in Buddhism is: if you want to contribute to a change in the world, start with yourself. Do you focus on reducing the suffering in the world, start your activism and time to search for the roots of your own suffering, living mindfully, continue to take small steps. With a compassionate heart, not with a fight. Whatever you give attention becomes stronger. The things you water, feed, nourish grow stronger. A special way of watering is the thought: this is not very good, it has to be different, it's just not true. I can feel it sometimes during meditation: I don’t want those thoughts and feelings now, I just want to be with my breath. Those thoughts are grateful, because they can stay longer.
Today I came across an article by Thich Nhat Hanh about war. He started with a beautiful comparison between a Japanese Zen garden and a Vietnamese Zen garden. The Japanese Zen garden is sleek, formal, organized, right angles, a raked gravel field with a stone in the middle, no disturbances. The Vietnamese Zen garden is playful, exuberant, with grasses and many flowers and trees. Children play in one corner, older men bend over a game of chess in the other corner, animals are free to roam. It is a peaceful, unorganized miniature world. A beautiful metaphor, which very sharply reflects my searching for restlessness. A practice in compassion, too. I had just worked in the garden for an hour to remove a stubborn (un) herb, horsetail. There is no ‘better’ garden; they are mirrors. The balance between planning and let it happen. Between sitting still, concentrating on the breath, a great need for inner peace and sitting still, perceiving, with compassion, accepting, looking deeply and acknowledging what is there.
This openness had been touched on before. If you want right leadership in a community four groups of people must lead the community: experienced men, experienced women, experienced young people, and newcomers. It comes from a 2,600-year-old oral tradition in Africa. It touched me very strong. The stranger's wisdom. The youngster's wisdom. The peaceful power of daring to happen what happens. Our world would be a different world.
I invite you to come together as Sangha and make space and time to connect with your garden, your seeds and roots to look at the exceptional beauty of the unexpected variation.
I wish you a relaxing, coulorfull weekend! Joost |
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