In these Notes, two participants in Fields of Peace share their wisdom:

Transcription

1 Field Notes 17 Dear Friends, In these Notes, two participants in Fields of Peace share their wisdom: *A Buddhist View of Peace by Jerry Braza, author of: The Seeds of Love (Growing Mindful Relationships), 2011, and Moment by Moment (The Art and Practice of Mindfulness), 1997 * The Shortest Route Through a Maze by Ken McCormack, author of: Hail Holy Light (The Great Awakening of the Sixties), 2012 Plus, *Mimemis, a poem by Fady Joudah * Malala, a Pakistani girl nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize Thank you for the peace you teach and practice, Charles and Cathey Busch Fields of Peace * fieldsofpeacepv@charter.net *

2 Mimesis My daughter wouldn t hurt a spider That had nested Between her bicycle handles For two weeks She waited Until it left of its own accord If you tear down the web I said It will simply know This isn t a place to call home And you d get to go biking She said that s how others Become refugees isn t it? by Fady Joudah By permission from the author, from Alight, by Fady Joudah, Copper Canyon Press,

3 A Buddhist View of Peace By Jerry Braza (Dharma teacher in the lineage of Thich Nhat Hanh) Twenty six hundred years ago, the Buddha offered certain guidelines to his lay students to help them live peaceful, wholesome, and happy lives. These key Buddhist teachings are known as the Five Wonderful Precepts. These guidelines have been renamed the Five Mindfulness Trainings by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, which he advises, are the practices and insights that enable us to Be Peace. Thich Nhat Hahn also advises that, It is not enough to make declarations about peace, but to use mindful practice to actually realize peace. The Five Mindfulness Trainings represent the Buddhist vision for a global spirituality and ethic. This shortened version provides an opportunity to reflect on peace: 1 Reverence for Life Aware of the suffering caused by the destruction of life, I am committed to cultivating the insight of interbeing and compassion and learning ways to protect the lives of people, animals, plants, and minerals. I am determined not to kill, not to let others kill, and not to support any act of killing in the world, in my thinking, or in my way of life. 2 True Happiness Aware of the suffering caused by exploitation, social injustice, stealing, and oppression, I am committed to practicing generosity in my thinking, speaking, and acting. I am determined not to steal and not to possess anything that should belong to others; and I will share my time, energy, and material resources with those who are in need. 3 continued

4 3 True Love Aware of the suffering caused by sexual misconduct, I am committed to cultivating responsibility and learning ways to protect the safety and integrity of individuals, couples, families, and society. Knowing that sexual desire is not love, and that sexual activity motivated by craving always harms myself as well as others, I am determined not to engage in sexual relations without true love and a deep, long term commitment made known to my family and friends. 4 Loving Speech and Deep Listening Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful speech and the inability to listen to others, I am committed to cultivating loving speech and compassionate listening in order to relieve suffering and to promote reconciliation and peace in myself and among other people, ethnic and religious groups, and nations. Knowing that words can create happiness or suffering, I am committed to speaking truthfully using words that inspire confidence, joy, and hope. 5 Nourishment and Healing Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful consumption, I am committed to cultivating good health, both physical and mental, for myself, my family, and my society by practicing mindful eating, drinking, and consuming. I will practice looking deeply into how I consume the Four Kinds of Nutriments, namely edible foods, sense impressions, volition, and consciousness. I am determined not to gamble, or to use alcohol, drugs, or any other products which contain toxins, such as certain websites, electronic games, TV programs, films, magazines, books, and conversations. Once we are familiar with and begin to internalize these trainings it becomes possible to realize these in our lives and help others do the same. And it is here that we sow the seeds and make peace possible in every step. For a complete copy of the Five Mindfulness Trainings, please visit: practice/the 5 mindfulness trainings/ 4

5 The Shortest Route Through a Maze by Ken McCormack Mahatma Gandhi knew that waste, pollution and excessive wealth are forms of violence. As they rise, so do hunger, disease, and poverty. Wars, especially in Africa, are being fought over limited resources. And, significantly, climate change is already creating more refugees than war. It is high time to acknowledge that human behavior has changed Earth and much faster than predicted. Governments and corporations continue to recommend economic growth and greater consumption. But endless growth is obviously unrealistic. Energy comes from the sun, and oil is stored sun energy. Fossil fuel unnaturally supports seven going on 10 billion people. In 1830, when oil was discovered, the population was one billion. Under natural conditions, sun energy could support, say, two billion (the population in 1939). Prospects call for a spiritual transformation, a change in conventional thinking and behavior a daunting task. Until recently, most religions accepted the mainstream view that people are by nature competitive and selfish. We are separate from nature and superior to it. Yet a careful reading of scripture contradicts this view. And so does modern science. We have this idea that competition is good and everybody is out for themselves, anthropologist Robert Sussman recently told Smithsonian Magazine. But science now demonstrates: The ultimate goal of evolution is to reach an ecological equilibrium and avoid competition and aggression. 5 continued

6 Fungi, trees, plants and animals are actually systems not separate individuals. They are rich alliances that for hundreds of millions of years have made life possible. People, too, are living communities of various parasites, fungi, bacteria, plants, animals and one another. Thus, destruction of our environment is essentially self destruction. We are nature, and nature has always been a major source of spiritual inspiration. It teaches us that fair and balanced relationships are far more successful biologically than domination through violence. Science and morality are in agreement. The scientific theory of Emergence also reveals a hudden wisdom for survival among social creatures like us. Fungi, ants, bees, and animals relate to one another from moment to moment as equals. Yet they somehow achieve sophisticated long term goals and unplanned solutions. Amazingly, green slime, for instance, displays group intelligence that can find the shortest route through a maze to food. There is hope from interaction but we must act quickly. The solution lies in treatment of all creation as sacred and deserving of equal respect. Thousands of groups around the world, including faith communities, are rising to the challenge. Most Christian denominations have recently developed programs to protect the planet. Organizations such as Green Faith and Earth Ministry are reaching out to all religions and secular groups. Individuals are installing solar panels on mosques and temples, tilling church gardens and conducting energy audits. They are riding bicycles, driving less, eating less meat, buying locally, and changing light bulbs. The heart of our problem, Mallory McDuff states clearly, is that when we look out upon the world we see a stockpile of natural resources rather than a manifestation of God s love, provision and concern. 6

7 Malala Malala On The Daily Show, Oct 10, 2013, host Jon Steward interviewed Malala Yousafzai, a 16 year old Pakistani girl who had been shot in the head by a Taliban assassin because of her outspoken advocacy for the education of women. Malala, unconscious and in critical condition, was flown from her Pakistani village to London for treatment. She recuperated and was asked to tell her story. Time magazine featured her as one of the 100 most influential people in the world, and she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Jon Stewart: When did you realize the Taliban had made you a target? Malala: When in 2012, I was with my father, and someone came and she told us, Have you seen Google and searched your name? The Taliban has targeted you. I just could not believe it, and I said, No it s not true. And even after we saw it, I was not worried, I was worried about my father. Because I did not think the Talab was that cruel that they would kill a child. I was 14 at the time. But later on I started thinking about that, and I used to think that the Talab would come and he would just kill me. But then I thought, What would you do Malala? And I think to myself, Malala just take a shoe and hit him. But then I said: If you hit a Talab with your shoe, then there would be no difference between you and the Talab. You must not treat others with cruelty and that harshly. You must fight others, but through peace and dialogue and education. Then I tell him that what they are trying to do is wrong. That education is a basic right. That you would want education for your children as well. And I would tell him, That is what I want to tell you, now do what you want. continued 7

8 Such a small act, the putting down of a shoe. But with it, Malala shows us how to be done with violence, that cliché of response. Dismiss the fantasy of it. To listen to her tell the story, see her smile, is more than instruction. As we take in her warmth, modesty, delight, we find ourselves smiling. Like Jon Stewart, we want to say, May I adopt you? Hers is the borderless light of goodness. And the word hero applies. Her honesty is absolute and she is not afraid of death. Malala is not a child, but a young woman. Still, the innocence is there. It s so strong it surprises us. As if a stranger holding an infant turned to us and asked, Would you like to hold? The bullet which a Talab who didn t want women to be educated fired into her brain, didn t kill her. How could it? She lived from the heart. Malala spoke out, appealing to the terrorist s feeling for his own daughter. Wouldn t you want her to be educated? Perhaps not. He s like a man who accepts a gift but doesn t unwrap it because he doesn t want to know the size of his obligation. The Talab will need more education before he s ready to hear his daughter say, As a woman, I accept responsibility for birthing new life into the world. As a man, you need to accept responsibility for not taking life. Malala. Malala. Your name is music. 8