Off the Cushion - Activism + Spirituality

<p>Sometimes we can unintentionally spiritually bypass activism, thinking and believing “we are all one” and having “high vibes only” is enough…</p><p> </p><p>Or, on the flip side, we get burned our because we’re too overwhelmed trying to make a difference with very complex issues.</p><p> </p><p>But it’s so important that these tendencies don’t turn us away from activism, because caring and taking action is part of our spiritual practice.</p><p> </p><p>Many social activists are feeling the need to root their activism in spirituality, in more compassion and more presence - not just from action-oriented goals, but also from a deeper spiritual root.</p><p> </p><p>When I think back to my own path in terms of social activism, in high school I was very involved with peace work and I organized boycotts against GE because they made the triggers for nuclear bombs and whatnot. In college I started volunteering for feminist causes, environmental issues, and more community activism.</p><p> </p><p>Then I started taking meditation classes, so one night I would go to a political meeting and I’d hear these angry, hostile things and bitter name-calling, and the <strong>next </strong>night I would be in a bliss state on my cushion feeling so calm. The worlds felt disconnected and at odds with one another. I wanted to bring them closer together. But how?</p><p> </p><p>Albert Einstein said, “You cannot solve a problem with the same mind that created it.” </p><p> </p><p>The truth of this was becoming more apparent to me. It would take rethinking how activism and the calm tranquility and growing equanimity found in my spiritual practice could merge. The key for me was found in more deeply understanding interdependence.</p><p> </p><p>I think of a story told by Jarvis Masters, who is an African-American Buddhist on death row in San Quentin: One day, there was a seagull out in the yard, paddling around in a puddle after some rain. And one of the inmates picked something up to throw at the bird, and without even thinking, Jarvis puts his