When I'm in Brazil, I try to be immersed in the intensity of the country where I was born. And it's always very intense. This time, my biggest motivations were related to the Retreat that we organized in Bahia from May 1st to 5th, 2024 - "Slavery and freedom in Brazil" -, which served to officially launch the Círculo Zen Peacemaker Brasil. Alongside this, the precious opportunity to be with and learn from David Loy, renowned Buddhist writer and teacher, and a great reference in the field of socially engaged spirituality.
Life has its own logic, and when I arrived in Brazil, the biggest climate tragedy in the history of Rio Grande do Sul, the state where I was born, was already underway. Beyond any cognitive interpretation of what happens, it is natural to feel empathy for the enormous suffering of all beings affected by an unprecedented flood. Nature manifests in a powerful and relentless way the effects of our irresponsibility in dealing with the systems of Life. I think it will be inevitable to listen to the signs, and reposition our attitudes as a society.
Listening goes beyond the ability to hear, as it involves understanding, acceptance and the ability to understand, even without agreeing. In the methodology that guides the Zen Peacemakers Retreats, like the one we offer in Bahia, the first essential guideline is not-knowing, an attitude of humility in the face of facts that arises from the radical understanding that reality changes at every moment, regardless of our arrogance of imagining that we control and understand everything. The second principle refers to being in a state of full presence in situations, at every moment. In this sense, I felt the need to go to the South, regardless of the circumstances. Literally, I need to feel firsthand what is happening there, and to the extent of my ability, support what I can.
The third principle concerns acting in the world. The inspiration that arises in our hearts and minds as a result of practicing the two previous principles we will express in society in the form of conscious and non-violent actions. In my opinion, in relation to what is happening now in the south of Brazil, the time is now for us to apply this principle with lucidity and serenity. The signs are evident: as in Brazil, many regions of the planet suffer as a result of extreme events in natural systems. I remember the environmentalist statement that says that in Nature there are no punishments or rewards, only consequences. What can and should we learn from these tragedies? How will we express our learnings in the form of lucid and free actions, in order to overcome the structural causes of these terrible events, beyond superficial debates that are limited to short-term, conjunctural factors?
Whatever our action in the world, I am convinced that the movement must begin in the silence of our individualities, in both senses in which I understand this term.
First, I feel that there is no longer any time for us to deny any aspect of our wholeness as human beings. The time is to embrace our power to transform reality based on our motivations and actions as unique beings, not divided by concepts or prejudices. This requires us to embrace our most denied, forgotten aspects, relegated to the shadows of the fear of not being enough for what history invites and challenges us. By remembering our identity as human beings, we nurture the possibility of cultivating compassion for other beings who share the same obstacles, perhaps in different proportions or manifestations. This may give rise to the possibility of overcoming the violent ways of managing our conflicts in society, of acting with assertiveness and pacifism, without giving in to passivity or oppression of any kind.
In addition, the concept of individuality asks us to face the paradox that, although we feel incomplete beings in our experience of reality, we share a Unity with all Life, which can allow us to be aware of our deep and unassailable wholeness, which lies beyond of our apparent incompleteness. In this way, we naturally access the effectively unlimited potential of collaboration, similar to what occurs in natural systems. And our worldview changes. The attitude of lack with which the dominant culture usually frightens us will be transformed by composting the experience of empathy into nutrients for an attitude of genuine contentment, an essential element for us to deserve the flowers and fruits of the beautiful tree of gratitude.
Allow yourself. Live the experiences of the here-and-now to the fullest. Life has its reasons. Certainly the deepest meaning will be accessed if we cultivate patience, serenity and lucidity. Trust. We will be together on the Path, wherever we are.
Take good care of yourself and enjoy your life.
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