Buddhist Peace Fellowship

http://www.buddhistpeacefellowship.org/5-responses-to-the-new-face-of-buddhism/


An interesting response to the unfolding "face" of Buddhism today...

Well worth reading I think--in the face of our structural racism, classism, sexism, and patriarchy...

Kozan wrote:

http://www.buddhistpeacefellowship.org/5-responses-to-the-new-face-of-buddhism/


An interesting response to the unfolding "face" of Buddhism today...

Well worth reading I think--in the face of our structural racism, classism, sexism, and patriarchy...

Can you say more about your thoughts RE this article?  I read it and must confess that much of it is too abstract to be meaningful to me.  I get in general terms that the author is making a distinction between gestures of diversity and a deeper diversity that would actually overcome racial & cultural divides, but beyond that I don't know what she's talking about.  Maybe that's all she is talking about? :-)

Isan, yes, I think that your take on this is accurate. Also note that this is an "article" written by several people--and is therefore actually several "articles".

My interest in the subject of this article pertains to my conviction that our collectively inherited worldview of the nature of reality (tracing back some 11,000 years to the advent of empire and war-for-conquest) is profoundly wrong. The dynamic of empire and our inherited belief that it's a "dog-eat-dog world" has given rise to racism, sexism, classism, and patriarchy as forms of oppression that enable the few to dominate and exploit everyone (and everything) else.

I am enthusiastic about this article--and about the challenge that Buddhists of color are posing--because of the underlying dynamic of oppression and exploitation that the article points to within American Buddhism and--(I would propose), within Buddhism itself.

It would be easy to conclude from the article that the problem lies solely within American/ Western Buddhism. I don't think it does.

The dynamics of empire, racism, sexism, patriarchy, and classicism pervaded the culture of India 2600 years ago--as it does Japan and the rest of the world, today.

It seems to me that this wider context of our collectively inherited misunderstanding underlies Jiyu Kennett's personal history, the cultural conditioning that we've all been subjected to, and much of what we discuss here on OBC Connect.

Hi Kozan.

I just read the article. Very interesting. I don't know who the "teachers" are on the front cover, nor what they teach. They all smile well, but that means nothing.

It is interesting how the 5 people all react to the title and picture. 

The imagery of a talk show host offering his seat because he has the power really, and how in doing so he reveals how ordinary he is when you remove him from his projected status and power, and how unconcerned he is about that because his status is not under any threat he can see.

I find myself more and more these days agreeing with what you say, Kozan. It seems to me to be the human way for thousands of years for the few to rule, manipulate, and control the many for their own selfish ends. In Buddhism as in anything else. 

And I think it is how humans will be for thousands of years to come if we survive that long.

Those 5 voices won't change much, as won't the magazine or those on the cover. They are all, like me, tiny fish in a very large sea.

And belief that it's a dog-eat-dog world is for me at the heart of it.

Now here's the thing. I knew all this when I was 18. 

If we are just biological, then it is a dog eat dog world, and we are all going to be eaten one day. So we are ALL fundamentally ruled by fear. And I mean ALL.

Everyone I have ever met has lived their life as if it is a dog-eat-dog world, whatever they have said and pretended in public.

And so my question at 18 was "are these billions of humans right in believing its a dog-eat-dog world, or is there more going on than meets the eye"

Or more accurately, are we just biological, or do we in some way survive death?

Because only if there is life after death do the rules change. And if there is life after death boy do those rules change, and FAST.

My questioning made me look for people historically who said they knew a different answer to the billions of others. And looking led me to the buddha. Who clearly based his whole teaching on reincarnation. (Please no pretending rebirth is that different, read what he actually said as far as we know, and he is totally clear on this).

So I embarked on his "way" to see if I could replicate his "answer". And to dig inside me for "the truth".

And I found "The Truth" as he tells it. Part of me knows we survive death, and we reincarnate (in a rebirth sense), and we are on a bl**dy great big wheel. And is totally unafraid and untouched by fear.

And part of me still lives as if we are biological, and its dog-eat-dog. This part of me is very frightened.

Now here's the thing. Everyone in the picture, the magazine people, and the 5 other authors are most certainly by definition acting and speaking from one fundamental view-point:

"We are all biological we are all going to die its dog-eat-dog I'm terrified really underneath!" 

From the point of view of The Buddha and me who knows The Bl**dy Truth (hee) none of this actually matters. Nothing in fact matters, because everything is perfect as is, (and that means everything), the truth of who I am is unconditional love (and that means UNCONDITIONAL), and the worse things that humanity does is just kids playing in the playground.

Also from the point of view of who I really am, all time is here, and all places are now. So time itself is an illusion. Therefor everything that is going to happen has already happened. So nothing to do do nowhere to go. All is perfect as is.

And all those "people" in control and ruling the many are just getting their turn this lifetime, before countless lifetimes of it being someone else's turn.

So its not what 'you' do or how 'you' behave, its where you stand in conciousness. And even that isn't all that important to who you really are.

So to sum up, as the Messiah's Handbook says, imagine the universe as wonderfully amazingly beautiful as you can, and rest assured the Universe has imagined it better than that.

I like to think that the me who "knows" is right. But i'm not sure. 

Cos all those people I thought knew too have turned out to be sexual deviants and manipulative [banned term], or publicly sucked up to the sexual deviants and manipulative [banned term].

And I've realised as well that no-one out there is talking about the only way I know to really know "the truth", ie via your subconcious. After all, you are never going to let go of who you really think you are when you are too scared to even allow who you really think you are into conciousness, are you? Am I? I hate being so honest :-)

So is my "truth" really The Truth or are you 7 billion people out there right?

Is anyone else willing to jump into reincarnation land (where we have all been black white, male female, tyrants and victim etc etc,) and into subconcious land (oo er)? Then allow themselves to let go into it all, and through it all, until they fall out the bottom?

Or are all going to talk about how awful the world is and believe that to be the only truth? Or cover it up by doing the rational mind thing of talking about something "more important". (Yawn Yawn)

I'm fed up being terrified of dying.

Last week I held a 4 week old baby as it screamed out for 1.5hrs its 24 hours of birth trauma, and its terror of dying.

I also sat with a 25 year old man who's medical condition exposed him totally to his terror of dying.

Last week I slept on the floor of a hospital ward and while there listened to a doctor tell a man he is about to die.

Last week, like nearly every week of my adult life, I spent many hours sitting with people exposing fears and feelings that they have been to scared to show anyone their entire lives.

Last week, as in every week of my life, I have been able to touch where people really believe themselves to be, and experienced the dire pain they inflict on those around them, often in the name of 'love'.

And I have watched all the people around them, and they all act too scared to open to another person in pain..

And all of these people have been obviously too scared to allow themselves to begin to learn the simple yet profound first act of unconditional love... of feeling less alone... of not inflicting pain....

to stop and listen.

I've just done another one of my rants! I think i should carry a government rant warning...

hopefully I'll drop out the bottom of this one soon.... 

:-)