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Lama
Surya Das |
Buddha said that hate is never overcome by hate; hatred is only
overcome by
love. With recent tragic events we may be on the
brink of an escalating war
in the Middle East. I think that we must look into our hearts and minds and
see what we -- individually, collectively, societally -- are doing to
alleviate or to perpetuate these problems, and how we might become part of
their eventual solution. I think an eye-for-an-eye retaliatory approach is
not the most measured response at this time. But do our leaders agree?
Religion is supposed to further peace and harmony, not contribute to hatred
and prejudice, bigotry, violence and war. Nonviolence is the first precept
of Buddhism, and a fundamental tenet of many world religions; yet look what
actually happens in the world, recently in the Middle East and Bosnia, in
Belfast and Sri Lanka, as well as throughout history. Even here at home in
America, guns in the schools and at home continue to harm us. Violence both
at home and abroad, even in our schools and homes and neighborhoods, has
come to the fore in our time as a major focus of concern, but we have not
made much progress in averting or dealing with it.
Martin Luther King said that we have two choices: to peacefully coexist, or
to destroy ourselves. Do you know how many countries in the world are
experiencing war right now? Dozens, literally; yet we remain for the most
part insulated from that terrible reality. Here in America we don't usually
feel as much first-hand evidence of the recent twentieth century's war death
toll, although we certainly did during the several wars of the twentieth
century. But I don't think that war begins outside somewhere, on a
battlefield, along some disputed border, or in a diplomatic conference room
or economic summit meeting; war begins with the cupidity, hatred, prejudice,
racism, ignorance and cruelty in the human heart. This is because the true
battlefield is the heart of man, as Dostoevsky says. If we want peace in
the world -- and I firmly believe that we all do -- we need to face this
fact. We must learn how to deal with anger and hatred, and to soften up and
disarm our own hearts, as well as work in larger contexts towards nuclear
disarmament and peace in our time. We need to think globally and act
locally, beginning with ourselves and each other -- at home, in the family,
as well as outside at work and in the community, reaching out more and more
in broad, all-embracing circles of collective caring and responsibility.
This is the path to a more peaceful future for all of us.
Today is a time for prayer, reflection on what is most important in our
lives, and to think about what steps we might take towards nonviolence
within ourselves and our own lives, and towards a more peaceful world.
I myself am thinking about what the Buddhist wisdom tells us about how to
deal with anger and hatred, grief and loss.
What we experience today is a tragic event of monumental proportions,
comparable perhaps to Pearl Harbor. And yet, the fact that it hits us in the
heart of NY and Washington could remind us that it is the kind of thing
that happens during conflicts in other countries and their capitals, and
which we Americans have for the most part been mercifully insulated from.
I'd like us to reflect on that as we continue to pursue our national goals
and policies, realizing more and more deeply our connectedness with the
peoples and ongoing conflicts in other parts of the world.
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