Guru Purnima moon
How we treat ourselves
The illusion of separation is persistent and seductive. It becomes so much easier to blame an outsider for our own misfortunes, our own disappointments. This process of blame is a palliative, a salve that excuses us from taking responsibility for our own actions. We have a duty as citizens to care for the well being of others. The evasion of this duty comes in the form of demonizing compassion by terming it "political correctness."
At the risk of appearing to be "politically correct," I believe it is a compassionate act to defend those who have unjustly been marginalized in our society. I believe that white men between the ages of 40-70 are not endowed exclusively with the wisdom to enact laws. We can all participate in our democracy. Those who have been systematically shut out of this process in the past may need to be given extra attention or treatment until parity is achieved. This is not a matter of top-down legislation, it is a concern of the heart.
When we become more conscious through a meditative practice, we begin to gain awareness of what it means to be a global citizen. It is puzzling how the actor/director Clint Eastwood, a Transcendental Meditation practitioner since the mid-seventies, feels compelled to defend the racially charged policies of presidential candidate Trump. Perhaps Eastwood has chosen to remove himself from the illumination and knowledge with which the teachings of the Veda provides us. It is certainly possible for a meditator to hold right-wing views (Mike Love), although it seems a rarity.
If the Veda is correct, and there is only one thing, is it possible that one race or class of people can be held as superior or inferior to another? Is it possible to judge another as less human, less worthy of citizenship in this country, arguably the most fair-minded and generous social experiment in existence? We in the meditation community can always agree on one thing: that our practice makes the world a more balanced, peaceful place.
Kindness does not require study or diligent practice; it is a natural way of being, a baseline from which we are meant to intuitively operate. All that is required is to recognize the wholeness in all things.
Cali