By Geri Loizzo
Another week, another shooting. Just in the past two weeks, we have seen unspeakable killings — of children and their teachers finishing their school year in Uvalde, of cherished elders and guardians shopping in a Buffalo grocery store, and of churchgoers sharing community in Laguna Woods. It has become a common occurrence for us to witness precious lives cut short in an instant by rampant, toxic masculinity and the glorification of gun violence. Dr. King warned us about the afflictions of greed, hatred, and racism. Where can we begin to fathom a way forward in our personal lives and our collective society?
Today’s wise liberative teachers such as Rev. angel Kyodo williams and Lama Rod Owens say the answer lies in moving not around, but through the pain and allowing our hearts to fully break, to feel, and to call upon our resources such as our ancestors, our practice, each other, and the earth herself.
These tragedies have specific weight for our BIPOC community. The Nalanda Institute family stands in unity with our black, multi-racial, and AAPI community members with whatever emotional support we can offer after these and other horrific acts. We celebrate the amazing contributions from our BIPOC community in helping Nalanda Institute to grow in wholeness and love.
In a recent visit to our Contemplative Psychotherapy Program (CPP), Professor Jasmine Syedullah offered a powerful listening practice and a series of reflections to help the class cultivate a path through the fog of separation to a prophetic vision of a future where we embody a sense of belonging to one another — a world where everyone can live and thrive with vibrancy, freedom, compassion, and joy.
We offer her CPP lecture, “Making Space for Change” here. May we get there together.