Fear

With palms together


Good Morning Everyone,



This morning was a cool sixty degrees as we walked Suki in the park. It was nice to wake up to a starry sky, clear and unobstructed. I think the sky is one of my favorite aspects of life here in New Mexico. Having a clear and unobstructed view is crucial to living an authentic life.



I am of late concerned about our ability to tolerate each other’s differences when those differences appear threatening. The very nature of a threat distorts our perception. When we are afraid we do not see clearly at all: we see situations as pregnant with danger. Our mind’s eye quite naturally rests on dangerous possibilities, often to the exclusion of others.



Recently I asked the question, “How would Buddha respond to Islam?” I frankly believe this is a threatening question, as those of us who purport to be Buddhists must take a close look at what our understanding of Buddha is and how close or distant we are from that ideal.



Moreover, I think such a question demands a close examination of our own understanding of Islam. It is my sense that most of us know very little of Islam and that which we do know is grossly inaccurate and/or based on televised programming designed to increase market share through emotional appeal.



In an article I found on the Buddhist Channel, similarities between Islam and Buddhism are discussed. It is interesting to me that our consciousness here in America has been so warped by media images, brow-beating interviews, and the ascendency of inflammatory rhetoric, that we do not know even the most rudimentary concepts of Islamic theology, cannot name a single Islamic theologian, and have never (or barely) opened the Islamic holy book. Yet from what we think we know, we make gross generalizations based on the acts of vengeful miscreants regarding the whole of a faith tradition.



This is akin to cross-burning KKKers being identified as the personification of Christianity. Or suggesting that because Buddhist practitioners bow in front of a statue of Buddha we are idolaters. We do not do that, nor should we do it to other faith traditions.



It is our obligation as spiritual seekers to be authentic and honest through our body, speech, and mind. We understand these vehicles to be at risk from the three poisons, greed, hatred, and delusion. Further, we hold that such poisons be addressed by generosity, love, and wisdom. My sense is that Buddha would find a Middle Way through the bombastic rhetoric and fear mongering of this environment. He would find a way to see clearly that the person in front of him is a suffering human being. He would care for him and love him, even if that person was burning a cross, oppressing women, abusing children, or had an explosive device and was threatening to detonate it.



The Buddha Way is not for everyone. This much is clear.



Be well.