SHAMBHALA Were Friendly, They Were Also Worried, and from Their Ranks Came Mobs Who Torched Their Muslim Neighbors

jack kornfield • thich nhat hanh • gina sharpe • the teachings of paul newman

sBuddhismhambhala culture meditation Life sunseptember 2014

The Wisdom of Anger

Learn how you can benefit The Poison Tree yourself and others by An Anger Meditation in 4 Steps transforming anger into wisdom and How RAIN Quells the Flames of Anger compassion 5 Mind-Training Slogans to Transform Anger The Angry Buddha The Enlightened Power of No

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s reuter by hoto p goon to remote aMuslim towns talkabouttheir fear of takeover U have succeeded thecountry. across much mistrust in sowing of and jingoistic fervor. encountered are thesemonks who uphate drumming some of K growing religious and ethnic intolerancegrowing andethnic religious and conflict. the positive changes and slow movement toward a democracy clinics, and other amazing projects across the land. shelters for andbattered orphans women, HIVprograms, rural and for Partners peace activists with across thecountry. Irecently returned from working inB dhist teachings. andgoodhearted, thenation areveredgracious B center of marketplaces.orful T T temples isdotted landscape and golden with and dusty pagodas. Mahasi andSunlunin themonasteries of Sayadaw. T ferent thanitwasin1971, theretrained Ifirst asamonk when stories true? H stories true? the religion thatpreaches and killing? violence against mane laws. H dhist teachings inhu- to encourage andthepassage violence of On thesurface, upcountry Burma and Muslim Rohingya communities, June, 2012. Rakhine Buddhist between conflict violent of many episodes E Should to another. harm anyone wish Neither norhatred inanger Muslims Burma. Buddhist of teacher the against toused agenocidal fuel campaign for nonviolence known A religion isbeing the Teachings Buddhists Betray Burma, urges usto for join thecall peace. thnic Rakhine men lurk outside homes burned in one of the inoneof outside homesburned lurk men thnic Rakhine here are hardworking poor col towns and small farmers - with nder their influence, taxidrivers andshopkeepers from R ornfield N B T ut now there isalso fear, tension anunderlying spreading he stories are true. T ews reports showews reports monks crisscrossing B ere inthe West, are people shocked. I ow canwe understand them? — , recently who from returned he B The B T hey don’they want to talk about peace and S urmese people remain people urmese extraordinarily HAMBHALA raveling across B uddha, intheMetta Sutta S UN septe mber 2014 A sia, schools, supporting urma using B urma urma recently,urma I is not very dif- isnotvery sn’t B I found amid a k Jac A uddhism he green re these

urma urma ud- ud- an- 19 Burma at a Glance

• Population 57,000,000 in an area the size of Texas • 89% Buddhist, 4% Muslim, 4% Christian • 650,000 internal refugees displaced by military offen- sives against minority groups. Burma is a major source RAKHINE country for human traffick- STATE ing and world’s third-largest opium producer. Certificate in Mindfulness • Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine stripped of citizenship in 1982 and considered stateless persons. State of emergency Facilitation 2015 declared in Rakhine after rioting in 2012 left hundreds of Muslims dead and tens of thousands homeless. • Provides training and supervision in mindfulness facilitation for those • After independence from working with groups, individuals, or institutions Britain in 1948, Burma was ruled until 1988 by General Ne Win. • Support to incorporate mindfulness facilitation into one’s occupation • Opposition won landslide victory in 1990 election but • Year-long program with four 4-day in-person practicums and additional military refused to hand and “the Buddha’s teaching” that some- the Muslims immigrants, even though mentorship throughout the year over power. State Law and times violence is needed to protect the many Rohingyas have lived there peacefully Order Restoration Council nation. This dangerous situation needs for decades. • Faculty to include Diana Winston, Marvin G. Belzer Ph.D., Michael (SLORC) placed National some explanation. The current economic pressure has Irwin M.D., Susan Smalley Ph.D., and Daniel Siegel M.D., among others League for Democracy leader The biggest source of conflict is the made the situation ripe for fear, violence, Aung San Suu Kyi under unsettled situation of the Rohingya Mus- and political exploitation. Muslim homes house arrest and renamed lims in Burma’s westernmost state. Rakhine and businesses have been torched and country Myanmar. is a beautiful land bordering Bangladesh 100,000 Rohingya Muslims, many of them that was for centuries a great seafaring women and children, have been forced “ e UCLA CMF program was rich and satisfying and ranks as one of my favorite personal and • In 2008 Burma began a grad- kingdom. But ever since the central Bur- into impoverished refugee camps. When professional development experiences of my life. e program has an excellent balance of didactic ual and uneven move toward mese kings conquered Rakhine, the people I spoke to Rohingyas from Rakhine, their democracy. Economic sanc- information, experiential training, and collegial relationship-building opportunities. rough no there have been treated badly. And over the eyes got wide with dismay, and there was m a p © bo tions lifted in 2013. last century, a million Rohingya Muslims, a palpable helplessness and fear of attacks other program have I ever felt so supported and prompted to grow on so many levels.” seeking new opportunity or fleeing poverty by the Buddhist majority. Recently, the —Nicholas, CMF graduate 2013

• Today, Aung San Suu Kyi is g dan s erban / i s to a member of parliament but and mistreatment in present-day Bangla- drumbeat of violence against Muslims and still faces restrictions. Politi- desh, have settled in Rakhine. Today, over- other minorities has spread to other parts cal parties are preparing for a populated Bangladesh doesn’t want them of Burma, often with the tacit approval of Applications due October 2014 general election in 2015. back and the Rakhine natives, already poor the local police and military. and mistreated by the central government, I witnessed firsthand the results of the ck fear they are losing land and livelihood to spreading violence in the town of Lashio www.marc.ucla.edu • [email protected] Semel Institute for Neuroscience • Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology in northern Shan state, where this past year a mosque, businesses, and a Muslim orphanage were burned not far from the town’s most revered pagoda. While the local Buddhists I spoke to SHAMBHALA were friendly, they were also worried, and from their ranks came mobs who torched their Muslim neighbors. MOUNTAIN CENTER Of the nearly half a million monks and nuns in Burma, those espousing hatred and supporting violence are a handful, less than one percent. But their message of fear and prejudice reso- nates because of several factors. First, the radical monks have successfully linked buddha Presents dharma with nationalism. Buddhism teaches the nobility of all, regardless of caste, race, or creed. But humans can misuse any- thing, including dharma, and these monks have become funda- mentalists who espouse prejudice in the name of dharma. With 40 percent of the Burmese population in 135 ethnic groups, AWAKE three million Muslims, and a dozen simmering civil wars, the misguided monks tell Burmese Buddhists they need to fight against those who are different to maintain the nation. IN THE WORLD Second, since the recent transition to quasi-civilian rule, there is increased insecurity, predatory economic development, and A FREE ONLINE EVENT political deception. On previous trips under the military regime, October 19 – 23, 2014 friends could have been imprisoned or tortured if I had been overheard speaking to them about Aung San Suu Kyi. Now pub- lic conversation is allowed, but there are still dangers for journal- ists and activists. With the lifting of military dictatorship, simmering ethnic and religious tensions are being exploited by misguided monks, political groups, and the remnants of the dictatorship to gain power. It is said that some of the worst monks may be Secret Service men who have taken robes and are deliberately stoking fears to turn people back to the military and away from Aung San Suu Kyi. Radical monks play on the historical memory of Muslim expansion across Asia in formerly Buddhist cultures. Scare stories about Muslims raping Buddhist women and having huge families and overpopulating the land are widely Join us October 19 for a 5-Day Journey disseminated. Surprisingly, there is widespread ignorance in Burma of many core Buddhist teachings. Most of Buddhist practice in the village zendo year-end retreat Groundbreaking dialogues with top Burma is devotional. Prayers and offerings express a beautiful thought leaders, social visionaries, spirit of generosity and a belief in merit-making, karma, and with Roshi Enkyo O’Hara rebirth. The elaborately decorated temples are regularly awash Garrison Institute, New York and spiritual luminaries. with joyful community sharing, chanting, and support for the monks. December 26th, 2014–January 1st, 2015 Explore insights and practical tools In this culture of devotion, the teachings of the noble truths for waking up to your full potential and eightfold path, of nonviolence, mindfulness, meditation, A spacious and quiet Zen retreat with meditation, daily and virtue, are not emphasized. And the Buddha’s admonition to dharma talks, interview with Village Zendo teachers, through relationships, work, and see and think for yourself is lost entirely. The Burmese education and time to rest and walk along the Hudson River. healthy living. system does not teach people to question authority. In a middle school class, ardent and shining-faced students told me how they For more information, always learned by rote and had not asked a single question in please visit www.villagezendo.org SHAMBHALAMOUNTAIN.ORG/AWAKE their school career. Added to this, fifty years of secret police and military oppression have left many Burmese fearful and easily misled.

22 SHAMBHALA SUN september 2014 SHAMBHALA SUN september 2014 23 Fortunately there are also abbots, activists, and Muslim leaders across Burma who embody the Buddha’s admo- Because not all bodies nition to “hold all beings with boundless loving-kindness.” I was inspired by the are created equal... courage of those who are trying to defuse this deplorable situation. Some work publicly, others behind the scenes, to edu- cate monks and communities in Buddhist teachings about respect, nonviolence, and conflict resolution. But the hate speech has created a dangerous situation, and those who speak out publicly against prejudice are targeted and harassed by the anti-Muslim goons. In spite of this, leaders like Zin Mar Aung, who won the International Woman of Courage Award, and Ven. U Nayaka Sayadaw, abbot of a Different cushions.* Different needs. Mandalay monastery with seven thou- sand monks, hold aloft the dharma ban- ner of respect for all. *Made in the US exclusively for the Monastery Store While the solution lies with the Bur- dharma.net/monstore • 845.688.7993 mese themselves, there are many outside groups trying to encourage the best of the Donate your old meditation cushions The Monastery Storetm Supporting your spiritual practice Burmese Buddhist tradition of tolerance, such as Partners Asia, the Catholic Peace- building Network, Hope International, United to End Genocide, and the Inter- Ligmincha Institute at Serenity Ridge national Network of Engaged Buddhists. Nelson County, Virginia Unfortunately, Médecins Sans Frontières and the UN have now been banned from SEPT. 6–7, 2014 Rakhine because the government doesn’t The Nine Ways of Bön with John Jackson want honest reports on the situation to OCT. 7–9, 2014 reach the outside world. Aung San Suu Annual Buddhism & Science Conference: Kyi, who holds a long-term vision of Pathways to a Healthy Mind development for Burma with immense with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche & Renowned Researchers dignity, grace, and courage, encouraged OCT. 10–12, 2014 those of us who met with her to engage The Healing Power of Primordial Awareness with all parties in the conflict. Unfortu- photo by Janine Guldener with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche nately, the military-imposed constitution TENZIN WANGYAL OCT. 31–NOV. 2, 2014 still hasn’t been changed to allow her full RINPOCHE, founding The Sacred Body in the Bön Tradition director of Ligmincha with H.E. Menri Lopon Trinley Nyima Rinpoche political rights and she is limited in her Institute, is renowned own ability to respond. for his ability to convey DEC. 27, 2014–JAN. 1, 2015 the ancient wisdom of Winter Retreat: The Experiential Transmission of Zhang In past months, I organized a group of Tibetan Bön Buddhism Zhung, Part 1: Ngondro concerned Buddhist elders, including the in a way that is highly with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche Dalai Lama and Thich Nhat Hanh, to pub- relevant to Western The rst in a ve-part series—held over the next ve years —of Tibetan Bön students. He is the Buddhist dzogchen teachings. This is a prerequisite for Parts 2–5. lish a full-page letter in Burmese newspa- author of numerous FREE LIVE WEBCASTS (Eastern/New York time) pers encouraging the Burmese to stand books, including his with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche up for their noble tradition of respect and most recent, Awakening Aug. 30, 2–3 p.m. Sept. 27, 2:30–3:30 p.m. Oct. 11, 3–4:30 p.m. nonviolence. Go to www.shambhalasun. the Luminous Mind. Visit our website for future dates. com to read the full text of that letter and www.SerenityRidge.Ligmincha.org / 434-263-6304 to learn how you can add your voice to the Subscribe to our free e-newsletter at www.VoiceOfClearLight.org call for peace in Burma. ♦

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