One Year Dharma Reflections

May we and all those around us be at peace within, May those who have been killed and Those who have killed know peace. May we include friends, family, strangers and so-called enemies in our hearts With love and understanding. It is an Ancient Law, only Love can conquer hate. Hate can never conquer hate, nor can it conquer love.

—
Karma Zopa Herron, KCC Portland, a Tibetan Vajrajana Buddhist Center-writing as an individual, not as the community, Portland, OR

As the world is going through some massive turmoil (climate change disasters, pandemic life loss, and economic uncertainties), I hope there is less hatred and more love and compassion for all beings to celebrate life and help one another overcome challenges.

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Dawn Kwan, San Ramon, CA

Buddhists do not condone violence. We exist now in more than 200 distinct schools. None of us condone violence. We heal the pain and the loss in whatever ways we can. Send donations to the families if you can. We will find the victims when we are thoroughly Awoken. For now, help the survivors.

—
Gregory Gibbs, Pasadena Buddhist Temple, Arizona Buddhist Temple, San Diego Buddhist Temple, Pasadena, CA

We are interconnected. As Thich Nhat Hanh says, "We inter-are." I am so grateful for the way that the ceremony a year ago brought us all together in that moment online and in-person. Seeing all the priests, monastics, and lay-leaders and teachers participating in the ceremony from many Buddhist traditions was awe-inspiring, touching, and in a way joyful (to see together). I hope it was the start of many more occasions for clergy and lay people of many different Buddhist traditions to come together for ceremonies and other occasions. It is not too different from the many Buddhist traditions and other religious and spiritual groups and organizations that have spoken out against Anti-Asian hate. May We Gather was an event and is a movement that is an example of what can be done when people set aside their differences for the moment in order to work together for a common important cause. (These differences are still important as well.) Bowing in gratitude and Solidarity! _/\_

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John Malcomson, Mindfulness Community of Puget Sound (Vietnamnese Zen tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh), Seattle, WA

As we remember the hate killings in Atlanta, Georgia on March 16, 2021, our tears continue to fall for the families and coworkers of those who were killed. May these tears become cooling and nourishing Dharma rain as we cultivate compassion for all, including those whose rage and frustration result in acts of violence. At the same time, may we increase awareness of anti-Asian and anti-Asian American hatred and hate crimes and join together to create a safer world for all, including creating readily accessible mental health services for everyone in the United States.

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Mushim Ikeda, East Bay Meditation Center, Oakland, CA

May we call on our Asian Ancestors who have shared the precious gift of the dharma with the rest of the world. I ask those Ancestors to guide me and help me live the teaching’s skilfully so that I can be part of explicitly ending anti Asian Racism. May my Afrikan hand stretch out to Asian hands and stand in solidarity together with the aim of ending the Pandemic of racism that has impacted us both! AH UM PHAT

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Vimalasara Mason-John, Vancouver Buddhist Centre, Vancouver, BC

Holding all in our hearts and offering these blessings. May all beings be safe and protected from harm, happy and peaceful of heart, and strong and healthy of body. May all beings care for themselves and others with tender love and compassion. May the merit of our practice benefit all.

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Theodate Lawlor, Still Water Sangha, Orono, ME

It was so powerful to have so many Buddhist monks, priests, clergy gather for a common purpose for the entire community. The most powerful symbol that I remember is the power of the thread....coming from the Amida Buddha Statue and connecting everyone.

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Ron Miyamura, Midwest Buddhist Temple, Chicago, IL

I am grateful to the wider Buddhist sangha who made this event, and other ways to speak out, possible — allowing us to show our support for and belief in our interconnectedness and the power of loving kindness. What affects each of us, affects all of us. Sometimes it is easy to forget that there are many good people willing to step up and speak out and that we have impact when we speak out together. This event, and others like it, made it possible for us to raise our voices and stand together against hate and in support of Asians and other people who are being targeted by those full of fear, anger and ignorance.

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Nanayo Silver, Buddhist Church of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA

As we move into the turbulence of the outside world, May we each resolve to sustain the light of the Awake one within who Mourns for the suffering of hatred and violence in the external world, Understands the wrong perceptions that create and sustain it, and Uses their body, speech, and mind to be an instrument of healing, while Being enraptured in the moment-to-moment joy of the Dharma. <3

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Anu Gupta, BE MORE with Anu, New York, NY

We remember you, we honor you, we mourn you. As a student of Buddhism, and a practitioner of meditation for over 35 years, I ask myself why it is that some people filled with hate and suffering channel that hate out onto others, compounding the suffering of the world? Some of us are targeted more than others, but when one person or any group of people are targeted, we all lose and we all suffer. This particular assassin who wrecked havoc on March 16, 2021, was suffering and filled with hate. As humans, we all know greed, hate and delusion in ourselves. As Buddhist practitioners, we take a vow of harmlessness, and struggle with letting go of those three qualities. And we are imperfect. Can we love the oppressor as we love the oppressed? I often find that difficult. To those who were killed and harmed, we remember you, we honor you, we mourn you.

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Jennifer Delozier, Insight Meditation Community of Western Massachusetts, Easthampton, MA

I feel the suffering of everyone and my heart wraps them in warmth and kindness. I hope for days without suffering and just warmth and kindness. May more minds open to the truth and unite in strength.

—
Sarah Enright, Delta, Canada

One year ago, a young man in Atlanta, Georgia, ingesting the Three Poisons tormented by Maras of temptation exercised his Second Amendment “right” to purchase lethal weapons asserted his self-righteous delusions by executing eight fellow human beings to exorcise his demons. On March 16, 2021, Delaina Ashley Yaun, Paul Andre Michels, Xiaojie Tan, Daoyou Feng, Hyun Jung Grant, Suncha Kim, Soon Chung Park, and Yong Ae Yue, whether because of their gender, ethnicity, circumstances, became the targets/victims of the shooter’s Ignoble Eightfold Path of delusion and destruction. Wrong View that the “world” is how we perceive/presume it to be. Wrong Thoughts that the source of duhkha is other than our thoughts. Wrong Speech that says the “evils” in the world are outside of our thoughts, words, and actions. Wrong Action of inflicting pain and suffering on others through our thoughts, words and deeds. Wrong Livelihood of working to acquire the means of supporting our selfish indulgences. Wrong Effort of seeking self-satisfaction by forcing, manipulating, destroying others to conform to our wishes. Wrong Mindfulness not being mindful of the sorrow we cause ourselves and others through mindless self-centered thoughts, words, actions. Wrong Meditation of ignoring the harmful thoughts, words and actions that cause duhkha for ourselves and others. May We Gather, with the dedication to share equally and with all the meritorious truth/Dharma; All together raising the Bodhi Mind, and awaken to the realm of serenity and joy. Reaffirming the antidote to the Three Poison, the Three Treasures; Taking refuge in the Buddha, the timeless life of wisdom and compassion, the source of awakening Taking refuge in the Dharma, the universal Truth of impermanence and interdependence, the illuminating Light that is the Buddha’s Wisdom Taking refuge in the Sangha, the community of people dedicated to living harmoniously in the universal Truth, a life manifesting Buddha’s Compassion. Namo AmidaButsu (Gratefully entrusting in Oneness with the Buddha/Spirit of Boundless Wisdom/Compasssion) 合掌(Gassho/Anjali)

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Ronald Kobata, Buddhist Churches of America, Portland, OR

My prayer is that we continue to sow seeds of wisdom and compassion so that we might have the space to grieve, to persevere, to build community despite the silos that create illusions of separation. May we heal this separation in ourselves and be that healing for others. May all beings be safe and protected and know the deep and abiding love that exists in our interdependence.

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Melvin Escobar, East Bay Meditation Center, Oakland, CA

One year after the shootings in Atlanta, I’m remembering all of the victims of anti-Asian violence, and especially those killed on March 16, 2021. This violent tragedy breaks my heart. May our remembrance of them bring solace to their families and friends. May our grief serve to deepen our connections in community and love. May the Bodhisattva ideal of “All of us, or none” call us to service that results in safety and liberation for all beings.

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Debra Kerr, East Bay Meditation Center, Oakland, CA

On this one-year anniversary of the hateful murders in Atlanta, while still witnessing daily the sexist and racist violence against Asian women, I sometimes find it difficult to find hope. The senselessness of such attacks can be unbearable, inscrutable, and immobilizing. In those moments I look to the sangha, my community of Buddhist teachers and practitioners, for their wisdom and comfort, when I don’t feel wise, or am overwhelmed by grief. Today, I am honoring all the mothers, grandmothers, sisters, aunties, and queer, femme, and trans family, who offer dharma through their strength by simply being who they are, with fullness and grace. I hope that we all do not look away from the violence that is still with us, which is rooted in a long history of racism, sexism, and class inequity, and impacts us of all ethnicities and genders. May we continue forward with collective determination and love to end such ignorance, so we may all be free and brimming with joy.

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Evan Hashi, East Bay Meditation Center, Oakland CA

Anti-Asian violence is committed by people who look and sound like me against others who don’t. How do I take responsibility for racial injustice and violence? How do I acknowledge that I benefit from white supremacy and patriarchy, and use those benefits to end racism and injustice? And just as essentially, how do I experience the pain and suffering of that same injustice and violence? Can I? How do I move away from an academic, philosophical safe place that is papered with sanctimonious statements and condescension, and open to deep, visceral engagement with this all-too-real struggle that my brothers and sisters of color experience daily? The practice of interdependence demands I engage with anti-racism and the struggle for social justice. I vow to awaken with and for all beings.

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Bob Raines, Occidental Laguna Sangha, Sebastoppol, CA

“Let us live so very happily, loving among the hostile. Among hostile people, let us live with love. ~Dhp 197 Let us send love and immense gratitude to our communities, our families, our world, as we recognize the importance of the Buddhist lineage that has been carried by countless hearts, hands, and bodies of Asian heritage or Asian Ancestry to be honored today. I offer deep respect for the dedication, the determinations, the wisdom and the boundless love that has been cultivated and of which I am a beneficiary. With sadness, I remember the hate and honor the love that has prevailed. I add my voice the community of voices and bodies who are in opposition to the violence against Asian and Asian American communities. May we join in solidarity against hatred and racism wherever it manifests.”

—
JD Doyle, Insight Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA

I put my palms together and bow to my Asian siblings. I bow to my sex worker siblings. I bow to my Buddhist siblings. To all who have been impacted by these murders and to all who are deemed less-than by dominant society, I bow. May we continue to gather, to heal, and to seek liberation for all beings. Thank you, Duncan Ryuken William, Funie Hsu, Chenxing Han, and all who created the powerful space for collective wisdom and collective compassion.

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Emiko Yoshikami, East Bay Meditation Center, Oakland, CA

Noting the memorial date of March 16, is close to the early April honoring of Ching Ming or Tomb-Sweeping Day. Honoring our history, even if it is tragic, is an important Mindfulness practice. The sweeping of the graves is a metaphor for dispelling the cobwebs + distractions of our minds + hearts that allow forgetfulness to emerge. When we remain aware of the Atlanta shootings + the ongoing conditions in which anti-Asian violence has increased by 339% this year, it compels us into discerning actions to alleviate our collective delusional hatred of each other, as opposed to a passivity or hopelessness. May we find the strength + resources together to live our historic resilience over + over again, as shown by our capacities to more than survive the concentration camps, the exclusion acts, even the killings. The least we can do for those lost lives is to honor them by more than surviving oppressive forces, but to transform those forces + thrive in creating the beauty of our cultures.

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Larry Yang, East Bay Meditation Center, Palm Springs, CA

May we sow seeds of compassion & wisdom for our Asian blood and spiritual ancestors, giving all beings space to grieve and to grow. May all being be safe, well and protected, May all beings awaken and be free.

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Devin Berry, Insight Meditation Society, Insight Western Mass, Northampton, MA

We grieve the loss. We grieve the suffering of family, friends and communities who are still bearing witness to this tragedy. Blind rage, distorted thinking, over and over through the ages, and we ask, how can we heal the brokenness that comes with life’s adversity? We’ve been given the teachings: we are one body, there are four truths, there is a path. We know that when there is suffering, it can cause more suffering. May we find a path to healing the suffering that creates even more suffering! And for now, we bow our heads and resolve to act skillfully in the world. May it be so!

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Enkyo O'Hara, Village Zendo, New York NY

I grieve with great sadness the senseless murders of 8 people, including 6 Asian women, committed a year ago today. Somehow, to me, that seems longer ago--time has crawled since then for me, for some reason. A year ago, I recall a poem about this tragedy, written and read by my friend, Melanie Gin, at a Sit, Walk, Listen event in Thich Nhat Hanh's community, in San Francisco, where she quoted a law enforcement officer, I believe, who said the perpetrator had a "bad day." I am tired of how such aggression is minimized by those in power. I recently heard of an elderly Asian woman, who was beaten 125 times, and left severely injured, just the other day. I am disheartened that such violence still occurs. Such hatred needs to end. I am currently listening to the livestream of events across the country from the Asian Justice Movement, as I write this. May those who died rest in peace--and may such tragedies cease to occur.

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Vivian Taube, Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism, Larkspur, CA

At this anniversary time of two years into a global pandemic and 1 year anniversary of this targeted violence against our Asian kin especially sisters, daughters, mothers, aunties... we honor our interconnected through great vehicle of compassion at the suffering that reverberates through all of our hearts. We see and feel deeply the harm that was caused by seeds of hate and othering, and we vow to heal these fractures by coming together in unison to sing, chant in love. We gather to heal and remember this wounding. May all beings be protected and safe from harm, may all beings be remembered, honored and celebrated while living and passing. May the seeds of violence be dissolved by the collective forces of wisdom, compassion and love.

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Sarwang Parikh, Buddhist Peace Fellowship, Oakland, CA

Dear Community, Last week I started to sob when I heard a Russian peace activist say about Ukraine: "We will be sorry, forever, for what our country has done." He expressed my own continuing sorrow for the tragedy in Atlanta--especially knowing it was nurtured by the anti-Asian mindset of my settler-colonial ancestors. The beautiful May 4th ceremony helped me toward transformation and healing. May our practice together continue and bring liberation from our history of racism, violence, and hatred of all kinds. Thank you for this opportunity to share.

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Louise Dunlap, Deepening White Awareness Sangha (Plum Village Practice), Oakland (Huchiun), CA

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to collectively remember our physical and spiritual ancestors, their suffering and their strengths. Thereby inviting us into a place of resilience. May this resilience and determination sow dharma seeds, nudge our dharmic selves into being, nourish us till enlightenment. Blessing us, our communities for benefit of all.

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Victor Gabriel, Mountain of Spontaneous Presence, Montebello, CA

It hardly seems a year since the killings that occasioned the May We Gather Memorial. Things don’t seem to be getting better in the world, and there is more than ever the need for more Metta in the world.May all of us who practice direct it into the world to everyone, even to those who do bad things, as they more than most people need to deal with Greed Hatred and Delusion, so that we can all live in peace and safety. Keep up the good work.

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Trevor Flaxman, AK