Online: Engaged Buddhism Critical Buddhist Reflections

Third Wednesday of each Month | 7:00 – 8:30 pm EST

Facilitated by Yuki Eric Michels

“True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.” – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., April 4th, 1967.

In our Zen tradition, we seek to cut through the three poisons of greed, anger, and delusion. In this space, we strive to illuminate how these poisons pervade not just our individual minds, but our societal systems as well — from capitalism to imperialism, racism, militarism and beyond. 

We aim to look closely and critically at how these systemic manifestations condition our daily lives, with a focus on our lived experiences and day-to-day encounters with the systemic roots of suffering. This reflection is characterized by key questions such as:

• How can the lens of interdependence help us understand the material workings and conditions of our society?
• How do societal systems affect our daily lives?
• How can our Buddhist practice influence our engagement within systems that create suffering?
• How does care within our Buddhist sangha echo care in our community at large?
• How might systemic analysis connect to our understanding and practice of the Dharma?

Together, we can illuminate the ways in which the personal, the communal, and the systemic intertwine. Beyond sharing our reflections, we can envision and work towards the kind of world we aspire to inhabit, cultivate compassion, and move towards collective liberation.

Learn more about Engaged Buddhism at the Zen Studies Society.

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