A Joyful Practice

In Times of Darkness / Just Reach Out July 20, 2022

“Let’s work together
In harmony
Let’s build a better world
No suffering

And in times of darkness
Just reach out
‘Cause there is a promise
It won’t be denied

Let there be light
Let there be joy
Let there be love
And understanding
Let there be peace
Throughout the land.”

– quoted from the song “Let There Be Light” by Carlos Santana (b. 1947)

As I mentioned during yesterday’s practice, some (off the mat) invitations to practice and to turn inward, are stressful, awkward, and horrible. I specifically referenced moments when we (or anyone) is being called out for being racist, sexist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, Islamophobic, xenophobic, ageist, and/or ableist. So, some might argue that such invitations are always stressful, awkward, and horrible. This is especially true, as I mentioned, when we don’t even recognize that we are blowing the proverbial dog-whistle we inherited from our ancestors.

Yet, as I also mentioned, accepting such invitations creates the opportunity to make real change. The thing I did not explicitly say is that the idea of making “real change” is a euphemism and is itself a kind of dog-whistle. Because, when we talk about making “real change” in a societal sense, we are assuming that everyone understands that we mean “positive” change and that everyone has the same understanding of what “positive” means. Such assumptions, however, are part of our avidyā (“ignorance”), which is an afflicted/dysfunctional thought pattern that leads to suffering.

Because we don’t all see the world – or each other – the same way, we do not recognize the same problems and/or the same solutions to such problems. A perfect example of that is the current issue around choice and abortion – which, let’s be clear, is really an issue about privacy and reproductive rights. Even if you consider yourself “pro-life,” your ideas on this issue are based upon your beliefs about what is private vs public and where that line is drawn when it comes to reproduction.

I am very aware, that just reading such statements pushed some people’s buttons and gotten people hooked. I am also aware that my next statement will push some more buttons and start reeling people in. Because, when you wade into the debate about privacy and reproduction, you also wade into the debate about life outside of the womb. And, more and more, we are seeing that we don’t all see this issue the same way. More and more, the conversations coming up today are the same conversations that Pearl S. Buck started having in 1949 and that the Kennedy family started having in the early 1900’s. When we really look back at those earlier conversations, we start to recognize the dog-whistles, we start to recognize the changes that take us backwards, and we can start considering how we move forward in a way that is more functional (and that makes for a more functional society).

Since Carlos Santana was born today in 1947, and the first Special Olympics Games were held today in 1968, today’s practice is about raising awareness around one of the “-isms” many overlook and about using the hook to get “unhooked.”

Click here to read the 2020 post about Rosemary Kennedy, her younger sister Eunice Kennedy Shriver, and the origins of the Special Olympics.

Click here to read the 2021 post about Carlos Santana and how his music fits into this practice. 

Please join me today (Wednesday, July 20^th) at 4:30 PM or 7:15 PM for a yoga practice on Zoom. Use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You will need to register for the 7:15 PM class if you have not already done so. Give yourself extra time to log in if you have not upgraded to Zoom 5.0. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or by emailing myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

Wednesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “07202021 Using the Hook”]

“Like diabetes, deafness, polio or any other misfortune, [intellectual disabilities] can happen in any family. It has happened in the families of the poor and the rich, of governors, senators, Nobel prizewinners, doctors, lawyers, writers, men of genius, presidents of corporations – the President of the United States.”

– quoted from a September 22, 1962 article by Eunice Kennedy Shriver printed in The Saturday Evening Post

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.)

### Is This The Plank In Your Eye? (Cause It’s Definitely The Sawdust In Mine!) ###