Statue of Honen Shonin at Taima Dera, Japan
THE MIDDLE EAST WAR
The world order is in peril. I think that we can all see that. The Palestine-Israel conflict does not just concern the Palestinians and the Israelis. Israel is very closely connected to the USA. On the one hand the USA will support Israel in its efforts to defeat Arab and Islamic challenges and Israel will do as the USA instructs, but, on the other hand, there is the risk that the killing of large numbers of women and children by Israel could turn the whole Islamic world against America. Generally, in the past, the Islamic lands have been divided and at odds with one another. American influence in the Middle East depends upon the maintenance of those divisions. If America is perceived to be overtly supporting the slaughter of Palestinian civilians this could change. Were it to do so, it would make the task of sustaining American supremacy in the world much more difficult and this would have knock on effects all over the planet.
Another aspect of the same dynamic is that while many governments around the world either support Israel or maintain neutrality, in many cases large sections of their populations support the Palestinian cause. This is true even in West European countries. The ordinary person, without necessarily having political sophistication, can easily come to see what is happening as the oppression of the weak by the over mighty. These perceptions introduce an element of instability into the world order as we know it. The world is organised hierarchically. The ordinary person tolerates this as long as those in power are not seen to act in ways that are too grossly immoral. Exactly where the breaking point lies is hard to be precise about, but there are real limits. When political change comes it tends to do so precipitously.
Then there is the longer term karma. It may be that Israel will succeed in destroying Hamas, but in the process many people will have been killed. All those people have relatives. Those relatives will, in many cases, be embittered. They will be the backbone of whatever group emerges to replace Hamas. In ten years time, the whole thing may happen all over again. Or, it may be that Hamas will not be defeated, in which case Hamas will gain hugely in prestige in the Islamic world with consequences that are hard to predict. The general point is that more and more violence is unlikely to lead to long term peace.
The Buddha said "Hatred is not overcome by hatred. Hatred is only overcome by non-hate." The present escalation of force brings more hatred into the world. It is a fire that could consume us all. How far will it go? Will those with the power to do so realise that a different approach is needed? Where is the tipping point beyond which the fire gets completely out of control? Is it inevitably the case that the powerful endlessly seek more power until a breaking point is reached? There must be a countervailing influence in the world. We must promote Dharma.
THE SHAMBHALA PROPHECY ~ As told by Joanna Macy
Coming to us across twelve centuries, the Shambhala prophecy comes from ancient Tibetan Buddhism. The prophecy
foretells of a time when all life on Earth is in danger. Great barbarian powers have arisen. Although these powers spend much of their wealth in preparations to annihilate each other, they have much in common: weapons of unfathomable destructive power, and technologies that lay waste our world. In this era, when the future of sentient life hangs by the frailest of threads, the kingdom of Shambhala emerges.
You cannot go there, for it is not a place; it is not a geopolitical entity. It exists in the hearts and minds of the Shambhala warriors. That is the term the prophecy used – “warriors.” You cannot recognize the Shambhala warrior when you see him or her, for they wear no uniforms or insignia, and they carry no specific banners. They have no barricades on which to climb or threaten the enemy, or behind which they can hide to rest or regroup. They do not even have any home turf. Always they must move on the terrain of the barbarians themselves.
Now the time comes when great courage — moral and physical courage — is required of the Shambhala warriors, for they must go into the very heart of the barbarian power, into the pits and pockets and citadels where the weapons are kept, to dismantle them. To dismantle weapons, in every sense of the word, they must go into the corridors of power where decisions are made.
NEWS FROM LA VILLE AU ROI
We are having exceptional storms these days. A combination of a low level atmospheric depression moving south and the high level jet stream coming in from the west puts France in line for a series of tempests, thunder, lightning and floods. This is all in sharp contrast to the drought we were suffering a month ago. Climate change continues to make everything more extreme.
I have had and will continue to have visitors until I go to Spain in late November and then to S America in December. It is good to have the company and stimulating to have the conversations. Otherwise I continue with my regular activities, making podcasts, doing this Newsletter, keeping up with the students on the Buddhist Psychology Programme, writing, doing therapy sessions and, when the weather permits, a little bit of gardening.
This year there were good crops of apples and walnuts. Now the leaves are changing colour and soon will all fall. No frost is yet forecast and temperatures are generally still quite mild and warmer than in most previous years. Nonetheless, it is noticable that Tara now eats more and is putting on weight. She spends more time indoors and most of the day is curled up on the armchair in the kitchen.