Greetings Dear Sangha,
This weekend, ideas about independence and freedom are everywhere: in fireworks, speeches, flags, and perhaps an argument at a cookout. On the one hand, we have 250 years of a nation purportedly built on those ideals and, on the other, 2500 years of a contemplative tradition asking what independence and freedom actually mean. Each puts forward its own theory of happiness: what do we need to live a good life and how should we go about that project?
Looking closer, the Dharma insists, right alongside contemporary ecology, that nothing exists independently. And yet that same Dharma, and modern psychology too, keeps pointing us toward something that sounds a lot like independence: don't outsource your peace of mind, learn to stand on your own two feet. We even find "abide independently" in the foundational instructions.
So which is it? Entangled, or autonomous? When words like "freedom" and "independence" surround us, it's a good time to explore the Dharma's understanding of both. Tomorrow evening we'll ask what a wise, interdependent freedom looks like in the small, barely noticed moments, and how those moments quietly but powerfully shape the lives we actually live.
I hope you can join us this Sunday, in person or online, as we celebrate interdependence and pursue freedom, together.
-- Looking closer, the Dharma insists, right alongside contemporary ecology, that nothing exists independently. And yet that same Dharma, and modern psychology too, keeps pointing us toward something that sounds a lot like independence: don't outsource your peace of mind, learn to stand on your own two feet. We even find "abide independently" in the foundational instructions.
So which is it? Entangled, or autonomous? When words like "freedom" and "independence" surround us, it's a good time to explore the Dharma's understanding of both. Tomorrow evening we'll ask what a wise, interdependent freedom looks like in the small, barely noticed moments, and how those moments quietly but powerfully shape the lives we actually live.
I hope you can join us this Sunday, in person or online, as we celebrate interdependence and pursue freedom, together.
In-person: Sunday, 7:00 to 8:30pm @ Yoga District — 1910 14th Street NW, 3rd Floor, Washington, DC (please try to arrive at least 10 min. early)
Online via Zoom: Join here
Yours In Sangha,
Kristin
kristin barker
Pronouns she, her and hers; on occupied land of the Piscataway.
No mud, no lotus.
— Thích Nhất Hạnh
https://www.downtowndharmadc.org/
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