Finding Balance in Practice, and Balance in Crisis
In Beth Upton's thoughtful and nuanced discussion, she reflects on the profound impact of Myanmar's spiritual heritage on her life and teachings. She expresses a deep sense of responsibility towards the Burmese people, emphasizing the interconnectedness of their plight with the spiritual teachings they have nurtured and shared. Beth articulates a compelling case for engagement, not merely as a charitable endeavor but as a reciprocal act of gratitude towards a culture that has offered immense spiritual wealth to the world. Her approach is deeply empathetic and grounded in the principles of the Dharma. She discusses the complexity of engaging with the crises in Myanmar, balancing the need for internal spiritual development with the imperative to act on external sufferings. Beth sees this engagement as a vital part of spiritual practice, a means to cultivate and demonstrate the qualities of generosity, humility, and interconnectedness taught by the Buddha. Beth's comments also underscore a significant cultural loss with the ongoing conflict in Myanmar, highlighting the depth and richness of a tradition that could become inaccessible. This, she fears, could lead to a dilution of profound teachings and practices that have been preserved over centuries. Her perspective is both a call to action and a reflection on the intrinsic value of maintaining a strong, reciprocal relationship with the Burmese spiritual community, suggesting that supporting Myanmar is not only an act of compassion but also an essential aspect of spiritual integrity and growth.
“We’re in a debt of gratitude to this culture. It is good to pick up by serving and supporting the Burmese community; our Dhamma ecosystem is healthier.”
So there's a way in which we can fall out of balance in the Dhamma becoming overly politicized. The way that manifests is sort of an underlying or an unquestioned belief or an instinct that the way for me to, or the way for people to make an end of suffering, is to make samsara and not be samsara. So, if I see external suffering, I have to go and do something about that. And if we go too far down that road to use the words of the Buddha, we reap only weariness because there will continue to be conflict and suffering of all manifestations in the world. And there's essentially no end to it. So if this is the only fight, we're fighting the political fight, then or the external, let's do something about the external terrible things that we see happening in the world, then probably something is a bit off balance in our practice. There are maybe things inside of ourselves that we are not attending to because it's, for whatever reason, psychologically more comfortable for us to focus on those external things, and there's no end to that. And so we see this caution in the Buddha's teachings about only ever fighting that external fight.
But there's also how we can take that messaging to another extreme. I think this is what we are talking about when we hear meditators saying, "Okay, I'll make my silent retreat. And that's what I do. I don't want to be involved." that's just externalizing; you can't do anything about that; it's also a mistake, and the reason is that responsibility is our working ground. So, if we never pick up any challenge, we don't give ourselves any working ground to build our spiritual qualities.
When I say build our spiritual qualities, that can sound quite self-interested, but it's not because those spiritual qualities are service, generosity, faith, and sila, and all of these relational, non-self-based qualities. So we practice those things, and we learn those things in relation and by picking up a working ground. The responsibilities that we pick up are always a choice. The commitments that we make and the responsibilities that we pick up are always a choice, and it doesn't work. It simply doesn't work to tell people which responsibilities they should pick up. Nobody likes it. It's always counterproductive. But we can pick up the responsibilities we choose in our way and show the benefits of being on those working grounds. In a Dhammaful, graceful way, all of the benefits we gain from picking up a responsibility, picking up a challenge, and learning and growing in it.
I think many Westerners face many responsibilities and challenges to pick up and work within our Dhamma practice; many people feel they don't need one more. And that's ultimately their personal choice. But I think the point of this conversation is to encourage; this is a good one to pick up. For many reasons, it's a good one to pick up because we're in a debt of gratitude to this culture. It is good to pick up by serving and supporting the Burmese community; our Dhamma ecosystem is healthier.