NOTE: Read Grief in the Middle East… our founder’s response for more context to this post.
For these many months, we’ve stood witness to the violence, occupation, and genocide enacted in Gaza and Israel (as well as Ukraine, Sudan, Myanmar, Yemen, the list goes on…). The Resilient Activist is heartbroken at the catastrophic loss of life, safety, and well-being in the Middle East and across the globe; we wish to respond with skillful thought and action.
At The Resilient Activist, we understand the struggle for liberation in these regions as inseparable from the liberation of all oppressed beings around the world – and of the Earth itself. There is no way to fully separate environmental injustice from racial injustice from economic injustice… all these share one tangled root system. If our activism is based on wisdom and resilience, we understand that how we impact one system of injustice also affects the others.
We believe resilient activism is possible only with mindfulness and compassion.
Some think mindfulness and compassion are aligned with passiveness and inaction. However, mindfulness and compassion are necessary steps in our journey to process our emotions and take embodied action that leaves a lasting positive difference. When we rush into action without first checking into our emotions or addressing the common dignity of all beings, we can create undue harm to others through our reactivity.
This time calls for us to engage in the deepest meaning of “responsibility” – that is, our ability to mindfully respond rather than react in the face of adversity.
When we take time to become present, offer our difficult emotions a seat at the table, hear what they have to say, utilize contemplative practices to metabolize pain, and take action from that embodied place – we are supporting a global movement toward peace.
For this reason, we feel called to share resources that may support you on this tender but necessary journey. You do not have to do it alone.
May all beings be safe.
May all beings be at ease.
May all beings be peaceful.
May all beings be well.
~ The Resilient Activist Board of Directors and Team
Resources to Connect with Compassion and Metabolize Grief:
Breathing for Palestine Meditation Series – A Restful Space
- “Breathing for Palestine” is an online meditation course focused on harnessing the power of breathwork and “metabolizing collective & ecological grief as an anti-capitalist, transformational, liberatory practice.”
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This supportive course is offered with unlimited access and sliding-scale pricing tiers. Two-thirds of all proceeds go directly to support Palestinians in Gaza and pro-Palestinian protestors in the US.
- Zen Peacemakers is a contemplative social action nonprofit based on Zen Buddhism that operates from three tenets: Not-Knowing, Bearing Witness, and Loving Action.
- They have two related teachings: a “Socially Engaged Dharma in Israel-Palestine” article speaking to how to take loving action in such politically charged and stressful spaces, and a webinar recording of “Bearing Witness: A Community Discussion About the Israel-Hamas War”.
Guiding Teacher Reflections of War and Violence – Spirit Rock
- Spirit Rock Meditation Center published an article addressing the global harm within current events through the perspective of the Buddha’s Noble Eightfold Path.
- “To maintain our sanity, we need one another. We need to encourage each other to maintain our meditative practice. We also need the support and refuge of Saṅgha [community], with its shared commitment of non-harm, its cultivation of love and compassion, and its respect for all beings.” – Spirit Rock
Reflections on the Middle East – Insight Meditation Society
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The Insight Meditation Society published an article called “Reflections on the Middle East” addressing the role of mindfulness and compassionate action in times like these: “We believe that [meditation] practice is the pathway for each of us to cultivate discernment amid suffering so that we can access greater clarity and truth.” – IMS
