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Thich Nhat Hanh, 90 yr old activist zen master's advice on coping with Trump
My feelings are in concordance. Hate is self-destructive. Writing entire groups of people off is very counter-productive. Inner peace is power to move mountains.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/zen-and-the-art-of-activism_us_58a118b6e4b094a129ec59af
A Zen Master’s Advice On Coping With Trump
It involves a lot more than meditating
Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh, who has been a social and environmental activist for more than 40 years, has said the most important thing for those feeling a sense of despair is to remember that meeting anger with more anger only makes matters worse.
{...}
His essential teaching on activism is that mindfulness gives people the ability to find peace in themselves so that their actions come from a place of compassion.
{...}
“If we can be strong in ourselves, then we could offer a resistance that is nonviolent,” Sister Peace said. “But that means that we ourselves are at a place where we can have that recognition and we can offer that to another. And that is a great, great source of love and having the other feel they’re being recognized and listened to and embraced.”
{...}
In 1967, Martin Luther King Jr nominated Hanh for a Nobel Peace Prize. “It would remind all nations that men of good will stand ready to lead warring elements out of an abyss of hatred and destruction,” King wrote of recommending Hanh for the award, which Hanh ultimately did not receive. “It would re-awaken men to the teaching of beauty and love found in peace. It would help to revive hopes for a new order of justice and harmony.”
{...}
It involves a lot more than meditating
Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh, who has been a social and environmental activist for more than 40 years, has said the most important thing for those feeling a sense of despair is to remember that meeting anger with more anger only makes matters worse.
{...}
His essential teaching on activism is that mindfulness gives people the ability to find peace in themselves so that their actions come from a place of compassion.
{...}
“If we can be strong in ourselves, then we could offer a resistance that is nonviolent,” Sister Peace said. “But that means that we ourselves are at a place where we can have that recognition and we can offer that to another. And that is a great, great source of love and having the other feel they’re being recognized and listened to and embraced.”
{...}
In 1967, Martin Luther King Jr nominated Hanh for a Nobel Peace Prize. “It would remind all nations that men of good will stand ready to lead warring elements out of an abyss of hatred and destruction,” King wrote of recommending Hanh for the award, which Hanh ultimately did not receive. “It would re-awaken men to the teaching of beauty and love found in peace. It would help to revive hopes for a new order of justice and harmony.”
{...}
Much more at the article.