I feel the various meditative practices currently in use are limited; they tend to focus on individual change, with the anticipation that personal change will contribute to a more viable world of relationships. The Individual's meditational practices, it is said, will lead to compassion for others. To be sure, such practices can be very useful in suspending degenerative relations. However, the demands of relational life are enormous and complex. If the productive flow of meaning is to be sustained, a rich array of resources is required. Building promising futures together would seem to require skills in pro-active participation. The challenge as I see it is to generate meditative, mindful practices that include multiple parties. - Ken Gergen
Ever since mindfulness based stress reduction hit the western meditation scene, we have been hit with scores and scores of books and literature about how we can be more mindful in our respective jobs, kitchens, washrooms, and daily lives. Even science has begun to get behind this new movement. Regularly, we now hear about how mindfulness can change brain structure, or how mindfulness can bring about emotional balance. All of this is good stuff for sure, but what I like about Gergen's counter position, is that much of this new movement continues to strengthen western individualist ideas and discourse. I never hear much talk of the Sangha, or a mindful community, if you will. Gergen is right, living out on the bricks is a tough go, relationships are messy. Training someone how to successfully take a "time-out" is one thing, tooling them to connect with others, in a world where there's a heavy discourse to go it alone, is another.
There's an old story from the sutra's that captures Buddha's position on the importance of community.
Ananda, Lord Buddha's long-time personal attendant and monk-disciple, asks Buddha:
"Lord, is it true what has been said, that good spiritual friends are fully half of the holy life?"
The Master replied, "No, Ananda, good spiritual friends are the whole of the holy life. Find refuge in the sangha community."
It has been my experience when working with others, and in my own life, that problems grow stronger in isolation. The mindfulness movement has missed this piece. Any practice that doesn't recognize the importance of community, and the danger of the individual focus, is missing "the whole of the holy life."
Recent Comments