Freedom

Happy Independence Day!

I read this article by Dr. Jim Hopper earlier in the day, but wanted to focus primarily upon his section on Kindness for this posting.

Within the article, Hooper provides an excellent synopsis of the practices of both lovingkindness and compassion practices from a Buddhist orientation. The do's and do not's are provided, but it is within his explanation of the purpose of lovingkindness/compassion practice that caught my attention.

"While lovingkindness and compassion are (moral and ethical) ideals for relating to others, they are also mental qualities essential for achieving greater peace, freedom, and happiness."


Peace, freedom and happiness? That sounds a little bit like life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Learning about lovingkindness meditation, in many ways, was one of the greatest areas of meditation that I took from our class periods. Maybe it's because the practice is incredibly demonstrative in opposition to the typical themes we hear daily in our environment, but I've found a great deal of peace in the moments I've taken to sit and direct these thoughts toward myself and others both physically close and to those close to my heart. I had a conversation with someone about a week ago who asked me about the course and what I learned. When I began to describe to them this practice, they became skeptical, and began to question the practicality of it.

- How can you begin to convince yourself to give kindness toward someone at that moment?
- What if they've done something recently to upset/harm you? Do you forget about it?
- If you convince yourself into the practice, is it then genuine?

In Hooper's article, he makes it known that lovingkindness is not something to be forced or brought on when one is not present to the concept. This is where compassion comes in, and in many ways, can serve as the preparation for someone to then reach lovingkindness.

What would happen if the notion of said practices became a revolution? A lovingkindness revolution. Wouldn't it drastically alter our society and the ways in which we interact and relate with one another? Wouldn't peace, freedom, and happiness become the 21st Century pillars for our Nation?

After celebrating with friends, eating too much food, and witnessing a phenomenal fireworks display, I stood for a few moments on the balcony of a friends apartment overlooking the National Mall and began my own revolution.

May I be thankful for freedom.
May I be at peace.
May I be generous in life.
May I be filled with joy.

*Hopefully, this drum will keep marching on.