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Thich Nhat Hanh's work has had a profound impact on my life and purpose. But his final practice of "how to die" is hitting home for me. How, as we age, we have to reckon with the limitation and deterioration of our physical bodies while our spiritual body continues to grow.
And it made me think beyond the human form - about the devastation of the earth's body and if our collective consciousness can emerge to regenerate and slow the destruction. Or the corruption of our political body and if a moral awakening can dismantle the systems of domination so we can all finally experience the freedom that was promised.
But Thich Naht Hanh also speaks of waking up each day as a rebirth - a new moment, a new body, a new reality. In teaching us how to die, he is also showing us how to live. But the future is not something that will come to us. We must wake to it. We must build it day by day.
Thankfully, the climate kids are coming and I think they will be just in time.
Kerri
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THE HUSTLE
We live in the era of the hustle...of following our dreams until the end, and then pushing ourselves more. "If we love it, we should sell it. If we love it and we're good at it, we should definitely sell it". And yes, there is such a thing as neoliberal perfectionism - a cutthroat environment in which every person is their own brand ambassador, the sole spokesman for their product (themselves) and broker of their own labor, in an endless sea of competition. You're going to want to sit down and open a bottle of wine for this one. Ugh.
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HOW TO DIE
Thich Nhat Hanh has done more than perhaps any Buddhist alive today to articulate and disseminate the core Buddhist teachings of mindfulness, kindness, and compassion to a broad global audience. And his final mindfulness lesson is how to die peacefully. He recently returned to his roots to Vietnam to pass his final days at his temple. Phap Dung reflects on what he has learned about dying from his teacher:
Letting go is a practice not only when you reach 90. It’s one of the highest practices. This can move you toward equanimity, a state of freedom, a form of peace. Waking up each day as a rebirth, now that is a practice.
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BACKERS OF HATE
Two year's ago, CTZNWELL joined Make the Road NY and Center for Popular Democracy in campaign to stop #corporatebackersofhate. That organizing paid off this week when JP Morgan finally ceded to pressure to back out of financing private prisons. Big banks, private prison companies, financiers for immigration detention centers and other corporations (Amazon) stand to profit from political agendas that marginalize and oppress. Watch AOC confront Wellsfargo executives about their profits over people policy. Here are some tools on divestment and sanctuary, check out our
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LISTEN
Anasa Troutman wants us to go from justice to joy. She makes a powerful case for culture as a viable approach for social impact. Through the lens of a painful personal story, she asks us to go beyond the work for justice and dares us to cultivate a culture centered in radical love that creates sustainable joy for all. This talk features a young vocalist, Dnyla, from AngelStreet Memphis.
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It's here! We are counting down to the second season of CTZN Podcast by rewinding the best of season 1. Check out radical conversations at the intersection of wellbeing and social justice with Tarana Burke, Rev angel Kyodo williams, Marianne Williamson, Jamia Wilson, Seane Corn and more. Be sure to subscribe on Apple Itunes so that you're first to know when season two drops and tune in all week to CTZNWELL for a sneak peak of our season 2 line up. It's happening.
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We want to give a shout out to our patrons who, throughout the year, have made it possible for us to keep going. WELLREAD is community-inspired and crowdsourced. That's how we keep it real. We are leveling up in 2019 with a second season of CTZN Podcast, upgraded WELLREAD and another CTZN Summit! Please consider joining our community on Patreon for as little as $1 per month so that we can keep doing the work of curating content that matters for citizens who care. Grateful.
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WELLread is produced by CTZNWELL, a nonprofit mobilizing the wellbeing community to take action for the health and justice of all people. Was this email forwarded to you? Find out more about our organization and subscribe.
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