A Letter on the Conflict in Gaza

Friends in the Dharma,
 
As the conflict in Gaza continues, we wanted to be in touch to recognize the ways in which this devastating conflict, as well as other unrest across the country and the world, may be rippling through your lives. Whether you are Jewish, Muslim, Palestinian or Israeli, or have ancestral ties to the region, whether you have relatives who are directly impacted by the violence, or you are simply a sensitive human deeply affected by the hatred and cruelty we hear about in the news every day, we want to name and acknowledge the difficulty people are feeling.
 
You may be feeling a lot. You may be feeling a little. Maybe you are angry, enraged, depressed, helpless, confused, perplexed, in deep grief, numb or checked out. The Dharma is wide enough and deep enough to hold it all. SFI humbly aspires to be a place of refuge where all of us can connect with our direct, immediate experience—whatever emotions, thoughts or sensations are arising—within a warm, welcoming community.

Because our practice is never just about ourselves, we also send our deepest compassion to the many beings affected by the devastating violence in the Middle East, the ongoing war in Ukraine, conflicts in Myanmar, Yemen, across Africa and Mexico, and in many other places.

 May we cultivate the wisdom and compassion needed to support action that creates peace—within ourselves, within our communities, and across the world.
 
With love,
The SFI teaching team–

Eugene, Syra, Victoria & Pamela