Conditions are always changing. The larger cycles of war and political disruption, marked by three poisons, don’t seem to change, though. Greed, hostility, and ignorance are as innate in the human condition as is generosity, compassion, and awake awareness. It’s up to us, our choice, what we practice and cultivate, what we take refuge in, what we return to moment by moment.
Equanimity, one of the Four Immeasurables, is the very way of the Bodhisattva. It’s immeasurable for me if I remember that I have choices. I can ask, “How can I live into these changing conditions with openness and wisdom? with caring, intelligence, creativity?” What are the possibilities? Right now, many of us may be in dread about the election results. This mood is part of our inner condition, difficult and painful. If we can find no flexibility, no potential for learning from it, for staying connected, for creatively responding, then this dread can lead to despair, which in turn limits our energy for meeting conditions with a whole heart.
The situation is always complex, and open. We may or may not be able to influence larger circumstances or the actions of others directly, but we can keep a bead on responding thoughtfully ourselves and refraining from adding to the collective suffering. Skillful, direct action at times is clear and compelling. But not always. But we can always, if aware, return to the immediacy of this breath, to our vow to be of benefit. Then we can think more clearly about what we can do right here. The act of refuge looms large – remembering to take refuge and to offer it to others in effective ways. We can choose not to be at the mercy of our reactivity. We can choose not to cut off from a larger view that helps us to see more clearly and be more patient, creative and kind. “Holding steady in a high wind”, is a useful image to guide our choices in difficult times.