The Princeton Insight Meditation Engaged Buddhism Group is a peer-led group whose purpose is to connect our spiritual path to our response to the current conditions in the world. We want to use our understanding of suffering, compassion, and interconnectedness to bring about positive change in the world.
The group meets online via Zoom on the second and fourth Wednesdays each month from 7:00 to 9:00pm; email us at engaged@princetoninsightmeditation.org for login details. The group is open to anyone who is interested; drop-ins are welcome.
The group maintains a list of Engaged Buddhism resources. Here are the resources that were highlighted in our last meeting:
- Applying practice to political action (from this week’s discussion)
- Gretel’s document of resources from the June 11th meeting
- Bhikkhu Analayo, “A Task for Mindfulness” (One Earth Sangha)
- Gil Fronsdal, “The Buddha as an Activist” (Insight Meditation Center)
- Valerie Brown, “Racial Justice / Skillful Action for a Path Forward” Plum Village)
- Thanissara, “Inner Peace is not Apart from Activism” (Dharma Talk at Spirit Rock). Sacred web of life is calling us to take the Dhamma gifts and use them to engage with the world with the intention of alleviating suffering. Our practice is not just to sit in our huts and shut off the outside world. The Buddha himself was a radical activist—tried to stop wars, resolved conflicts, changed the religious system, undid social hierarchies, etc.
- No Kings Nationwide Day of Defiance: June 14th Sponsored by Indivisible, 50501; endorsed by Buddhist Coalition for Democracy. Events being held in:
- Princeton: Monument Park (1 Monument Drive), 3:30–5:00 pm
- Trenton: State House Annex, 12:00–3:00 pm
- Pennington: Pennington Shopping Center, 12:00–1:30 pm (also, a candlelight vigil at 8:00 pm)
- Philadelphia: Love Park (marching to Philadelphia Museum of Art), 12:00–3:00 pm
If you have feedback or suggestions regarding the group, you can send them via our suggestion box.
Why we’re meeting
Immediately following the 2024 presidential election, monk, scholar, and teacher Bhikkhu Bodhi responded in a statement titled “It’s No Time to Be Neutral.” In it, he proposed answers to the question: “How are we, ordinary Americans pledged to Buddhist ethical and spiritual ideals, to respond to the array of interwoven crises we’re likely to face in the years ahead?” Members of the Princeton Insight Meditation sangha have expressed their anxiety about what’s happening in the world and have asked the same question posed by Ven. Bodhi: How are we to respond? How can we exercise wisdom and compassion in taking action in ways that are beneficial for ourselves and others?
In response to these questions, Princeton Insight Meditation has made a space to gather together those in the sangha who are interested in exploring Engaged Buddhism: using our understanding of suffering, compassion, and interconnectedness to bring about positive change in the world.
To help navigate our way, we will be using the framework of what Bhikkhu Bodhi has described as “four crucial steps we can take if we are to move in a direction that aligns with our highest ethical aspirations as Buddhist practitioners.”
- Turn inwards: Using our dharma tools of mindfulness, “pause, sit down, and process what we’re going through.”
- Cultivate our hearts: “embrace, in loving-kindness and compassion, all those at greatest risk under a second Trump presidency.”
- Take action: “find opportunities to express our moral convictions in action.”
- Understand: “use discernment and reflection to understand how we reached this terrible debacle and how we can emerge from it.”
The Engaged Buddhism group is a place for sangha members to help each other explore these four steps. The twice-monthly meetings are a time for meditation, checking in, discussion, and sharing resources and opportunities for action in alignment with our Buddhist values.