The Truth Mandala at the Blue Room

The first event from the Heart and Soul group took place in the Blue Room last Saturday and explored the work of Joanna Macy. We began with a silent meditation of gratitude for life by remembering a favourite place in nature, a place that we love, feel connected to and sustained by. The following text led us into the meditation:

Joanna Macy, Buddhist scholar and teacher, reminds us to consistently summon an attitude of gratitude. This reminder is constant. Even in despair about the challanges that we face at these times she reminds us to be grateful. Gratitude is a central theme. Never forget gratitude. There is always something to be grateful for in life. Gratitude is the miracle of life, for each other, for so many things. Gratitude is part of awareness, part of being awake. It reflects our choice to embrace life and the beauty of the natural world when so many of our thoughts can be caught in the negative.

Following this reflection we continued with the “Truth Mandala”, a practice of “honouring our pain for the world”. In this practice we spoke from the heart about the sadness we feel for what is happening to the natural world. As human beings we evolved together with nature over hundreds of thousands of years. It is no surprise, therefore, that the destruction of our planet-home should effect us on an emotional level. The workshop setting gives space to express the fears, the anger, the sadness so that we can break through the emotions, become empowered and act – this is the powerful teaching of Joanna Macy.