It is beyond words to express my feelings of sadness and devastation after seeing the unnecessary force which led to the ultimate disaster of losing one precious human life, George Floyd. My heartfelt prayers flow for the loss of Mr. Floyd’s life and for all who have been affected by this unthinkable event. This tragedy is, once again, a stark awakening to the need for genuine changes to take place in our society. The long- cherished statement proclaiming that “all are created equal” has to mean something. It needs to be reflected in the way we treat each other. Our differences are so shallow and our commonalities so deep. As Buddy Guy says, our differences are “skin deep” and “underneath we’re all the same”; we are human beings.
From the Buddhist point of view, all creatures, not just humans, are equal sentient beings. We all depend on one another for our existence. Our ecosystem shows clearly how we all depend on one another. There should be no cause to see the existence of others as a threat to one’s own being. When we know how to respect and love one another without the trappings of our biased mind; by being wise and going kind, then the world can offer its best. For those who are spiritual practitioners, we must not get too riled up by biased emotions that are mixed with individual conditioning. At the same time, we cannot abandon the vision of Bodhichitta and we must engage in helping other beings achieve peace and harmony. Together, we can create a harmonious world for all.
