By Joanna Herrera, PsyD, RPsy, Executive Director, Circle of Hope Community Services Inc.
“It is better to light one small candle than to curse the darkness.” -Confucius
I was born four months after the declaration of martial law. As a martial law baby, I have quite notable memories of growing up in a bleak and worrisome political climate. I recall the general atmosphere in the Philippines to be thick with suppression, people feared speaking out, and those who dared to faced high penalties. Frequently, I overheard conversations among adults about political leaders and activists who were “picked-up” (“dinampot”), unjustly held, tortured, salvaged, and assassinated. News and media networks that were permitted to operate were mainly instruments of political propaganda by the dictatorship. In order to get real information, one had to get a hold of Malaya and other alternative newspapers or listen to Radyo Veritas. When election time came, there was a sense of submission that it was bound to be a futile exercise fueled by an extensive machinery that operated to keep Marcos and his allies in power.
Then came the assassination of Ninoy Aquino in August 21, 1983. The images of him alighting from the plane, walking down, being shot, and lying dead face-down on the tarmac played repeatedly in my 10-year old mind. I remember the very intense and somber mood at home the day this happened. Rallies and protests gradually became a day-to-day reality, countered by oppressive and violent efforts by the Marcos regime to silence the growing cry for freedom. Those were very courageous times for many Filipinos as resistance swelled and people put their lives on the line guarding ballots in the 1986 snap elections. Then the unexpected great turning occurred—the People Power Revolution, which in my eyes as a Filipino youth, was the most spectacularly inspiring event I ever witnessed. It was a moment of very deep pride and hope as the whole world marveled at our peaceful yet relentless journey to freedom.
Fast-forward to our present political reality. Our country is groaning in pain once again as unconscionable decisions are made by elected officials amidst already extremely trying times. It feels as though our own leaders are shooting an arrow at us, to finally put us down, as we fight for our physical and economic survival in this pandemic. It is nothing but heartless. Heartless and chilling, when one considers the systematic annihilation of dissenting voices over the course of this current presidency. These times feel too sadly familiar. Yet, in the weight of this fight against COVID-19, our fierce and rightful anger and clamor for justice seems to be muzzled into quiet desperation, helplessness, and loss of hope. How can we restore ourselves and recover from collective mental and emotional fatigue in order to harness the energy towards sustainably working for justice?
Mindfulness is a practice from ancient eastern spiritual traditions that taps into the power of awareness in order to help us access deeper and more lasting sources of resilience. One might initially perceive mindfulness as a passive and blunt tool “for calming and relaxation.” Yet, in actuality, when you peel away the layers of misunderstanding that come with “the mindfulness fad,” it is at its core, a practice of awakening and staying awake. Mindfulness is not about dulling our hearts and minds into peaceful surrender to harsh realities. It is about training our hearts to be warriors at facing difficulty without cowering in fear so that we can in each moment take action that is wise, courageous, and compassionate. We can think about the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual and political leader of Tibet, and the Zen master, Thich Nhat Hanh, who was prevented re-entry to Vietnam because of his efforts in peace activism during the Vietnam war era. These exceptionally tenacious and wise leaders share and teach a common practice—mindfulness.
What does mindfulness mean and how do we practice mindfulness? It is pausing and coming home to the present moment, to our inner and outer reality, with a sense of openness and compassion. Here in the present moment, we allow our awareness to bear witness and be with how we really are—we embrace our anger, fear, sadness, and joy. With mindfulness, we also train ourselves in attending to our pain, so that we don’t become stuck in emotional states of overwhelm and immobility. We begin to see the need to nourish ourselves with compassion, to turn to ourselves with kind and intentional care. And as we respond in an attuned way to our internal needs, we nurse our nervous systems back into its optimal state, accessing our deeper intelligence, and re-opening channels of energy that fuel our endeavors. As Thich Nhat Hanh said, with mindfulness we realize that “we have more possibilities available in each moment.” In other words, we reignite our hope.
The breath is a beautiful anchor for mindfulness. When we stop and pay attention to our breath, we discover ourselves and our deep interconnection with each other. Pausing and simply allowing ourselves to breathe, we are able to ground ourselves in the source of Life that breathes into each one of us moment-by-moment. This practice of intentional breathing has the power to unfreeze us from states of emotional paralysis so that we can respond in a creative way to the challenges before us. Unencumbered by overwhelming stress, mindfulness practice can literally open our neural circuitries and subsequently regain our connection with our sense of purpose and shared humanity. Individuals and communities can be awakened through the power of mindfulness, as we collectively heal, cultivate fresh energy and insight, and act in wiser and more skillful ways.
These are extraordinary times in which we are called upon to be warriors on multiple fronts. We will not be able to sustain ourselves without consciously cultivating our resilience to stay awake and to engage constructively in alleviating the different forms of suffering affecting our country and our world right now. Through mindfulness, and with each mindful breath, we allow ripples of life-affirming energy to shape actions, personal and collective, that lead us into the transformation that we seek. Let us awaken and stay awake with each other.
A Practice of Mindfulness and Activism
(adapted from www.mindfulschools.org)
1. Find a comfortable sitting position either on a chair with your feet on the ground or cross-legged. You can rest your hands on your legs or in your lap. You may close your eyes or soften your gaze.
2. Feel the earth supporting you as you pay attention to the contact of your feet on the ground underneath and the solid surface that your body is resting on.
3. Place your attention gently on your breathing. Allow your breathing to be natural, sensing into where you feel the breath most (i.e., belly, chest, throat, nostrils). Take a moment to really connect with your breath.
4. Release your focus on the breath and while staying in the present moment, notice any sensations, emotions, or thoughts arising. Just observe each passing moment without judgment.
5. Now, invite into your awareness something that is working well in your life or something that you are grateful for. It may even be simply having the basic resources that you have in your life.
6. Bring to mind an issue in your community, country, or the world that you feel connected to. Perhaps something that you feel helpless about.
7. Allow yourself to notice how you’re feeling about this—perhaps anger, sadness, grief, loss. If it gets overwhelming, come back to the sensation of being grounded and connected to the earth supporting you. Re-connect with the breath to nurture and care for yourself.
8. Allow yourself to connect with the wish to alleviate the suffering caused by this issue and the wish for things to change and be better.
9. Allow yourself to connect with your wish to help, to connect with others, and get in touch with what you long to do. You may gently ask yourself, “What is something I can do today or tomorrow? Is there a new way of imagining what I like to be?” See if you can allow action to come out of this connection.
10. Bring your focus back to the breath again and to the sensation of the earth underneath you. Let your breath and the feeling of solidity give you grounding and strength.
11. If you wish, set a commitment to do one thing or to take one step that is related to or connected to this issue that you care about.
12. Gently release yourself from the practice by slowly opening your eyes and thanking yourself for taking this time to pause.
STOP: A Micro-Practice Version of Mindfulness and Activism
- S- Stop.
- T- Take a breath. Intentionally notice your breathing to connect deeply with yourself.
- O- Observe the feelings, thoughts, and sensations that you are having related to an issue in our country or the world that you care about. Hold your experience with kindness and compassion.
- P- Proceed with a simple commitment or step that would enable you to act and participate wisely.
For the guided audio practice please go to: https://www.mindfulschools.org/personal-practice/mindful-summer-week-2-compassion-and-mindfulness-in-activism/