When anyone claims it’s not “spiritual” to be politically active or attend to “worldly” concerns, they’re ignoring the fact that many of history’s most renowned and enlightened people have been simultaneously spiritual and politically mindful. The Dalai Lama, Suzuki Roshi, Thich Nhat Hanh, Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi, Trappist monk Thomas Merton, Jesuit priest and anti-war activist Daniel Berrigan, founder of the Catholic Worker’s movement Dorothy Day, and a long list of others concern(ed) themselves with worldly crises, spoke out against war and other atrocities, and saw no conflict between spirituality and speaking out about worldly events. The strange notion one can’t (or worse, shouldn’t) attend to both the inner and outer world is illogical. Years ago I read the idea that being alive on Earth and not paying attention to social injustice, war, etc., is like attending a party and spending the whole time hiding in a closet. We’re here not just to examine our inner lives, but also to participate in our external world. Throughout history, most of the really enlightened beings have known this and lived accordingly. People who try to discourage others from being concerned with both the exterior and interior worlds are misinformed themselves and pass their misunderstanding to others. Think for yourself and investigate the facts always instead of reflexively accepting spiritual sayings which may sound nice but lead you in the wrong direction.
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