Unconditional inclusion
must include exclusion.
From this perspective an approach to non-violence
that excludes violence
does violence to violence.
Still with me?
And so my fruitful hypothesis.
Violence
occurs as a natural and instinctive effort to re-engage.
That is my argument.
The them of our us them binary
having been driven to the limits
of an unconditionally inclusive realty
arises as a variety of wrothful protector.
because we can't make it go away.
We can't make it go away.
Our only real choice is to wake up.
and it is the protectors job to wake us up.
The reason I'm calling this hypothesis fruitful
is because it insist on relationship and relationship is the nature of reality.
So how would we practice based on this
fruitful hypothesis? Assuming we wish to take it on.
First of all we have to recognize
that there is no escaping our relationship with violence.
Sometimes when I'm teaching dharma I see
the light goes on in someone's eyes
and they say "oh I get it, I have to accept reality"
And my response is " and your choices are"?
So I am suggesting that we not only recognize that there is no escaping our relationship with violence
but that we embrace it.
It's there, It's not going away.
Secondly
that we take responsibility for the nature of that relationship.
A little over twenty years ago
I was living here
in boulder and I went down to spend
the last month of my father's life with him in Cape Town.
and before I left I spoke to Vicky Howard
who use to teach Gerontology at Naropa.
and asked her for some advice, and she said.
"If your relationship with your parents is going to change your going to have to be the one who changes because they are not going to".
And I would say the same is true for violence.
We keep wanting violence to change into something that we would prefer
into something that causes less suffering.
But it's not going to, we are the ones that are going to have to change.
And thats what I mean by
taking responsibility for the nature of our relationship with violence.
And finally committing to the work of
transforming that relationship with violence.
