Whatever our particular path or story, for better or worse, our lives give form to the principles and values we hold. Often our own ways of being fall far short of our best ideals, or even run counter to our deepest longing for how we and the world could both be.
How to bring the two closer together? The quiet beginning of the New Year is a perfect time to reflect on that question, to explore our principles and what they mean for our journey.
Looking at the world around us, it’s clear that oppressive power is bringing great harm to people, places, and the planet. The forces of states and militias look and act the same the world over, in this globalized century. But as spirit stirs and the veil parts, the machinery of the State strikes ever more harshly against opposition. We see that despair, numbness, anger, and bitterness are all common responses that too often hold us in a firm grip.
Yet even so, we rouse ourselves one way or another, 
and do all we can to realize a dream of a lighter, more compassionate, just, and joyful society. We engage in myriad ways to resist oppression, keep ourselves afloat, and lend a hand where and when we can.
Mahatma Gandhi was working with similar issues when he embarked on his path of service and social change a century ago. He described that path as Satyagraha, and left footprints for us to follow.
The term Satyagraha defines and expresses Gandhi’s principles of mobilization for social change rooted in personal awakening. Satya is often translated as “truth” in its broadest sense, which in Indian culture implies the ultimate ground of all that is; sometimes satya is understood to mean “love,” or “essence, soul.” Agraha means to “hold firmly to”, implying the energy or force of firmness. Satyagraha was conceived as a path for aligning our lives with deep truth, holding that truth firmly, and using its energy to empower all we do.
is a 20th century map of the bodhisattva path. Firmly committed to deep principles of non-violence, Satyagraha involves an ever deepening investigation into the wisdom that gives rise to a non-violent ethic. Gandhi was firmly committed to a path of non-violent action against terrible oppression, on a path that offers a vibrant, creative, and disciplined way of living. It’s a path that serves both our inner and outer worlds, and it holds great promise for those New Year’s dreams of how both we and the world could be.
Check our Calendar for our “Occupy Satyagraha” Community Potluck and Conversation, Sunday, January 1 at 6:00 pm, and join the conversation.
