Francesca welcomes, friend and teacher, Jack Kornfield to illuminate the mindful path of embodied anti-racism through the lens of the Buddha, the dharma, & mindfulness.

Jack has compiled an ongoing catalogue of crucial Anti-Racism Resources, as well as a list of helpful Pandemic Resources on his website, JackKornfield.com

Anti-Racism & Buddhism

Francesca opens the session by asking Jack to elucidate how anti-racism connects with the life and teachings of the Buddha. Inviting us all to settle in with a breath, Jack recalls asking his great meditation master, “What is the dharma?” His teacher responded, “The dharma is the heart; how we tend it, how we connect with the heart of others.” Through this lens, Francesca and Jack begin to interweave and apply ancient Buddhist solutions for modern issues of social justice.

“As we enter this fraught and painful terrain of racism and racial justice, know that this is something, that if you enter it honorably, that you will be forced in some way, to enter it not just with your mind, but with your own heart and your own spirit.” – Jack Kornfield

The Dharma of Liberation (7:16)

Jack shares that the dharma of liberation speaks to both inner-liberation and outer-liberation as one: a liberation from greed, hate, fear, prejudice, ignorance, and separation; along with the recognition of the Buddha Nature of every living being. To exemplify this, Jack speaks to the Buddha’s prescription for the inherently racist caste system in India. To diffuse this system of judgment and separation within his sangha, the Buddha taught even the highest caste Brahmins to bow down to the untouchable castes as equals.

“What the Buddha did was to invite in the lowest caste people, and as he did, they became elders. The high caste Brahmins who came after, all had to get down on their knees and bow to them. He did it deliberately to inspire people to see the fundamental dignity and nobility of every human being.” – Jack Kornfield

For anti-racism from the Indigenous perspective, and to find out how to heal the collective through dance, check out Ep. 40 of ReRooted

The Glance of Mercy: Trust & Love (28:08)

Sharing from the perspective of therapy, Francesca and Jack discuss how really good therapy isn’t so much about strict mind and methodology, but truly about love and trust. The trust is in the organism’s capacity to heal and change, marked by a recognition that it’s never too late to change. Sharing a story of his dear friend Ram Dass, Jack describes ‘the glance of mercy’ – when somebody sees your beauty in a way nobody ever has, opening you to unconditional love and true healing.

“I think the most profound healing comes when we see one another with the eyes of love, when we see the secret beauty of that person in front of us, and they recognize that they’ve been seen.” – Jack Kornfield