Principles

What distinguishes Green Sangha activism from other kinds of activism?

  1. One Body
    A poet wrote, “Throughout the universe One Body revealed.” We are the earth, sky, oceans and the entire planet. Of course we love the planet. It is us!
  2. Clarifying Motivation
    Love (without boundaries) is our true nature. Motivation comes from the recognition that we are not separate from any aspect of life. We are love without boundaries serving itself.
  3. Compassionate Action
    We see in our lives the same greed and confusion that we oppose. This helps us to have compassion for others. We fight the confusion that causes suffering, not the person who is confused. There is no “other” to fight against anyway; we simply meet ourselves.
  4. Questioning Ourselves
    We constantly live with the questions of what is authentic, loving, and appropriate action. We’re willing to not know and be open to other points of view. We know we could be wrong.
  5. Being With What Is
    We meet injustice without becoming lost in it. An over-identification with injustice leads to despair or rage. Alternately, meeting life in an intimate yet spacious way allows for a more creative and potent response.
  6. Holding Stories Lightly
    Who would we be and how would we act without the story that reality isn’t supposed to appear the way it does? Without a story, the sense of a separate “I” dies, revealing our true nature as love without boundaries.
  7. Integrity
    As spiritual activists, we stand together in our commitment to be that which we are trying to bring about in the world: peace and love.
  8. Holding Roles Lightly
    We hold the role of activist lightly, while thoroughly engaging in the work of the activist. We are more effective when we act from our true identity as Life itself, instead of identifying with our roles which are a mere fraction of our true selves.