This commentary is by George Plumb, who is a board member of Montpelier-based Buddhist Peace Action Vermont.
These are times of great conflict at all levels of our being. Internationally there are wars, humanitarian struggles for food and life, and fascist leaders who have no problem murdering people. At the national level here in the U.S., there are far-right groups who created the Jan. 6 insurrection, struggles for “Black Lives Matter,” and extreme income inequality.
Even at the state level here in Vermont, we have conflicts over the right to carry arms. And at the local level we have had some conflicts over wearing masks.
People believe they are totally separate beings. As a result, they can take positions on issues where they see themselves as absolutely justified in belittling and causing harm to other people. They can kill Black people, storm the Capitol, and the list goes on.
However, we are not “separate” human beings. We are all “interbeings.” A simple definition of this term is: a state of connectedness and interdependence of all phenomena. This includes mental phenomena as well as physical phenomena.
The concept of “interbeing” is often thought of as a Buddhist concept. However, other religions also say that we are interconnected. In the Christian Bible, just one example is 1 Corinthians 12:13, for in one spirit we were all baptized into one body — Jews or Greeks, slaves or free — and all were made to drink of one spirit.
A physical example of interbeing is just looking at an apple you are chewing on. The apple will enter your body and nourish you. But the apple is also dependent on soil, air, water, sunshine, the care of a farmer, bees for pollination, etc. And then you are dependent on people to harvest the apple, deliver it to a store, put in on a shelf, and sell it to you.
An emotional example is becoming very upset because a family member severely criticizes you. Your emotion comes from your upbringing, your ancestors, and your community culture.
When we realize that we are connected to all other life and non-life, this dramatically changes our interaction with everything we see outside of our body. We realize that the Earth is not just something out there. but we are deeply connected to it. We realize that we are connected to all other living beings, including humans.
As a result of this sense of connectedness, we now have compassion for all beings, including human beings. Even when they have done terrible things, like maybe committing murder, we realize that they were suffering for some reason and that is why they committed that murder.
A personal example for me is that, as an act of kindness, I recently tried to reach out to a person I disagree with, but received no response. I could get angry at that person but instead accepted their behavior, not knowing where they are coming from.
In these particularly difficult and confrontational times, let us realize our interbeing. Let us talk to our neighbors, give money and food to the needy, express gratitude when appropriate, and in this time of Covid-19 call our friends and family with whom we haven’t talked in a long time.
The greatest importance of interbeing currently is caring for the Earth and all life on it by reducing and eliminating our greenhouse gas emissions.
As sort of a footnote, I just finished reading a wonderful new book titled “Sacred Instructions: Indigenous Wisdom for Living Spirit-Based Change,” by Sherri Mitchell. She grew up as a native American on the Penobscot River in Maine. The book is described as “a narrative of Indigenous wisdom that provides a road map for the spirit and a compass of compassion for humanity.”
