finding purpose in infinite reality
By William T. Hathaway
In the Vedic tradition of India the feminine side of creation is given equal importance to the masculine. The Divine Mother, Mahashakti, is revered as the primal creative energy who manifests the deities and the physical universe and then sustains all dynamic activity. When portrayed together, the deity pairs – Brahma and Sarasvati, Vishnu and Lakshmi, Shiva and Parvati – are often androgynous and almost identical to show they are fundamentally beyond gender.
Unfortunately, centuries of colonial domination have made Indian society as male dominated as the West is. Fortunately, women in India are now developing a strong feminist movement to change this. (more…)
By William T. Hathaway
Amazing but true: The first European settlers in what is now the USA weren’t English Puritans or French fur trappers but Sephardic Jews. Before the Mayflower sailed to America, Jews had fled the Spanish Inquisition and settled in what is now Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. Although they were eventually absorbed into the mainstream culture, they built a real Jewish life here.
Who were these first pioneers? What happened that forced them to flee? What did they encounter in this far land? These questions fascinate me, and as I read what little we know about them and imagine their lives, a story emerges: (more…)
By William T. Hathaway
You can learn to meditate from one of the great spiritual teachers of India, then meditate with him live online and ask him questions – all for free. The first step is to learn his easy technique of Vedic meditation, Jangama Dhyana: https://www.jangama.org/. Then join him Saturdays for a meditation and question-and-answer session: https://www.shivarudrabalayogi.org/en. He transmits a powerful force-field that you access by tuning in with devotion to his voice and picture. Connecting to him will supercharge your spiritual growth and improve your daily life. (more…)
By William T. Hathaway
Humanity is in crisis. Our social structures are crumbling. Institutions that had seemed secure are now breaking apart. Politicians are figures of contempt. Once-respected news sources are distrusted. Schools have devolved into internment camps. A dozen war flags rally us into battle. Our punch-drunk planet is staggering on the ropes. People are dropping dead from the virus and from the vaccine that’s supposed to prevent it. Political polarization is destroying friendships. The economy is lurching around, torn by contradictory pressures. Explanations for the chaos abound, but attempts at solutions are stalemated.
However we react to this crisis – by revolutionary action to overthrow the established order, or by conservative action to defend it, or by a simple desire to survive in peace – to be effective we need to maintain inner calm and stability. Otherwise we’ll be swept up in the chaos and become its victim.
Transcendental Meditation is a good way to achieve this inner calm and stability. It’s the most scientifically researched method, and millions of people practice it worldwide. It uses a special technique of effortless, non-concentrative thinking that makes it fundamentally different from other forms of meditation. (more…)
From the book RADICAL PEACE: People Refusing War
By William T. Hathaway
RADICAL PEACE presents the experiences of war resisters, deserters, and peace activists who are working to change our warrior culture. A young Buddhist novice contributed this account, which we then revised together. To protect the people who have protected him, he prefers to be nameless.
Back in high school I'd been good at languages but couldn't afford to go to college, so I joined the navy for the language training. They have a program where if you pass an aptitude test, they'll send you to the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California, for an intensive course that's worth almost a year of college credit. Plus they have an active-duty education program that offers college courses. I figured after my discharge I could finish my education on the GI Bill, and with my language skills, I could get a job in international business.
The other military branches offer programs like this too, but the navy seemed the best way to stay out of the fighting. I was hoping for a major language like Chinese, Russian, or Spanish, but they assigned me to Pashto, which is spoken in Afghanistan and Pakistan. After training, I'd be stationed on a ship in the Arabian Sea monitoring phone calls and radio broadcasts, listening for key words that might give a clue about where the Taliban were, so the planes from the aircraft carriers could bomb them. I didn't think about this last part, though. I was focused on my future. (more…)
From the book RADICAL PEACE: People Refusing War
By William T. Hathaway
RADICAL PEACE is a collection of reports from antiwar activists, the true stories of their efforts to change our warrior culture. In this chapter a mother tells of her son's return from combat.
My son spent a year fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq in Delta Force. It was the worst year of his life ... and of mine. As he told me later, there were times he thought he'd never come home. That was also my constant fear. For 365 days, every time the phone rang I thought it would be a voice from the Pentagon telling me with well-practiced condolence that my son had died a hero. (more…)
By William T. Hathaway
The wise men of the establishment are again telling us that hopes for lasting peace are a delusion. They declare that human nature makes it impossible, that war is built into our genes. They point to research by evolutionary biologists that indicates our closest genetic relatives, the chimpanzees, make war. Therefore war must be part of our heredity.
“We’ve always had wars,” they claim. “Humans are a warring species. Without a military to defend us, someone will always try to conquer us.” These assumptions have become axioms of our culture. They generate despair but also a certain comfort because they relieve us of the responsibility to change. (more…)