The confusing new reality of our lives in this time of pandemic continues to sprout so many new shoots that professional journalists can scarcely keep up. From food supply issues to economic loss, from staggering death rates to diminished civil liberties, the news can sometimes feel like a gush of breathless, stream-of-consciousness, catapulting us into a world that few people understand. And just when we might think we have a handle on it, the beep or ping of our phone notification tells us it is changing again…
But while the avalanche of coronavirus-related news is relevant to everyone in its social, political, economic and health implications, there is an added dimension of concern for the Dhamma practitioner. It often takes the form of such questions as: What should meditation practice look like during a pandemic? How do I work with the fear and panic that is now all around me, and maybe taking root within? How are meditation centers responding since they have been entirely shut down? How are foreign meditators and monastics who chose to stay in Myanmar faring? How are Burmese monasteries, with their strict codes of disciplines around food especially, managing when access to markets and supporters are drying up?
This is just some of the territory we get into during Insight Myanmar podcast series, exploring how the coronavirus pandemic is affecting Burmese monastic society, impacting meditators around the world, and pushing teachers to respond in new and innovative ways to the crisis as it unfolds. In this time of uncertainty and insecurity, we hope the voices that follow provide information and insight, and help awaken the seeds of wisdom within you.
Episodes Include:
Dealing With Disruption: The Buddha’s teachings of liberation were not meant only for prosperous and stable times, but also for when things are uncertain, or even perilous. Perhaps no moment in recent years has tested the mission of contemporary meditation centers and monasteries as much as this ongoing coronavirus pandemic, when just the basic act of gathering together poses a serious health risk. In this episode, we check in with three American-based monasteries and meditation centers with some connection to Burmese traditions, to hear how they have responded to these unprecedented times. Each speaker has years under their belt as a spiritual teacher, and they discuss how they worked to ensure that the Buddha’s timeless teachings of liberation remain practical and relevant. They explain how their respective centers each found their own unique way to adapt to the pandemic and continue to serve its meditator community. We first check in with Sean Feit Oakes, an Editor and Community Dharma Leader at Spirit Rock Insight Meditation Center in Woodacre, California. Next up is Ayya Soma, an Italian monastic and co-founder of Empty Cloud Monastery in West Orange, New Jersey. Finally we speak with to Dick Delanoy, an Assistant Teacher at Dhamma Patapa, a vipassana center in Jesup, Georgia, in the tradition of S.N. Goenka.
Thabarwa Edition: Stories from monastics and meditators in one place: Thabarwa Monastery. As some of the interviews were collected right as the world began to shut down because of COVID-19, we realized that while not that long ago in time, they seem eons ago in other ways, as so much has happened since then. So besides their original talk, you’ll hear some updates from guests on how and what they’re doing now. This “before-and-after” approach allows the listener to follow their journey across time and see how their practice and mind have adjusted as the ground continues to shift under their feet, and to learn what Dhamma wisdom has been gain along the way.
Sheltering in Place: The story of four foreigners who stayed in Myanmar just as the world was shutting down. From expats living in Yangon to meditators looking for a place to practice in Upper Myanmar, with some caring for a family and others leading fundraising effort, the stories that follow are as diverse as they are compelling.
Exiled Expats Edition: The story of four foreign practitioners who left Myanmar just as the world was shutting down. In their own ways, these four different tales convey an overarching Dhamma theme: the unpredictability of life. Each speaker faced significant instability and disruption, losing jobs or having to forego plans, with monasteries closing their doors, which for some was complicated by worried parents pleading for an imminent return. Though each one’s story is different in many details, they all point in their own way towards this sense of importance and urgency in our practice.
Monastic Edition: There is something special about the words of committed bhikkhus. Leaving behind the fetters of lay society in order to devote themselves to the contemplative life, monastics are often able to present a novel or fresh outlook on the “daily grind” that may be invisible to us lay folk, when we can’t see the forest for the trees. The freedom that monastics have from day-to-day necessities permits them a broader perspective through which to understand the present situation.
Women’s Edition: So often at times of crisis and at key moments in world events, it is the voices of men who make the news or provide commentary. This is certainly not untrue in Myanmar, where speeches from revered Sayadaws or male meditation teachers dominate the Dhamma discourse. In this show, we want to highlight the voices of female practitioners, as they describe how they have responded to the ongoing pandemic.
Burmese Edition: We hear from the four local voices who present their perspectives on the ongoing pandemic in Myanmar. They reflect on how their Buddhist faith and practice has played a role in helping to them to understand and respond to the crisis.