“Wars come and go, but we must not forget the timeless truth of freedom, compassion, respect, and virtue that is our true human heritage.” – Jack Kornfield
Dear friends,
The world needs our deepest medicine now. So many people are exhausted and overwhelmed, frightened by war, polarization, climate change, and uncertainty. We may wonder how to meet such immense suffering without being consumed by it—and how to keep faith when so much around us feels turbulent.
Not long ago, I offered teachings to thousands of people in Ukraine. In preparing to speak with them, I called upon the moral authority of the great teachers I have known: Maha Ghosananda walking through the killing fields of Cambodia, chanting, “Hatred never ceases by hatred”; and the Dalai Lama, who lost his homeland yet vowed not to let those who harmed Tibet take over his heart.
Their lives remind us that even amid the sorrows of the world, we can ground ourselves, release the suffering held in the body, and protect the freedom and compassion of the heart.
A one-line poem offers an image of our human predicament:
“On the muzzle of a cannon, a yellow butterfly opens and closes its wings.”
Here we are. There are wars and cruelties across the earth—and at the same time, there is something magnificent and beautiful that cannot be destroyed. Spring still comes. Flowers continue to bloom. The human heart still has the capacity for courage, goodness, love, and renewal.
During the Vietnam War, the forest monastery where I trained stood near the borders of Cambodia and Laos. Bombers flew overhead, some wanted the monks to be activists, yet Ajahn Chah declared that the monastery would remain a zone of peace—a place where the trees, animals, and human beings were all treated with respect. To enter this community was to experience a living demonstration of what is possible for us.
We, too, can become a zone of peace.
In the video above, I share teachings and practices for remembering our true human heritage, tending the heart in difficult times, and discovering the inner refuge that remains available wherever we are.
Like a clear and cooling pond offered to a traveler scorched and exhausted by the burdens of the world, the Dharma invites us to bathe in truth, compassion, loving-kindness, and freedom. Through these practices, the anger and fear within us can begin to dissipate, and we can learn to live with a free heart—no matter where we are.
With metta,
Jack
P.S. If you’d like to watch or listen to the full version of this talk, tune into Heart Wisdom Ep. 327 and Heart Wisdom Ep. 328 for the full two-part lecture and New Stupa celebration at Spirit Rock.
