The theme for March 2024 has been ‘misunderstanding’ and ‘how to be misunderstood’. I’ve been exploring how benevolence, compassion, and equanimity are developed through being misunderstood. A few weeks ago, I co-facilitated a queer meditation retreat on the Brahma Viharas (contemplating and developing benevolence, compassion, compersion, and equanimity).
The mantra for the retreat was: to be queer is divine!
While the queer experience has been divine, I’ve also placed myself to be constantly at risk of being misunderstood. Even as a renunciate living in the wild, the world is a mirror of misunderstanding. Someone, whether a tree, bird, or person, is always perceiving.
The only possible way out of this misunderstanding maze is to know exactly who I am despite all the non-self, impermanence, and suffering.
I can’t meditate so that the external world sees a yogi.
I can’t be content with my queerness so that the external world understands my contentment.
I meditate to learn more about each heartbeat and iteration of myself.
I am queer because that’s the magic that animates this body.
Below is the link for the dharma notes on each Brahma Vihara throughout the retreat.
Queer Vihara 2024
The theme for March 2024 has been ‘misunderstanding’ and ‘how to be misunderstood’. I’ve been exploring how benevolence, compassion, and equanimity are developed through being misunderstood. A few weeks ago, I co-facilitated a queer meditation retreat on the Brahma Viharas (contemplating and developing benevolence, compassion, compersion, and equanimity).
The mantra for the retreat was: to be queer is divine!
While the queer experience has been divine, I’ve also placed myself to be constantly at risk of being misunderstood. Even as a renunciate living in the wild, the world is a mirror of misunderstanding. Someone, whether a tree, bird, or person, is always perceiving.
The only possible way out of this misunderstanding maze is to know exactly who I am despite all the non-self, impermanence, and suffering.
I can’t meditate so that the external world sees a yogi.
I can’t be content with my queerness so that the external world understands my contentment.
I meditate to learn more about each heartbeat and iteration of myself.
I am queer because that’s the magic that animates this body.
Below is the link for the dharma notes on each Brahma Vihara throughout the retreat.
Click here for access to the Google Doc.
If you have any questions, please email me at scoby@substack.com.
Next week I’ll send out the second part of the Release Anger series. Thanks for your support!