traumatic events reaction and review

When a great many are injured or killed there is a mass reaction in pack mentality, when one is personally attacked and hurt there is more likely to be that split second of quietude to consider - what all is going on. Pauley Perrette recently showed us an enlightened reaction to pain and fear - even in the midst of an assault she had the presence of mind to view her attacker as a human being, to relate to him as a person. If we could do that for the mass attacks as well we could stop the violence of imperialism and rebellion. Turning the other cheek is a very deep teaching that is so seldom embraced, it is frightening, and vulnerable, to not respond with like minded aggression. But this is what the Buddha taught in so many ways, it is the essence of Dhamma, the practice of letting go. The path to that is often compassion meditation, but it can come about in many ways. Embracing emptiness and holding to the four brahma viharas is effective, but in a more prosaic vein keep your eyes in your own ballpark. If we get caught up in stories from other lives we are not tending our own gardens and they will benefit no one. If we spread ripples of kindness here and now, we make more difference than we know.