Swimming Upstream and Creating the Sangha Field

Dharma practice is often described as swimming upstream or going against the grain. Based in ignorance, the untrained heart and mind see what is impermanent as permanent, what is suffering as happiness, and what is not self as self. In Sn 3.12 the Buddha points out that what ordinary people see as suffering, the noble ones experience as happiness. In brief, clinging and craving are seen as the way to happiness by people who don’t see clearly. For ones who do, it’s the abandonment of clinging and craving that is known to lead to happiness. 

So, the vast majority of the people in this world have got it backward. This expression of ignorance shapes societies around the world, particularly the ones who dominate global culture. It’s easy to get caught up in the sheer momentum of this movement. That’s why the Buddha referred to it as the flood. The heart and mind literally get flooded by manifestations of ignorance and get swept away into suffering. 

This is the current we are swimming against, and so we need support. There are many ways to garner such support and many things that can, in a moment, lift the heart above the morass of the flood waters to help us see or feel a different direction. Some that come to mind are reflecting on one’s generosity or ethical conduct; cultivating the Brahma Viharas; devotional practices, such as chanting and bowing; and reflecting on the qualities of the Buddha. One of the most powerful supports to help us swim upstream is Sangha. 

Taking refuge in and cultivating Sangha allows us to not feel so alone in our Dharma endeavors. What we are trying to cultivate can feel (because it is!) so dissonant from what is being espoused in popular culture that we can feel overwhelmed and even begin to doubt whether what we are doing is possible or even makes sense. So just knowing that others are feeling the same way helps to keep us on the path. 

As we relate to others in our Sangha, we get to witness wholesome speech and action. As a result, our hearts resonate with Mudita for all that helps us cultivate the same good qualities. There are times when our wholesome speech and actions are reflected back to us by others who have appreciated what we’ve said or done (or not said or done), which in turn helps us want to do more. Then there are occasions when what we’ve said or done (or not said or done) was unskillful and  caused harm, and a Sangha member kindly and compassionately points that out for us. Such action supports non-defensiveness and highlights the natural quality of our heart to not want to cause harm.

There is also the aspect of Sangha that is not necessarily relational. In fact, it’s not even personal. It has to do with the field of wholesomeness that is naturally created when people walk the Noble Eightfold Path together. If you’ve been on an intensive residential retreat, you’ve definitely felt this. It just happens. It’s beyond the personal. In fact, we could have a completely different cast of characters at Open Door, and there would be the same wholesome field created! It’s quite amazing. 

Yes, it’s up to each individual to take the steps on the path and cultivate the wholesome qualities that naturally lead to liberation. And yet, the collective field that is created is about the qualities themselves, not the people cultivating them. This field is perhaps the most potent aspect of how Sangha supports us to keep swimming upstream, because it’s not limited to any individual interaction or moment. It’s pervasive, like getting wet by being in water. We co-create this field and all benefit from its benevolence. 

So, remember that every time you come to Open Door for a meditation, class, or social event, you are helping to create a beautiful, wholesome field that supports the entire Sangha.