Living Peace at Liberation Park

Principles & Commitments

Here at Liberation Park, we are mindful of how much our lives depend on those of others and the well-being of all. We scratch our heads in amazement at the complexity and drop tears over the violence and needless suffering. As an important part of our Dhamma study, practice, and work we challenge ourselves to live as honestly, simply, wholesomely, and peacefully as we can.

We contemplate an evolving set of principles and commitments that guide our way of living and social interactions. These are very much in process; we don't anticipate them becoming final. We seek good counsel and companionship in this struggle. It's not always easy to know what to do.

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We commit ourselves to living in peace & living peacefully. We see this as training in the Buddha-Dhamma Way, transforming ourselves and helping to foster a peaceful world interdependently.  

We cannot guarantee that our actions will change the world. But as Wendell Berry said when asked if his arrest during a protest would influence our leaders, "I don't do this to change our government, I do this to live with myself." Dhamma is Duty and Duty is Dhamma.  

Slowly, we are sorting out our path of living peace at Liberation Park. Here are some of our commitments.

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• Non-harming / non-violence is the foundation of Buddhist ethics and morality. We commit ourselves to practice this core principle in word, deed, and lifestyle; personally, interpersonally, and socially.
• Social violence is not limited to politics and competition for resources. There are gender, ecological, economic, cultural, and religious dimensions to violence. Consequently, our alternatives must be equally comprehensive. We commit ourselves to addressing all these dimensions in how we live at Liberation Park.
• Global warming and climate change might kill us all off in the end. Before that happens, it will create conditions for growing competition, aggression, and violence on all levels of social organization. We commit ourselves to decreasing our carbon and GHG emissions, along with energy use, to sustainable levels. We may not survive, but we don't want to take everyone else down with us.
• We live near Fort McCoy, a large Army base. There are many active and former military personnel in the area. Many local families carry the burdens of this and past wars. We recognize that there suffering and sacrifice has often been greater than ours. It is important for us to listen to their voices respectfully.
• Please see What's a Buddhist to Do?
• ... in process ...

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We encourage everyone to think through their own involvement with violent social structures and find Peaceful Principles appropriate to ones own situation. Mere adherence to traditional precepts is insufficient.