Message from our MBS president on 911 attacks
The impact of the airplane crashes and the collapse of World Trade Centers on Sept 11 must have been felt by all the friends and families of MBS. The imprint will stay in our heart for a long long time. It for sure will change our life, thoughts, relationships, in various different ways, being significant or subtle.
In the drive to office this morning, I was listening to NPR program. It was about trauma psychology - how people deal with a tragedy like this . One call-in audience, who was disabled in a car accident a few years ago, said, " We need to establish a realistic view of our life. Life is mortal. Life entails death. Life entails trauma". How amazingly her words coincide with the dharma Buddha taught us 2500 years ago.
Many of us have been thinking and asking what we can do as Buddhism practitioners at this tragic moment. Many of us probably can some actions such as follows:
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You can write a check to Mahabodhi Society USA with a note "911 Relief Fund". We will collect all the money and donate to Tzu-Chi Foundation, like we did in Taiwan 921 Earthquake. MBS will provide you a receipt for your tax deduction.
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Let us not only pray for the people trapped or victimized in this attack and their families, but also for those innocent Arab/Muslims who are suffering threat, prejudice, and pains for the actions they are not responsible for.
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Let us strive to better our community, to be more embracing and less prejudiced, more understanding and less hateful. It starts from ourselves.
Thank you all very much for your hospitality. We've just had a wide-ranging discussions on the matter at hand. Like the good folks standing with me, the American people were appalled and outraged at last Tuesday's attacks. And so were Muslims all across the world. Both Americans and Muslim friends and citizens, tax-paying citizens, and Muslims in nations were just appalled and could not believe what we saw on our TV screens.
These acts of violence against innocents violate the fundamental tenets of the Islamic faith. And it's important for my fellow Americans to understand that.
The English translation is not as eloquent as the original Arabic, but let me quote from the Koran, itself: In the long run, evil in the extreme will be the end of those who do evil. For that they rejected the signs of Allah and held them up to ridicule.
The face of terror is not the true faith of Islam. That's not what Islam is all about. Islam is peace. These terrorists don't represent peace. They represent evil and war.
When we think of Islam we think of a faith that brings comfort to a billion people around the world. Billions of people find comfort and solace and peace. And that's made brothers and sisters out of every race out of every race.
America counts millions of Muslims amongst our citizens, and Muslims make an incredibly valuable contribution to our country. Muslims are doctors, lawyers, law professors, members of the military, entrepreneurs, shopkeepers, moms and dads. And they need to be treated with respect. In our anger and emotion, our fellow Americans must treat each other with respect.
Women who cover their heads in this country must feel comfortable going outside their homes. Moms who wear cover must be not intimidated in America. That's not the America I know. That's not the America I value.
I've been told that some fear to leave; some don't want to go shopping for their families; some don't want to go about their ordinary daily routines because, by wearing cover, they're afraid they'll be intimidated. That should not and that will not stand in America.
Those who feel like they can intimidate our fellow citizens to take out their anger don't represent the best of America, they represent the worst of humankind, and they should be ashamed of that kind of behavior.
This is a great country. It's a great country because we share the same values of respect and dignity and human worth. And it is my honor to be meeting with leaders who feel just the same way I do. They're outraged, they're sad. They love America just as much as I do.
I want to thank you all for giving me a chance to come by. And may God bless us all.
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