You already know a thing or two (or three) about getting free.
Dear ones,
Chaos is the word I hear most often when it comes to describing our collective present moment. It doesn’t accurately describe the strategic moves of the current administration – the violence that is unfolding was always the plan. But chaos is the feeling: flurries of executive orders passed late in the night, an ever expanding number of front lines that need tending, an exponential increase in the number of beings who are suffering, fumbling for a strategy that will bring us a few steps ahead of reactivity, on ground that is constantly shifting.
It is already worse than many of us thought it would be.
In meditation, when my inner world feels chaotic, I was taught to connect with something I feel certain of, and to hold my attention there till the spinning stops. Warm contact where one hand touches the other. Cool air on my open palm. Hard surface under my feet. Belly and ribs soften with the out breath.
Connecting with something real and true is like throwing down an anchor in a stormy sea. It cuts through the disorientation and doubt that arises when the world (outside or inside) feels unfamiliar, overwhelming, or scary.
It calms us down, but that’s not even the best part. Finding an anchor helps us get in touch with the reality of what’s happening around us, with who we really are, and what we’re capable of – enough to make choices that lead to more love and freedom in the next moment.
My colleagues and I at BPF have been trying to bring the lessons of our Buddhist practice to this moment, asking ourselves – what can we connect with, from the almost 45 year legacy of our organization, that feels real and true and beneficial right now?
What do we know for sure that will anchor us in purpose and help clarify our right role in the revolution?
Block, Build, and Be
“Block, Build, Be” is a framework that BPF has shared for the better part of the last decade. It describes three essential and interrelated ways of making change that moves us towards collective liberation.
It was originally articulated by former co-director Katie Loncke, and was shaped by Dawn Haney, LiZhen Wang, and other collaborators at BPF and beyond. It was also deeply influenced by the dozens of spiritual activists and engaged contemplatives who facilitated a series of (legendary!) BIPOC led and centered residential retreats that took place from 2016-2021.
We have loved witnessing the co-evolution of similar frameworks across our movement ecosystems. (Block, Bridge, Build, anyone?)
As we edit and revise our own project 2025, we find ourselves returning to and discovering new ways to practice blocking, building and be-ing
We hope it reminds you, in case you need it today, that you already know a thing or two (or three) about getting free.
Block
Block is the activity of interrupting and preventing harm, and the causes of harm. It draws on and cultivates the Buddhist virtues of resolve/determination (adhitthana), energy (virya), and renunciation (nekkhama), for its power.
Blockades, boycotts, ICE watch, bystander intervention, conflict engagement and harm reduction networks are all examples of block practice, which is fundamentally about non-harming and protecting sacred life.
The image of the Tian Tan Buddha in Hong Kong, with right hand raised in abhaya mudra, is a beautiful expression of block energy. It’s typically interpreted as an embodied expression of fearlessness as well as safety – empty palms show no weapons are held, and none are needed.
It also reads as an establishment of a firm and healthy boundary, as if to say: This is the line I’m prepared to hold.
As in, you'll have to go through me first.
Build
Build is the activity of creating and nurturing alternatives to the current system, prefiguring the world we want within the fractals of our relationships and communities. It is making art, planting gardens, weaving mutual aid networks, forging alliances and coalitions, and all things community care.
The Buddhist virtues of generosity (dana), ethics (sila), patience (khanti) and truthfulness (sacca) all show up prominently in the practices of building a more liberated future.
Above, an image of the Buddha’s hand in varada mudra – physical expression of generosity and of wishes fulfilled. For us, this is the essence of build leadership – support from the ground up.
It is the hand that plants the seed, and the hand that nurtures it.
Be
Be feels like the place where we get to lean into our Buddhist zone of genius. It refers to the practices we engage, from whatever religion or tradition we hold dear, to tend our spirits and fortify our inner lives as we do our work in the world.
Prayer, meditation, chanting and singing, visioning, grief work, ritual, devotion – be is everything that supports us to reclaim our agency, attention, clarity, creativity and joy.
The image of Shakyamuni Buddha in bhumisparsha (“earth-touching”) mudra is what immediately comes to mind for us as an embodied expression of be energy. In the story of the Buddha’s awakening, when the storms of doubt hit hard, he touched the earth as an expression of his worthiness and capacity to awaken, and that the earth shook in affirmation.
As if to say: You have always been free. You have a right to be free. You will be free.
BBB as a reflection tool
We hope refresh of Block, Build Be offers you a structure to reflect on your spiritual and political practice – a sense of where your practice is already strong and thriving, and where you are called to grow.
And we hope it helps you identify fresh, impactful and satisfying ways to deepen your practice during this (helluva) time.
We’re deep in observation and reflection too, and look forward to sharing new ways to bring this framework into action in the coming weeks!
With abiding confidence in the big us,
Kate Johnson
Co-Director, Programs and Partnerships, BPF
