Dispersal of the Primal Cloud Mass, 70th Day of Spring, 525 M.E. (Electra): Xuansha Shibei was an ancient Chinese monk known for the phrase, “The whole world in ten directions is one bright pearl.”

Twenty-nine children and elderly people have died from starvation in Gaza in the last two days according to the Palestinian Authority health minister. In addition, Israeli strikes killed at least 52 people since dawn amid a renewed military offensive across the territory.

Last evening, two innocent staff members of the Israeli embassy in Washington, a young couple on the verge of becoming engaged, were fatally shot while leaving an event at a Jewish museum. The gunman yelled “Free Palestine” after he was arrested.

All of these events are deplorable and unjustified. Violence spawns more violence. The response to the atrocities and genocide in Gaza do not justify shooting a Jewish couple in D.C., and the shooting of a Jewish couple in D.C. does not justify cruel starvation and air strikes against the civilian population in Gaza.

The whole universe in ten directions is one bright pearl. Everything is connected and nothing is separate. There is no "us" and "them" yet countless acts of violence continue due to this delusion. 

What is the appropriate response to the genocide of Palestinians? I say it is to stop committing genocide. What is the appropriate response to the shooting of the innocent couple? Stop shooting innocent people. It sound so simplistic, almost infantile in its naivety, but all other actions are just adding unnecessary steps toward the goal. "It's hippie bullshit but it's true," as the song goes.

But let's be real and let's be practical. Chances are good that neither you nor I are actively carrying out the atrocities in Gaza. Neither you nor I are probably shooting people. If I'm wrong about either assumption, then knock it off. But since neither of us can stop doing what we're already not doing, then what? 

I propose we can recognize the interdependence and connectedness of all things, how our every action affects everything else in the universe, and govern ourselves accordingly. There's always room for improvement. The whole universe in ten directions is one bright pearl.