Let me be the first to say that I’m feeling anxiety during this coronavirus pandemic. Working at a hospital keeps me constantly aware of what I’m touching and how close I am to others. I come home and quickly change clothes, shower, and disinfect my phone, hoping I didn’t bring the virus into my home.
This is a shock to our system, a shake up of our routine. We find ourselves in a new way of being with the world, but we can try to make peace with this change.
What we have been asked to do in our communities is to practice social distancing, rigorous hygiene, and staying home- all different ways of acting in relationship. This is new but I see similarities in Buddhist practice.
We can think of these precautions as a new precept for our current circumstances. In this way we can bring these protocols into our Buddhist practice. This time of anxiety holds within it the opportunity for cultivating mindfulness arising from thinking of the wellbeing of others.
May we practice our new precept of public safety by maintaining a responsible distance from others, practice rigorous hand hygiene, and staying at home as long as possible. May we do this out of compassion and concern for all sentient beings.
Scott Gabel 