As practitioners, how can we respond when things fall apart?

Larry Robinson invites us to find refuge and stability amid chaotic and uncertain times by leaning into the core Buddhist teachings and practices. He frames our current historical moment as a “dark age” where things seem to fall apart, but reminds us that history moves in cycles and renewal always follows. 

Larry highlights the importance of taking refuge in the Three Jewels—the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha—and cultivating the Brahma Viharas, the four divine abodes: 

1. Loving-kindness (metta)
2. Compassion (karuna)
3. Sympathetic joy (mudita)
4. Equanimity (upekkha)

These qualities help create “islands of order” amid disorder, which can attract and inspire new patterns of peace and understanding. He also shares a beautiful St. Francis prayer inviting us to be instruments of peace through love, pardon, faith, hope, and light.

Larry offers practical and heartfelt ways to cultivate equanimity in daily life, such as his morning walks connecting with nature, practicing gratitude by counting blessings, and embracing impermanence without resistance. He underscores the Buddhist insight that suffering awakens compassion and that compassion connects us to the community of all beings, not just the immediate Sangha. He encourages embracing uncertainty and “not knowing” as a profound spiritual practice, illustrated by the story of the Chinese farmer who responds “maybe” to life’s ups and downs, reminding us that what appears good or bad is never fixed. 

Through poems, personal stories of grief and joy, and reflections on impermanence, Larry gently guides us to open-hearted acceptance, reminding us that even in dark times, the earth always turns toward the morning light and that hope beyond hope—true faith—is found in trusting things as they are.

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Larry Robinson has been a practicing Buddhist for 47 years, mostly in the Zen and Vipassana traditions. He is a member of the Occidental Laguna Sangha in Sebastopol, studying with Bruce Fortin in the lineage of Suzuki Roshi. A long-time environmental and social justice activist, he is a retired ecopsychologist and former mayor of Sebastopol. He serves on the board of directors of the Center for Climate Protection and the board of trustees of Meridian University. 

His “large and foolish project” (in the words of Rumi) is to restore the soul of the world through reawakening the oral tradition of poetry. He is the founder and producer of Rumi’s Caravan https://rumiscaravan.com/ 

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CREDITS
Audio Engineer: George Hubbard
Producer: Tom Bruein
Music/Logo/Artwork: Derek Lassiter