Joanna Macy: Vows of Active Hope

Joanna Macy, Photo by Adam Shemper.

Vows of Active Hope

On the last afternoon of a two-week intensive workshop, Joanna Macy was out walking and met a young monk from the retreat centre hosting the event. "Well", he said, "I expect now on your last day you'll be giving people vows". Joanna told him that wasn't something she did. "Pity," he said, "I find, in my own life, vows so very helpful because they channel my energy to do what I really want to do."

Continuing her walk, Joanna thought that if we were to have vows, they should not number more than the fingers and thumb of one hand. Almost immediately, the following five vows came to her.

I vow to myself and each of you

To commit myself daily to the healing of our world
and the welfare of all beings.

To live on Earth more lightly and less violently
in the food, products and energy I consume.

To draw strength and guidance from the living Earth,
the ancestors, the future beings,
and my brothers and sisters of all species.

To support each other in our work for the world
and to ask for help when I feel the need.

To pursue a daily practice that clarifies my mind,
strengthens my heart and supports me in observing these vows.

― Joanna Macy

From Active Hope: How to Face the Mess We're in with Unexpected Resilience & Creative Power

https://www.activehope.info/the-book

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Please go here for the original: https://www.activehope.info/book-extracts/vows-of-active-hope