Frequently I am asked about Sangha building. I have given a few Dharma talks on this subject and have mentioned this in some of my daily meditations. Sangha building is nothing more than building a community, something we engage in many ways every day. Our whole lives actually revolve around community building on many different levels.
I am reading an interesting book written on the subject of dealing with people we may label ‘difficult’. The book, while written from a Christian perspective, offers some basic truths that are not sectarian or denominationally dependent. I want to talk about space in community building.
So how does space relate to building a community? Perhaps you may be thinking physical space, such as a place to meet. In a way the concept of a place to meet does apply but not in the context of a physical location.
What I am talking about is having a space inside you for others.
Think for a moment about someone you care about deeply, perhaps even love. How much space do you feel them taking up in your inner being? Now think about someone you may not like so much. How much space do they consume? Now think about their presence in that space inside you.
By making space inside your life for others you will be able to communicate your heart to them. When you cut people off from the space inside you it has the effect of not only distancing them from you but also you from them. When you can open your life to others with compassion and concern you let them know there is space in your heart for them to exist. Do you enjoy being some place you’re not welcome?
In many ways the Sangha we seek to build begins with the Sangha we create inside our lives, which may or may not be welcoming.
