Nationwide marches on April 5 - take a stand against abuse

Jamiat Am
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I realize this list is not meant for political issues, but I feel a call from what Pir Vilayat taught us to post this. On April 5, there will be marches all over the country (as well as in other countries) to protest the abuse that is taking place in our government. Pir Vilayat said that if you see someone abusing a child (or even an animal), you don’t passively stand by but you take action. Spirituality is not only about our inner life with our eyes closed but if it has any meaningfulness, it has to be relevant to the way we live in the world. Abuse is taking place in so many areas – to hard-working federal workers who are being fired, to immigrants who are being deported who are here legally, to the poor and elderly with cuts to Medicaid, food programs, and social security planned, to poor countries and especially children there who no longer will be able to receive life saving medicine and vaccines and to those who will starve due to cuts in food assistance, to the environment with eliminating regulations on pollution of our air and water, to the earth itself from the US pulling out of efforts to combat global warming, to our country’s closest neighbors and allies with punitive tariffs which will only hurt consumers and cause people to lose their jobs, to Ukraine which has bravely fought against Russian aggression, to freedom of speech and the press, to science research with major cuts to funding, to education with the attempt to eliminate the department of education, to freedom of religion and separation of church and state, to separation of powers and attempts to stifle the judiciary when there are unfavorable rulings to Trump, to eliminating government agencies that protect consumers and fight against fraud and conflicts of interest, and more.

To find a march in your area, click on the Hands Off link to find a march in your area. (Scroll down to the map on that site and put in your zip code.) It’s going to take a nationwide effort to counter the dictatorship in progress in our government. Third Act and citizen.org are two of many sponsors of these marches.

Hands Off!

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Thank you for sharing this Azar Baksh!

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Do you celebrate:-

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Best wishes,

Vakil

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That’s something else to take a stand against.

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While some of those changes are positive, many are very harmful to our nation’s health.

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Dear Azar Baksh & Friends—

A gentle reminder that our community forums are not designed for political discussions. This is for two reasons: 1) political posts and related responses can become divisive—historically, these types of posts have frustrated our community (and we hear about it—people began to text me moments after the first post was made yesterday), and 2) legally, as a 501c3 in the United States, it is required that we avoid lobbying and favoring one political party or candidate over another.

As a group, and especially as leaders officially representing the organization, we must follow these legal requirements within our forums, classes, etc.:

  • It is not okay to endorse or support any particular political candidate or party. We should never mention support for any candidate/political figure/party over another.

  • It is fine to advocate for issues, attend rallies, rally congregations around issues, lobby and educate officials about important needs in the community.

  • Any lobbying activity is subject to a “substantial part test” or “expenditure test” which means that if a substantial part of the organization’s time is spent on lobbying, or a substantial part of its budget, then the 501c3 is at risk.

In public discourses on our online forums and in our gatherings (guidance sessions, retreats, classes, courses, summer camps, special events, etc.) we should refrain from political conversations. As private citizens, on our own personal forums outside of the Inayatiyya, of course this is fine.

Please see below for a few resources explaining the legal implications. Thank you for understanding the importance of following both our community guidelines for forums and also United States law.

With love,
Alia

https://www.councilofnonprofits.org/tools-resources/political-campaign-activities-risks-tax-exempt-status

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I apologize, Alia, and will be mindful of this in the future. If possible, please remove the posts for this topic from the sites I posted on.

With love and knowledge of what is okay and what is not to post,
Azar Baksh

| Alia
March 29 |

  • | - |

Dear Azar Baksh & Friends—

A gentle reminder that our community forums are not designed for political discussions. This is for two reasons: 1) political posts and related responses can become divisive—historically, these types of posts have frustrated our community (and we hear about it—people began to text me moments after the first post was made yesterday), and 2) legally, as a 501c3 in the United States, it is required that we avoid lobbying and favoring one political party or candidate over another.

As a group, and especially as leaders officially representing the organization, we must follow these legal requirements within our forums, classes, etc.:

  • It is not okay to endorse or support any particular political candidate or party. We should never mention support for any candidate/political figure/party over another.

  • It is fine to advocate for issues, attend rallies, rally congregations around issues, lobby and educate officials about important needs in the community.

  • Any lobbying activity is subject to a “substantial part test” or “expenditure test” which means that if a substantial part of the organization’s time is spent on lobbying, or a substantial part of its budget, then the 501c3 is at risk.

In public discourses on our online forums and in our gatherings (guidance sessions, retreats, classes, courses, summer camps, special events, etc.) we should refrain from political conversations. As private citizens, on our own personal forums outside of the Inayatiyya, of course this is fine.

Please see below for a few resources explaining the legal implications. Thank you for understanding the importance of following both our community guidelines for forums and also United States law.

With love,
Alia

https://www.councilofnonprofits.org/tools-resources/political-campaign-activities-risks-tax-exempt-status

www.nolo.com

Limits on Political Campaigning for 501(c)(3) Nonprofits

To avoid trouble with the IRS, your 501(c)(3) nonprofit shouldsteer clear of political campaigning.

www.nolo.com

How Much Lobbying Can a Nonprofit Do?

The IRS does allow 501(c)(3) nonprofits to lobby without losing their tax-exempt status, but there are some limits that you should be aware of.

irs.gov

logo_small.jpg200×200 6.16 KB
### Lobbying | Internal Revenue Service

Overview of federal tax rules that apply to lobbying by section 501(c)(3) organizations.

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Thank you, Alia, for the clarification. 501c3s can be particularly vulnerable to perhaps not very well-meaning agendas, so it’s important to abide by the guidelines. We often have to be reminded of this at the community radio station (also a 501c3) where I work as an unpaid producer, though there it’s political discourse all day and all night long - just within the guidelines. From another angle, I will repeat that as a gonzo activist, I look to spiritual traditions for more light, more love, and more spiritual strength, so that I can be more effective as an activist - it’s no accident that the civil-rights movement was grounded in deep faith. We don’t need the “leaders” in a spiritual group to be trying to influence our choices - it’s totally not their job, and have we not seen, over and over, that that way lies madness?

Thanks again, and much Love,
Vajra

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Although it is important to be reminded of the parameters, I don’t see Azar Baksh’s post as crossing the line except maybe one mention of Trump. To forgo all advocacy of human rights, ecological preservation, and against egoistic grabbing of resources and power is not a response to the ‘rules’ that has integrity with our claimed values. I would rather we not give into the ‘obey in advance’ urge.
Admittedly, within our community, there are those who would disagree about the implications of those values as applied to real world issues, so there is that consideration. It would be better to not alienate each other over politics, but we do have to acknowledge that there may be different perspectives and avoid the attack mode - defensive reaction cycle that is so prevalent in our society … we could rather have an opportunity to model better behavior in the face of life’s contradictions rather than practice avoidance of them.
I would also suggest that if one feels triggered by something someone says, it is a call for deep inspection into one’s received beliefs and motivations, and how one reflects and refracts the Divine Bounty that is coming through, rather than a call to lash back.

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All true. It’s just a matter of, as they say, not being diverted from our primary spiritual aim in this particular organization. There are so many other organizations we can bring our whole (insha’Allah increasingly whole and increasingly enlightened) selves to for doing maximum good in the world.

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Dear Aqil,

Thank you for your response. Here’s a hopefully non-political addition to my previous post: I feel we need to take our spirituality on the road. So many people don’t know how to deal with what is happening at present. I tell friends that the greatest service they can provide is to keep their light shining brightly and be a beacon of hope to others. Ravani Rah and I are about to teach a four-week class at All Saints Episcopal Church called Alchemy of Life.Every experience we have is a potential portal to the sacred.a I firmly believe that the only way lasting change will occur is for enough people to align their consciousness with each other, while at the same time maintaining their unique contributions to sowing the seeds of transformation in every aspect of their lives. Evil cannot flourish in the light.

I am reminded of when Murshid’s murids asked him to teach about meditation, and he replied, “There’s work to do.” It’s time for all of us in the Inayatiyya to share the fruits of all that we’ve gained from our years of receiving teachings and working with practices with people in our communities.

One more idea. I have been including in my thoughts when I say Aman 101 times each morning our country, immigrants, the poor, the elderly, those who are sick, the earth, those who have lost hope, as well as Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine.

With love and optimism for baqa after the current fana,

Azar Baksh

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“One more idea. I have been including in my thoughts when I say Aman 101 times each morning our country, immigrants, the poor, the elderly, those who are sick, the earth, those who have lost hope, as well as Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine.

With love and optimism for baqa after the current fana.”

Such an uplifting reminder to receive on the last day of the holly month of Ramadan . Thank you friends .

Insha’Allah this too shall pass.

Fatima

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I actually think we have an important perspective to contribute to the fundamental questions being raised regarding: what is truth, what is our relationship to other beings - human and otherwise - what is the purpose of our even being alive in this moment.
Fascist ideology is predicated on a rejection of fundamentals regarding truth and human relationship, and that is why we should speak out and act if need be, as Pir Vilayat, Noor and some members of the Sufi Movement did. Of course they were not ‘representing’ an organization but their own conscience, yet that was informed by the values and experiences that verified the truth of those values, the support for propagation of said values and experiences being the stated purpose of the organization.
When those values themselves become the target of political attack, avoiding politics altogether is not even possible. Just by existing, we are a threat.
The run amok false egos giving vent to their resentments and grasping cannot tolerate a note of reproach, because that suggests something greater than their false ego exists in their world. I say, let the note be sounded, and the wisdom and self mastery we display in doing so will only amplify it.

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Dear Friends on the Path,

I am glad to see dialog on the issue of what we can discuss in our spiritual community. Pir Zia has often shared with me an interest in being able to hold difficult conversations. Can we? Perhaps we can focus on what qualities and attitudes are needed to discern how we should act at this time of conflict and ecological destruction (as Vajra mentions), and even the issues at hand (as Aqil, Vakil and Azar Baksh mention) without supporting or opposing a candidate or political party and without making anyone right or wrong.

It seems there are two issues we are bridging: trying to avoid divisions which jeopardize our sense of unity and harmony and being able to bring real world challenges into our spiritual dialog (making our spirituality relevant to the needs of the day). I hope we can do both with care and consideration.

I for one have to work to overcome despair - on an almost daily basis. I use spiritual practices of breath, walks in nature and practices of releasing impressions after reading and hearing about human rights abuses, acts of supremacy, and removal of much-needed support for the most vulnerable populations. I feel an obligation - to G*d and humanity - to be informed about what is happening in the world and in my country. I work to “rise above” personal emotions, but I want to keep my heart open and alive. And I pray for guidance in how I can respond with beauty, meaning and truth - as Pir Zia guided at the end of his New Year’s Retreat.

What do you do to maintain light, life and love when you learn of species loss, extraction practices proliferating that destroy ecosystems? How do you digest the ongoing bombing in Gaza, the blocking of humanitarian aid and the displacement of Palestinians on the West Bank? I have many more questions. A sincere response or two might elevate this listserv above the function of sharing announcements about programs.

With Love
Rabia

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I’ve been thinking about the possibility of a group of interested parties to speak (and pray) on these things together, and find ways to help and encourage each other - and everyone else - as we are faced with increasingly excruciating times. A separate affinity group, so to speak, for which the Inayatiyya could not be punished. Anyone else interested?

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Dear Friends,
In this extraordinary time, the challenges both individual and collective are breaking through our previous anticipation of what is ‘normal’. Murshid, in Vol VI heads two chapters as ‘Life, A Continual Battle’ and challenges us in many ways, including in the following paragraph: ‘A very large number of people are looking for the best way of gaining the power needed to battle through life; and a small number again are looking for some way of bringing peace to themselves and to others. But both of these in their pursuit lack that balance which can only be brought about by understanding, by studying, and by practising the knowledge of war and peace together. Without knowing about war one cannot thoroughly know about peace; without understanding peace one cannot thoroughly know about war.’
Our ‘battle’ at this time is expressing itself in tension in many of us in our spiritual family, both mureeds and guides. When not acknowledged, this tension creates a disturbing sense of confusion and powerlessness; when acknowledged, we are able to work through it, individually and collectively, and grow psychologically and spiritually. Is this a significant task in our time, for those of us on this spiritual path? We might see it as the spiritual alchemy of our time. The great challenge is, in Murshid’s words, ‘practising the knowledge of war and peace together’.

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Thanks dear Friends. Today is my father’s birthday. He died at 93, was born in 1913. He spent five years in Germany as a war prisoner. His father has told him : come back alive. He unlearnt during these years everything he knew before, met all scenarios one can’t imagine. He had to rebuild things when he came back as a farmer. His mantra was : Hayy ! (He did not know this Word…) Every moment : Hayy ! With courage, respect, dedication to his ground, his family. All his life long.
Last week-end around Paris was the greenery and opening of the leaves of the trees. In one week-end. With the same power, the same « first time », the same praise of the trees certainly than decades ago, centuries ago.
Much love, dear Friends.
Tajalli (from Suresnes)

Envoyé de mon iPhone

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Just came across this … speaking of how to balance peace and war in ourselves
Making Peace
BY DENISE LEVERTOV
A voice from the dark called out,
‘The poets must give us
imagination of peace, to oust the intense, familiar
imagination of disaster. Peace, not only
the absence of war.’
But peace, like a poem,
is not there ahead of itself,
can’t be imagined before it is made,
can’t be known except
in the words of its making,
grammar of justice,
syntax of mutual aid.
A feeling towards it,
dimly sensing a rhythm, is all we have
until we begin to utter its metaphors,
learning them as we speak.
A line of peace might appear
if we restructured the sentence our lives are making,
revoked its reaffirmation of profit and power,
questioned our needs, allowed
long pauses . . .
A cadence of peace might balance its weight
on that different fulcrum; peace, a presence,
an energy field more intense than war,
might pulse then,
stanza by stanza into the world,
each act of living
one of its words, each word
a vibration of light—facets
of the forming crystal.