In honor of Black History Month, Tricycle is presenting a special video series, “Teachings for Uncertain Times,” featuring 13 teachers of color, here on our blog, Trike Daily, throughout February. The videos are free to watch.

In our first talk of the series, Vimalasara (Valerie) Mason-John, a teacher in the Triratna Buddhist tradition, explains how practitioners of color can face barriers to entering the Buddhist path.

“We live in times where there is a disproportionate amount of black people being killed by the police, a disproportionate number of black people incarcerated in prisons and mental institutions. We walk into meditation halls with this painful load,” Mason-John says.

Watch her full talk below for her recommendations on creating an inclusive community.



Download a transcript of this talk. It has been edited for clarity.
 

Learn more from Vimalasara in her Dharma Talk, “Using the Buddha’s Teachings to Overcome Addiction

Watch other videos in the “Teachings for Uncertain Times” series

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