WILLA BLYTHE BAKER: First of all, yes, there are shadows, and the longer you practice in the Buddhist tradition, the more you know. The infighting, corruption, and abuse that you have learned about over the years is not new—it is not a thing of this decade or this century. Buddhist institutions—like all religious institutions—are vulnerable to bad behavior.
The shadow can be painful and violent. But seeing the shadow is ironically a beautiful thing—it holds promise, if you can manage to see it with a long view. Witnessing the shadow of our community opens a doorway into the truth and reform. Only when these problems become fully known and seen in all their specificity and complexity can our communities find compassionate, transparent, and just ways to address entrenched issues.
It is important that we not shy away from what we know and what we
