Thread by @0Calamity

Buddhist thread for the day:
When my libel case really kicked off in Nov 2019, I took myself up to my Buddhist centre and chanted for 4 hours straight to find a way through. I had spent the summer in a state of high anxiety as I knew failure would bankrupt me. 1/

2/ While I was chanting I suddenly remembered this Gosho ("writing worthy of respect") from Nichiren Daishonin nichirenlibrary.org/en/wnd-1/Conte…

3/ Shijo Kingo, the addressee of the Gosho, was a Shogun warrior who had been told by his Lord that if he remained a disciple of Nichiren he would lose his lands. Nichiren warned him that his life would be in danger, and losing his lands was a comparatively small price to pay.

4/ I had this sudden realisation that whatever happened to me, they couldn't kill me for it. I wouldn't be sent to prison or physically harmed. The worse that would happen would be to lose possessions. A sense of calm washed over for me, and after that I was ready to fight back.

5/ I look at what the @JustStop_Oil people are doing and realise that they are risking imprisonment and possible physical and mental maltreatment for us, for the future of our children and grandchildren.

6/ A year ago, for #COP26, I met up with some friends from @BThroughParty and went on a march in London. Great. Marvellous. I felt good doing that.
The biggest catastrophe facing humanity and nobody paid any attention.

7/ At the ripe old age of 60 I don't know if I have the courage and bravery to risk going to prison, but to all the people in @JustStop_Oil, @XRebellionUK and other organisations putting their lives and their well-being on the line for our future safety, I salute you.

8/ Don't let this #COP27 just be another talking-shop where a lot is said and very little is done. It is time for governments to listen, and to act. And if it takes disruptive protest to do it, so be it.

9/

"No matter how wonderful our dreams, how noble our ideals, or how high our hopes, ultimately we need courage to make them a reality. Without action, it’s as if they never existed."

~ Daisaku Ikeda