What is Sangha?

This month the mantra I’m working with is “Sangha.” After getting back from a 5-week journey through the Pacific Northwest and Southwest, I found such a deep gratitude for my friends, family and new acquaintances. I just kept coming back to the idea of “connect with your sangha and you’ll continue to grow.”

So what is a sangha, how important is it in our lives, where do we find it and how do we cultivate it? These are all things we’ll parcel out this month.

This week we’ll discuss: What is a sangha?

In a great article by Thich Nhat Hahn, he states, “a sangha is a community of friends practicing the dharma together in order to bring about and to maintain awareness. The essence of a sangha is awareness, understanding, acceptance, harmony and love.” I love this definition of sangha. It makes me think about the community I have around me and how I’m able to find these attributes in so many people. Some people that I just met… and some that I’ve known my whole life. It makes me think about who I have surrounding me that is understanding, accepting, bringing harmony and love into the world.

I also think about Ram Dass describing a sangha as a “community of truth seekers.” So that makes me think… “what is ‘truth’”? In so many ways, just asking that question to our community brings up such rich and deep connection where we can co-learn from each other. There is a power to having a community around us that is asking the deeper questions in their lives. Individuals we bring into our world who are similarly asking the deeper questions is our Sangha. Making self-inquiry part of our everyday lives and sharing that with those around us, that is Sangha.

Tune in for next week’s discussion on the importance of Sangha.

With deep love and gratitude