The Buddhadharma has many applications: liberation, ethical refinement, and also, in challenging times especially, refuge (sarana). Unlike secular modalities, the Dharma is not a set of tools; it is meant also to be a shelter from the storm that offers and emotional, even embodied, consolation. Building on the framework of the triple gem — the refuges in Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha — this talk explores how the Dharma can console all of us, particular LGBTQ+ and allied folks, in the contexts of climate anxiety, pandemic trauma, and political polarization.

Dharma practice can be a valuable tool in working with internalized assumptions about sex, gender, and sexual orientation. Yet the reality, too, is that traditional Buddhism is patriarchal. Tonight we’ll explore some of the benefits of working with gendered concerns in our practice, and some of the ways in which progressive Buddhist communities are working with patriarchal, sexist, and sex-negative aspects of the Buddhist tradition. Our Insight OUT refuge is open to students of all Buddhist traditions, as well as those who are in the beginning stages of exploring their meditation practice and have an interest in the Dharma. This PRIDE event is open to all who identify as LGBTIQ and their friends. We gather to form a multicultural community in which we can support each other in our practice with a commitment toward social change.