It All Started With A Buddha Statue

from - http://www.theplaidzebra.com/a-non-religious-man-virtually-eliminates-local-crime-with-nothing-more-than-a-buddha-statue/#ixzz3buJJvnYM       

BY: TJ MOREY

It is common knowledge that a person's surroundings play a vital role in sculpting the mind, ideologies, and thought process of an individual. A stunning example of this is found in the case of the Buddha statue of Oakland, California.

11th Avenue and East 19th Street was a rough part of town, riddled with an assortment of criminal activities ranging from garbage dumping and vandalization to drug dealing, robberies, prostitution and assaults. Sick of the dystopian environment of the area where he lived-particularly the trash-Dan Stevenson and his wife Lu purchased a stone Buddha statue from a hardware and placed it on the corner. The two hoped that the presence of the statue would bring a sense of serenity to the wretched neighborhood, or at least that its panoptic gaze would dissuade the garbage dumpers. Little did they know that this miniscule gesture would bring about a ripple effect resulting in a complete transformation of the neighborhood?

11th Avenue and East 19th Street was a rough part of town, riddled with criminal activities ranging from prostitution to drug dealing, until Dan Stevenson and his wife Lu purchased a stone Buddha statue from a hardware store and placed it on the corner.

First, the dumping stopped, and citizens made an effort to clean up the junk that was present. Then peddlers stopped dealing drugs in the area and the prostitutes left; walls were no longer vandalized with graffiti. Eventually, Vietnamese immigrants living in the vicinity started flocking to the Buddha statue and offering fruits, garlands, and incense sticks. When the word got out that Stevenson was the man behind this beautiful gesture, offerings of fruit, candies, and a variety of Vietnamese specialty food appeared at his doorstep.

Since the statue was erected, the overall crime-rate in the area had dropped by 82%. Official 2012 police statistics as reported by SFGate explain that "robbery reports went from 14 to three, aggravated assaults from five to zero, burglaries from eight to four, narcotics from three to zero, and prostitution from three to zero."

The Buddha has faced quite a few hurdles of its own. There have been two attempts to remove the statue, but neither were met with success. Soon after installation, a thief tried to steal the statue but failed miserably after realizing that the statue was reinforced with iron bar and a strong epoxy. Then in 2012, the local Public Works Department tried to remove it after a resident in the neighbourhood complained. The department received a zealous backlash for trying to have the statue removed, eventually resulting in the officials' forfeiting.

Since the statue was erected, the overall crime-rate in the area had dropped by 82%.

As of today, the statue, now cradled amidst an elaborate and beautiful 10 foot tall shrine, sees a throng of Vietnamese immigrants flocking every day for ritualistic prayers and offerings. The shrine-which is primarily looked after by a short, middle-aged Vietnamese woman named Vina Vo-is adorned with two flags, one American and the other Buddhist, while chants are played on a tiny tape recorder.

Truly remarkable is the fact that the Stevensons are not Buddhists, nor particularly strong followers of any other religion. All they wanted was to make their community better; it turns out that just one simple positive act was needed to bring forth astounding change.

I am of the nature to grow old. There is no way to escape growing old.

I am of the nature to have ill-health. There is no way to escape having ill-health

 
I am of the nature to die. There is no way to escape death.

All that is dear to me and everyone I love are of the nature to change. There is no way to escape being separated from them.

My actions are my only true belongings. I cannot escape the consequences of my actions. My actions are the ground on which I stand.

Our natural aversion to impermanence, and the suffering that this brings us is something that I believe we all struggle with as we move along the path of living in a mindful way. We know that all is impermanent and that everything wears out. Although I can buy-in to this truth intellectually, emotionally I have, as I suspect we all have, a deep-rooted aversion to it. Our human self wants permanence; we expend much energy in our careers, relationships and in collecting all sorts of material things, with the expectation of permanence. Our natural tendency is to believe that we can seek security in things and people and we believe we can find it. But through our practice and the Dharma we know that life without awakening is filled with suffering. This suffering occurs when we resist the noble and irrefutable Truth of impermanence and death. We expect and hope that what is always changing should be graspable and predictable. We are born with a craving for resolution and security that governs our thoughts, words, and actions. I like how one teacher envisioned it which is... we are like people in a boat that is falling apart, trying to hold on to the water.

So by adding the Five Remembrances in our daily practice, we hopefully are reminded of the impermanence of all things and learn to have Gratitude in understanding the value of impermanence. If we are in good health and are aware of impermanence, we will take better care of ourselves. When we know that the person we love and care for is impermanent, we will cherish them all the more. Impermanence teaches us to respect and value every moment and all the precious things around us and inside of us. It deepens and adds to our practice of living in Gratitude for the Three Treasures - Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.

May we and all beings be happy and free.