Gitmo Detainees: Instead of Torture, How about Vipassana?

Now that our fantasy president is going to be closing down Gitmo, there sure has been a loud outcry from all across the country of people saying, don’t move those terrorists here; you know the “not in my backyard” syndrome. 

 

They don’t want them in South Carolina and they sure don’t want them in West Virginia .  I guess Congressman Murtha has offered up his stomping grounds in Pennsylvania for a possible venue, but we haven’t heard from his constituents yet.  The general consensus is we want them locked up, but in someone else’s country.   I hate to say it, but this is typical American self-centeredness. We gathered them up, we decided to imprison them, and we often decided to torture them. I think we need to take responsibility for them.

 

It’s not as if they are going to be walking around the mall or going to see a movie down the street; they are going to be in prison, folks. Think clearly, now, if you can….terrorists are people.  I dare say we have some pretty scary people of our own in prisons all across this country.  Prisons often provide employment for whole towns; hey, it’s a job.  So there are plenty of folks living in close proximity to some pretty scary, messed up people.

 

But what I really wanted to talk about is the possibility of changing our tactics from torture to something completely different.  Something that has a chance of bringing some level of peace to some very tortured souls and, in the process, bring greater peace and security to us. 

 

You see, I do not agree with the Dalai Llama, who recently stated that you could not use nonviolent techniques on terrorists because they have closed minds.  I believe we reach the mind through the heart; through grace and prayer; and through Vipassana.

 

Vipassana meditation is a type of Buddhist meditation that means insight into the nature of reality.  It is frequently called Insight meditation. 

 

There is a record of success in prisons that teach Vipassana. In 1993, Vipassana was taught in a 10-day course in Tihar Jail, near New Deli. It involved both officials and inmates.  Many of the prisoners were lifers with violent pasts.  This program was said to have dramatically changed the behavior of inmates and jailers alike. It was actually found that inmates who completed the 10-day course were less violent and had a lower recidivism rate than other inmates. The project was documented in the television documentary, “Doing Time, Doing Vipassana.” (Unfortunately, this video is no longer available on YouTube).

 

So successful was this program that it was adopted by correctional facilities in the United States and other countries as well.  The 10-day program entails ten hours a day of meditation, beginning at 4:30 a.m. Very little food. No TV, no books, no mail, no exercise, no smokes, no meat, and no sleeping during meditation.

 

The Northern Rehabilitation Facility (NRF) in Seattle was the first US prison to offer the Vipassana course to its inmates.  Officials say the course can transform even the most habitual criminal.   "It's an extremely powerful journey in self-discovery and self-awareness," said Dave Murphy, the jail's programs manager.

 

Inmates practice Vipassana meditation at the Northern Rehabilitation Facility, a minimum-security jail in Shoreline. (August 11, 2001) Credit: Dan DeLong/ Seattle Post-Intelligencer

In 2002, the Donaldson Correctional Facility, located outside of Birmingham , Alabama , became the first maximum security prison in North America to hold an extendedVipassana retreat.  A film, called Dhamma Brothers, was made about this experience.  If you doubt what I am saying about the possibility of reaching someone who seems beyond reach, follow these links to hear three video letter testimonies from prisoners who participated in this course.

 

http://www.dhammabrothers.com/obvid.html

 

http://www.dhammabrothers.com/rickvid.html

 

http://www.dhammabrothers.com/edwardvid.html

 

I believe that all humans have the spark of divinity within and that includes those we have labeled terrorists. Is there any harm in allowing someone who is going to be locked up in prison for their whole life an opportunity to develop into a more fully realized person?  I for one do not believe in the “eye for an eye” philosophy of life; when the Christ walked this planet he came to overthrow the old and he taught us to love our enemies. Isn’t it about time we started walking our walk, not just talking our talk?  Think about it.

 

For more information on these programs and Vipassana in prisons see the following links:

 

http://www.dhammabrothers.com/film.html

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/34836_meditation11.shtml

http://www.prison.dhamma.org/index.htm