Open Call for the second volume of the Bridges Magazine
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A day’s work for volunteers harvesting olives in the olive groves of the occupied Palestinian village of Deir Istiya.
Bridges גשרים Brücken الجسور magazine is a cultural initiative aimed at creating a community of solidarity with the victims of the catastrophe in Gaza.
The first issue of the magazine was devoted to Clean Shelter, an organization founded by Palestinian and Israeli women based in Germany that supplies humanitarian aid to Gaza. The first fundraising and launch event took place on December 14, 2024, at Zeitzone Gallery in Kreuzberg. Here is a video from the event.
The second issue of Bridges גשרים Brücken الجسور magazine will be dedicated to Palestinian grassroots organizations and their Israeli partners, “Dharma Activism,” in the West Bank.
Following the Gaza war, there has been an almost complete prevention of Palestinian workers from working inside Israel. This has led to an unprecedented deterioration of the economic situation in the West Bank. In addition, settler attacks have become more severe and frequent, backed by the army. The army has also intensified its activities disrupting daily life in the West Bank.
In response, local grassroots organizations have emerged in villages, helping the most vulnerable members of society who have been severely affected by the situation. Money collected will be transferred by dharma activists directly to these local organizations. The magazine will focus on these organizations and the activities of dharma activism in the West Bank.
Dir Istia Village in the Occupied Territories of Palestine. West Bank.
What is Socially Engaged Dharma?
The “Socially Engaged Dharma” group was founded in 2009 in the wake of the Gaza war (“Operation Cast Lead”). The initiative emerged from the understanding that the Dharma community has much to offer in engaging with social and political issues, specifically, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We use methods from Dharma practice to promote political and social change.
One aspect of our activity consists of retreats, practice days, and sitting groups in which we contemplate our lives as part of a society facing various challenges: how this reality affects our consciousness, and what socially engaged action supported by practice looks like.
The second aspect is field activity in the West Bank, based on the deep relationships we have developed with the villages of Walaja and Deir Istiya, and through them with additional nearby villages. Our long-standing connections enable us to take part in the Palestinians’ daily existential struggle as they choose to conduct it and out of solidarity with our partners and friends. We participate in agricultural work days, protective presence, nonviolent protests, and solidarity visits. We also sell excellent produce from the villages.
The activity itself is a practice. Observing what arises within us during the action, cultivating awareness of dukkha (suffering), and maintaining an open heart that remembers the interdependence of all beings—these are part of what makes our work a direct expression of the Dharma, and gives us the strength to go on with the flight.
Volunteers from Social Engaged Dharma are helping the Palestinians farmers with the olive harvest.
A photo taken by volunteers in the occupied Palestinian village of Deir Istiya showing trees uprooted by the Israeli occupation army. This is the fourth time that soldiers have uprooted centuries-old trees in the three villages of Kafr al-Harith, Haris, and Deir Istiya. In total, a thousand centuries-old olive trees have been uprooted.
Bridges גשרים Brücken لجسور Magazine 