Poisoned Arrows and Primary Elections
A Meditation by Rev. Cameron Trimble
“It is just as if a man were wounded with an arrow thickly smeared with poison, and his friends and companions brought a surgeon to treat him. The man would say: ‘I will not let the surgeon pull out this arrow until I know who shot me.’” —The Buddha, Cūḷamāluṅkya Sutta (Majjhima Nikāya 63)
In an old Buddhist teaching, a man is struck by a poisoned arrow. His friends bring a surgeon, but the wounded man refuses treatment. First, he wants answers. Who fired the arrow? What family did the attacker come from? What kind of bow did he carry? What feathers were used? The Buddha explains that the man would die before he ever got his answers.
That story came to mind as I watched coverage of primary elections around the country. Progressive and democratic socialist candidates are challenging longtime Democratic incumbents, and some are winning. Headlines talk about a leftward shift in response to the rightward turn that changed the Republican Party, first with the Tea Party and now with MAGA.
It seems like a familiar pattern: Republicans move further right, Democrats move further left, and each side blames the other for becoming more extreme.
There is some truth to this. Political movements react to each other. Each side gathers proof that its fears are real. Every provocation leads to another. Social media rewards the harshest accusations and the most dramatic predictions. Candidates see that outrage brings in donations. Cable news makes public life feel like a constant crisis.
But seeing these movements as equal and opposite actually hides more than it shows. MAGA holds the presidency, the Justice Department, the House, the Senate, a Supreme Court with a six-member conservative majority, and twenty-eight state legislatures. Its radical ideas have become government policy. Federal power is now used to target immigrants, punish political opponents, weaken oversight, attack universities and law firms, and send military personnel into American cities even when local leaders object.
The Democratic Socialists of America has about 95,000 members. It is an activist group, not a political party, and it does not run the Democratic Party. Some of its candidates have won important races, and its ideas are shaping national debates. But it cannot control the military, direct federal prosecutions, or decide how civil-rights laws are enforced.
The difference is important. Left-leaning movements can become rigid and self-righteous. Sometimes they mistake public shaming for justice and see ideological purity as moral courage. Cultural power can hurt people. But there is a big difference between social condemnation and state force. One can harm someone’s reputation. The other can take away a person’s freedom, family, job, or even life.
Not all poisoned arrows are equally deadly. They are, however, flying through a country already badly wounded.
Factories have shut down and towns have emptied out. Wages have not kept up with the cost of living. Addiction has torn families apart. The old promise that each generation would do better than the last is now hard to believe. Civil-rights progress has made some people feel like equality means losing their own status. The internet has broken apart any shared sense of reality we once had.
Our economy still relies on endless extraction from a limited planet. The climate is changing faster than our politics can keep up. Soil, water, forests, and even our bodies are paying the price for a lifestyle built on constant growth. Most big political promises assume the future will just be a bigger version of the past.
These problems did not start with Donald Trump or Zohran Mamdani. Instead, these conditions created the fear, anger, and longing that these leaders now represent.
When people feel less secure in their lives, they want to know who shot the arrow. MAGA blames immigrants, secular people, queer people, universities, and what it calls the deep state. The left blames billionaires, corporations, landlords, and an economy based on extraction. These explanations are not morally equal. Some targets have a lot of power. Others are vulnerable people being asked to carry the country’s fear.
We need to hold those who cause harm accountable. The Buddha’s story does not tell us to ignore the person with the bow. Instead, it asks if our need for a full explanation has become an excuse to avoid getting help.
The threat of authoritarianism is real and urgent. We have to resist it. But getting rid of one candidate will not bring back abandoned towns, restore worn-out soil, make housing affordable, heal addiction, or help young people feel hopeful about the future.
We have spent years arguing about who shot the arrow. All the while, the poison has kept spreading through the body.
Maybe our most important political task now is to do two things at once: stop those who are still firing arrows and care for the wounds that made so many people vulnerable to their promises.
A society can die waiting for perfect answers. Healing begins when we finally admit that we are hurt.
We are in this together,
Cameron
Reflection Questions
Where do you see political language disguising the deeper grief, fear, or economic abandonment people are carrying?
What helps you distinguish between naming a genuine danger and turning another person into the explanation for everything that is wrong?
Where is the poison still moving through our common life while we argue about who should be blamed?
A Prayer for the Day
A Prayer For Our Wounded Life
Holy One, We are frightened by how quickly the world is changing and by the cruelty our fear can unleash. Give us clear eyes for the dangers before us. Help us recognize the hands that cause harm without allowing hatred to govern our own. Draw our attention to the wounds beneath the spectacle— the abandoned community, the family stretched past its limits, the neighbor made into a target, the Earth exhausted by our taking. Give courage to those who stand between the vulnerable and the powers that threaten them. Make us healers of what can still be healed, truth-tellers who remain tender, and faithful companions to this wounded world. Amen.
Spiritual Practice
Tending the Wound
Choose one political issue that reliably provokes anger or fear in you. Write down the person or group you are usually taught to blame for it.
Then ask: What wound has made this conflict possible? Who is living with that wound most directly? What kind of care would help?
Spend fifteen minutes learning about one local effort addressing that underlying pain: affordable housing, addiction recovery, soil restoration, worker organizing, immigrant accompaniment, community mental health, or another form of repair.
You do not need to understand every detail of how the arrow was fired before you help treat the wound.
Upcoming Events That Might Be of Interest…
My team and I launched a new experiment we are calling “The Commons.” It’s an online space centered around communities of practice: groups of people who share a common concern, set of problems, or passion for a topic, and deepen their knowledge and expertise by interacting on an ongoing basis. Join the community here.
August 11 - September 1, 2026, 12:30-1:30pmET - Book Club in The Commons - FREE - We are reading our next book, “I Eat The Stars” by Sarah Wilson. We will meet each Tuesday for 6 weeks. It’s such great fun. I hope you will be a part. All are welcome! RSVP HERE.
August 20, 2026, 7-8:45pm ET - I will be joining Jackie Sussman for an online session on practicing eidetics as a part of our “Reclaiming the Power of Imagination” monthly series. Eidetic Imagery is a powerful tool for pastors, denominational leaders, coaches, and spiritual directors working with others, and for individuals seeking deeper integration and healing in their own lives. Jackie is a psychotherapist, author, and leading expert in Eidetic Image Psychology, and has spent over forty years helping leaders and individuals unlock creativity, uncover hidden strengths, and move through limiting patterns. During this session, she will lead a live Eidetic process shaped by mythic imagery, offering a direct experience of the work. REGISTER HERE.
September 8, 2026, 12:30 - 1:30pm ET, ONLINE EVENT with NYT Best-Selling author and journalist, Sarah Wilson!!! Sarah has just published her latest book I Eat The Stars: How to Live Fully and Beautifully in a Collapsing World. Join us for this one hour conversation where we will talk with Sarah about how we face collapse, how we find beauty and who we can become in these challenging times. Scholarships are available. REGISTER HERE.
September 8, 2026, 7-9pm ET, ONLINE EVENT - I’ll be hosting a powerful online gathering on The Black Madonna: Sacred Wisdom for a World in Crisis with Matthew Fox, Alessandra Belloni, and Christena Cleveland. We will explore the Black Madonna as a symbol of resilience, liberation, sacred feminine wisdom, and healing in a fractured world through conversation, story, music, and spiritual reflection. If you feel drawn toward a deeper encounter with the Divine Feminine and the ancient traditions that continue to nourish movements for justice and wholeness, I hope you’ll join us. Learn more and REGISTER HERE.
September 14, 7-8:30pm ET ONLINE EVENT - I’m delighted to share that Dr. Margaret Wheatley is releasing a newly updated edition of her beloved book Perseverance: A Companion for the Journey this October. Written for those committed to serving the world with compassion in difficult times, the book offers daily wisdom and practical guidance for navigating grief, anger, exhaustion, and uncertainty while remaining rooted in love, courage, and presence. Meg and I will be in conversation to explore what perseverance looks like in this moment of history and how we can sustain ourselves for the long work ahead. I hope you’ll join us for what promises to be a deeply meaningful conversation. REGISTER HERE.
October 6, 2026 - 7-8:30pm ET, ONLINE EVENT - Matthew Fox and I are teaming up again to launch a series called Journeying with the Mystics. The mystics have always emerged in times of uncertainty. They appear when old certainties are crumbling, when institutions no longer provide easy answers, and when people find themselves longing for a deeper experience of the Sacred. Join us for an 18-session exploration of the teachings of St. John of the Cross, Thomas Merton, Hildegard of Bingen, Kabir and Rumi, Meister Eckhart and more. This is more than a lecture series. It is an invitation into a living spiritual journey. REGISTRATION COMING SOON!
October 18-21, 2026 - PREACH! 2026 Conference- I’ll be co-hosting PREACH in Minneapolis with Church Anew, a new gathering for preachers, storytellers, worship leaders, and spiritual communicators navigating what it means to speak with clarity, compassion, and courage in a changing world. If you’ve sensed that the preaching moment has changed and are longing for thoughtful community and renewed imagination for this work, I hope you’ll join us.
Fun Things My Friends Are Up To…
I get to work with such amazing, creative people. This section is my way of celebrating them—no paid promotions, just joy in what they’re creating.
My dear friend and Buddhist teacher, Isa Gucciardi PhD, leads this amazing center call The Foundation of the Sacred Stream. On August 13 from 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm Pacific (8:30 pm – 10:00 pm Eastern), they will be hosting an online event called “Compassion for the Modern Heart with Geshe Gedun Samdup.” In a world that moves quickly and often feels fragmented, compassion is not a luxury—it is a vital practice for staying present, connected, and resilient. This class offers a grounded and accessible exploration of compassion through the lens of Tibetan Buddhism’s three distinct forms of compassion: compassion for all beings, compassion for conditioned phenomena, and objectless compassion. Together, these teachings provide a practical and deeply nourishing framework for meeting the complexities of modern life with clarity and care. LEARN MORE HERE.
I’m delighted to celebrate the upcoming release of Wisdom Church: Abundant Life for Aging Congregations by my colleague, Rev. Dr. Anna Hall. Rather than seeing aging congregations as communities in decline, Anna invites us to recognize them as communities rich with wisdom, purpose, and possibility. Her book offers a hopeful vision for moving beyond anxiety about the future and embracing the unique gifts of older adults as beloved children of God. If your congregation is navigating these questions, this is a resource well worth reading. You can preorder the Kindle edition now, with delivery on August 17: https://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Church-Abundant-Aging-Congregations-ebook/dp/B0HBXGYTWC
Every Monday, 12pm ET - ONLINE WRITING GROUP - My dear friend, Meryl Marshall-Daniels, is leading a writing group open to all. This is a simple and spacious writing circle for people who want time to listen inwardly and put words on the page without overthinking, performing, or polishing. Meryl offers a prompt designed to invite reflection, imagination, and attunement to what is already alive within you. The practice honors writing as a way of listening, of letting images, memories, questions, and insights surface in their own time. Learn more here.
If you are a leader or member of a congregation looking for consulting support in visioning, planning, hiring or staffing, please consider Convergence.
Good morning, Rev. Cameron. "truth tellers who remain tender." That's beautiful.
Exactly, getting rid of Trump and his Reich is only the beginning because that’s when the really hard work starts. While getting justice, you also need balance because the repair is going to be monumental. Not certain there are many who understand the depth America has sunken to getting out of that abyss/hole will be extremely painful. America has to “hit bottom” before it can climb out of the hole….Thank you Cameron!!!