Why Holding Paradox Matters
In Buddhism, the number 10,000 symbolically represents the immeasurable. I’ve been contemplating the Buddhist expression, ten thousand joys and sorrows. This phrase encapsulates life’s unending ebb and flow of challenges, weaving a tapestry of both delight and despair into our life journey.
For me, mindfulness serves as a pathway to cultivate inner spaciousness, enabling me to simultaneously embrace the coexistence of delight and despair, joy and sorrow, and other seemingly paradoxical emotions. I define paradox as the intriguing coexistence of two seemingly distinct and separate elements that, upon closer examination, reveal their vital and inseparable relationship to each other.
We live in a complex and contradictory world which makes holding paradox an essential life and leadership skill. Psychologists and experts in organizational science have discovered that individuals who can welcome paradoxes demonstrate greater creativity and adaptability. In a world that continues to grow more complex and uncertain, creativity and adaptability are vital!
Embracing paradox enriches our lives by empowering us to navigate complexity, fostering intellectual and emotional growth, and enabling us to approach challenges with deeper wisdom and greater understanding. Instead of fearing contradiction, we can learn to welcome it. And I’m all for walking the path of greater fearlessness!
The change of seasons can be a powerful teacher of paradox. Fall is officially here in the Northern Hemisphere. Though the changing seasons in Southern California bear little resemblance to the ones I experienced growing up in New Jersey, this transition still manages to tug at my heartstrings. For those of you who, like me, grapple with the bittersweet arrival of autumn, I want to share the profound wisdom of Parker Palmer. His insights on this season serve as a poignant reminder, urging us to delve deeper into what he calls the “paradox of hidden wholeness.”
Embracing the beauty and complexity of autumn might just be the solace we need during this time of change.
Author Bio: Meena Srinivasan is a contemplative leader, celebrated speaker, accomplished author, and visionary edupreneur. She is an educator-activist at heart, consistently championing the fusion of Mindfulness, Emotional Intelligence, and Belonging. Meena was featured as one of 2022’s 10 Powerful Women of the Mindfulness Movement in Mindful Magazine and is the Executive Director of Transformative Educational Leadership (TEL)™ an organization that supports educational leaders in building more compassionate and just schools. A former public school administrator and National Board Certified Teacher, Meena is the creative force behind the SEL Every Day Online Courses, an instructor of graduate level Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) courses at UC Berkeley and the CEO of Karuna Consulting, LLC, an organization that takes its name from the Sanskrit word ‘Karuna,’ signifying compassion. Karuna Consulting is a certified Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) driven by a profound mission: to foster a more compassionate world through Meena’s keynotes, professional learning, coaching, and consulting services. She is the author of numerous publications including Teach, Breathe, Learn and SEL Every Day. The latter was honored as one of 2019’s Favorite Books for Educators by the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley. Her TEDx talk on Tenderness is one of the most popular TEDx talks of 2024 (with over 2 million views). Meena has been practicing yoga and meditation for over 25 years, is an ordained Zen Buddhist and serves on the Board of the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation. Learn more at meenasrinivasan.com.
