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Buddhist Practice for Building Bridges to Peace and Justice

The following talk was given by Gil Fronsdal, Mohsen Mahdawi at The Sati Center in Redwood City, CA on January 16, 2026. Please visit the website www.audiodharma.org for more information.

Buddhist Practice for Building Bridges to Peace and Justice - Gil Fronsdal, Mohsen Mahdawi

Introduction

Gil Fronsdal: Thank you all for being here, and welcome. This is a meeting I have been looking forward to ever since it was planned. I had the wonderful good fortune to be able to invite Mohsen Mahdawi here to have a conversation about his wonderful work and his orientation toward peace work.

Mohsen comes from a background that is almost unimaginable to me—the kind of challenges he has faced. Growing up in a refugee camp on the West Bank, experiencing violence during that time, and eventually coming to the United States and becoming a peace worker. He has been working for Israeli and Palestinian peace, building bridges with Jewish communities. It is remarkable what he has been doing.

In the process of his time at Columbia University, he started practicing Buddhist meditation, which brought about a big transformation. I have had the good fortune of having a few conversations with Mohsen now, and I believe he has a remarkable message to give and a remarkable heart to share. I am delighted to be here with him. Mohsen, would you like to say anything as a greeting before we begin?

Mohsen Mahdawi: Thank you for this opportunity, Gil. And thank you to my larger Buddhist community from all over the world. I feel great gratitude and it is an honor to have this opportunity to be with you. I am grateful for your hearts and for your dedication to making our world a better place, to alleviating the suffering of all human beings, and to continuing this beautiful, sacred practice that has transformed my life.

Purpose and Education

Gil: To get current with you, you graduated from Columbia University a year ago and were fortunately able to be at the graduation. Now you are back at Columbia doing graduate work. Could you say something about what you are studying and what purpose it serves?

Mohsen: Right now, I have just started my Master’s degree in International and Public Affairs, focusing on peacemaking and conflict resolution. The reason I am doing this is that I feel it is my purpose and my destiny.

Coming from a life torn apart by wars, conflict, and occupation, and being impacted by that as a child living in a refugee camp, I continue to hold that inner child with me as I walk this path. I returned to Columbia despite the levels of injustice I saw there and the injustice I have faced in the United States—specifically related to my detention and the continuous fight in the courts for my rights in America. I am dedicating this path to the future of Palestinian and Israeli children, so they do not have to live a life of horror, pain, torture, and war. That is why I returned.

Facing Detention with Mindfulness

Gil: One of the remarkable representations of Mohsen's orientation was the manner in which he was detained by ICE¹. Some of you may not know the story: he went for his citizenship interview to become a US citizen at the immigration office in Vermont. It was a successful visit; he passed the test.

Mohsen: That’s correct. It was a pretty easy test for someone attending an Ivy League school. They asked me things like, "What is the ocean between the United States and Europe?" It was almost ridiculous.

Gil: He passed everything and walked out of the office, only to find ICE waiting for him. He was arrested and put in a car to be driven off to detention. There is a remarkable video of Mohsen smiling and raising his hands—though the handcuffs kept them close together—as he was being led away. Most people would be terrified. How did you manage that?

Mohsen: That specific moment was built up over time. I wanted to communicate to the American people and to everyone watching that we can face deep levels of injustice without being deterred. Instead of walking out with my citizenship and full rights, I was taken handcuffed into an 11-by-12-foot cell.

The reason for this was that I had built a movement at Columbia University asking for human rights for Palestinians and advocating for a ceasefire. Before the interview, I had been targeted by groups supporting the ongoing genocide in Gaza who called for my deportation. The administration had stated they would deport students who participated in the movement, and I was one of the first targeted.

During that time, I stayed calm and clear of fear. A big part of what helped me was my Buddhist practice. Every time fear arose in my body, I would sit, close my eyes, and breathe into the tension—usually around my core or belly button. The more I breathed into it and relaxed, the less I was motivated by fear or intimidation. I stayed calm before the interview, and I stayed calm when I was sheltering in place. When journalists asked if I was afraid, I said no. I believe the work I am doing is for humanity and comes from a place of love. If I am rooted in love and have awareness of my body, no fear can shake me.

Gil: You were released after about two weeks. When you walked out of the courthouse, the judge acknowledged that your detention was an attack on the Constitution and reminded him of the McCarthy era². You gave a speech on the steps of the courthouse that was quite remarkable.

Mohsen: While I was in prison, Senator Peter Welch visited me and asked how I could be so at peace. I told him I deeply believe that justice is inevitable. When I was released, I gave a speech—you can watch it on YouTube—where I said our work comes from a place of love, not fear. I told the administration, "I am not afraid of you." That line was picked up by international media. They wanted to show that even after 16 days in prison, I was not deterred.

Discovering Safety in Meditation

Gil: Your Buddhist practice at Columbia had a big impact. Is that where you learned this orientation toward love, or did you learn it elsewhere?

Mohsen: It was a combination of things. My exposure to meditation actually started before Columbia, in a small church in Vermont called the Hartland Unitarian Universalist Church. There were members there who had moved to Hartland hoping that Thich Nhat Hanh³ would build a monastery in that town. The monastery wasn't built there, so they found their way into the Unitarian Universalist community.

I moved to America at the age of 24. For the first time in my life, I experienced a level of safety. I had never experienced safety before, having lived in a refugee camp under occupation.

Gil: That is a remarkable thing to say—that you never felt safe until you sat down in a church in Vermont to meditate.

Mohsen: That's right. When you are in a state of constant defense, trying to protect yourself, you cannot deal with your trauma or your emotions. For the first time in America, painful memories from my childhood started surfacing. It was almost intolerable.

What helped me was the practice of meditation. I was fascinated that five or ten minutes of sitting and breathing—mindfulness meditation—could calm my emotions to such a degree. That was the beginning of my journey toward Buddhism. My first exposure to Buddhist texts was through Jack Kornfield⁴, whom you connected me with.

When I moved to New York for Columbia, I was very triggered by the sirens, the lack of light, and the tightness of the city—it reminded me of the refugee camp. I needed a community, so I started attending the Buddhist Association at Columbia. Within a semester, I was nominated to become its president.

Witnessing Violence and Transforming Anger

Gil: It is striking that you didn't feel safe until you came to the US. Certainly, you were shaped by the violence you experienced in the camps. What was it about growing up there that taught you about love? What were the positive messages you received?

Mohsen: My life in the refugee camp had different phases. From birth to age seven, my mother taught me spirituality. She was a practicing Sufi⁵. As you know, Sufism and Buddhism have a lot of overlap. For the Sufis, God is a God of love and compassion. I was in love with my mother, so I believed everything she said. That was a great foundation.

But after that, things went downhill. When I was eight years old, my six-year-old brother passed away. Shoveling dirt over his body on a rainy day was a devastating experience. Later, when I was eleven or twelve, I saw my best friend shot and killed in front of my eyes. He was only fourteen. That experience generated deep pain and anger at the injustice of the Israeli army.

On my birthday, September 12, 2001, my uncle was killed by the army. Instead of celebrating, I walked in his funeral. When I was twelve, I witnessed a strike that shattered seven people into pieces. I went to the location and, as a child, I used a plastic bag to collect their body parts—fingers and skin—off the walls to honor them. When I was fifteen, I was shot in the leg.

I was angry. I shifted away from love; I saw the Israelis only as oppressors. I wanted revenge. That feeling didn't start to change until I went to university in Palestine and started seeing different angles. But spiritual space was always a sanctuary for me. I would go to that space and say, "This is painful, and I trust that I am not alone." Later, through Buddhism, I understood that the idea of separation is an illusion.

The Alchemy of Compassion

Gil: Did it take a long time to be free of that anger?

Mohsen: A very long time. It wasn't until I came to America that I could step outside the picture. Before that, I was in survival mode. I only knew Israelis as people in military uniforms with rifles who broke into houses, dehumanized us at checkpoints, and shot people.

In America, I started connecting with Jewish Americans and Israelis over meals and coffee. I realized that the human being is not the enemy. If there is an enemy, it is fear, segregation, and ignorance. The system uses segregation to dehumanize one side and empower the other. It weaponizes trauma to subjugate people. I realized that if people have the chance to connect and share what is in their hearts, they will see that the issue is the system, not the humans.

Gil: When did you decide to dedicate your life to building peace?

Mohsen: When I realized that if Palestinians and Israelis had access to the truth—if Palestinians understood that their trauma is an extension of Jewish trauma and what happened in Europe—there would be a different reality.

I learned about the philosophies of Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., and Nelson Mandela, but I didn't truly understand them practically until I came to America. At that moment, I knew my path would be the path of peace and nonviolence. It would be a path to change not just minds, but hearts.

Gil: But truth by itself is often not enough.

Mohsen: Correct. We see many intelligent people who see the truth but cannot act on it. Truth must be paired with empathy and compassion. Without them, we just get into heated debates and shaming. You need the truth to address the facts, but you need compassion to address the emotions.

Gil: I’ve said many times that in my early years of practice, I wasn't tracking how I was changing. I was just trying to get enlightened. But slowly, I was developing compassion. Sitting and breathing with my own suffering worked on me. It softened me and opened me until compassion became the organizing principle of my life.

Mohsen: That is very powerful. This practice brings a theory of change from within. If we don't understand how to empathize with ourselves, it is impossible to empathize with others. As Thich Nhat Hanh says, the magic that transforms painful emotions into positive ones is compassion. Inner peace is a form of love. When we let go of fear, our body returns to a state of love. Peace in the world is created from within.

Building Coalitions for Humanity

Gil: Some people today feel alarmed and worried by the violence and division in the world. There is often a rush to action. What is it like to try to create peace without having cultivated this empathy?

Mohsen: Many people who see injustice are hesitant to empathize with the "oppressor" because of three misperceptions. First, they think empathy means justification. This is not true. A mother can empathize with her child while still telling them that what they did was wrong.

Second, they fear that moving from negative to positive emotions will remove the "charge" needed for change. But you cannot create a loving world from a place of fear.

Third is the idea of separation. If someone harms me, I want to say they are not like me. But the moment you empathize, you break that separation and understand the root causes of the issue, while still holding the scale of justice.

I know it is hard. It is difficult because we have to get rid of the thoughts imposed on us by mass media and systems that dehumanize others. But for the first time in history, we are interconnected. If someone is hurt anywhere on earth, we can see it and feel it. This brings an opportunity for spiritual and psychological healing that has never existed before.

Gil: You seem to have more than just hope; you have confidence.

Mohsen: My confidence comes from seeing smaller models of this work succeed. I have seen people who were on opposite sides—Black and white, Republican and Democrat, Israeli and Palestinian—shift after practicing empathy. It takes time, maybe a year or two, but the power generated by that shift is immense.

What we saw with the global protests against the genocide in Gaza is empathy. People were moved by the sight of children being torn apart and hospitals being destroyed. That isn't just political; it’s spiritual. It is our Buddha nature⁶—we are encoded to empathize. The trick is helping people transform the empathy they feel for one side into empathy for all.

A Call to the Buddhist Community

Gil: You have been building coalitions at Columbia and beyond for eleven years now. Are you continuing that work?

Mohsen: Yes. After I was released from detention, I was advised to sit back, but I said no. The purpose of the government's attack was to shut me down. If I stop, I give them what they want.

We are building a movement for humanity to restore human rights and reform international law. We want to build unity based on the understanding that what we have in common is much larger than what divides us.

Gil: You're getting a Master's in foreign policy and talking to them about love? Does that go over well?

Mohsen: [Laughter] The foundation of international security is often game theory and coercion, with very little focus on negotiation or empathy. But even my professors—including those who served in the CIA or the Pentagon—have said to me, "We appreciate what you're doing. This is important work."

Gil: It’s inspiring to see your confidence. You are gathering a lot of people.

Mohsen: I feel alive when I meditate on what the future could look like. I believe the Buddhist community is one of the few that has the power to help people stay rooted and transform negative emotions.

But I feel a sense of sadness that I haven't seen more respected Buddhist teachers and monks engaged with the world. If the Buddhist message is about alleviating suffering, where are we when injustice is happening? This is a call to every Buddhist practitioner and teacher: This is the time we need you most. Our humanity is crying out, and we cannot do this alone.

Closing and Guided Meditation

Gil: I hear your heartfelt request, and it is a message to not forget the love. It is too easy to let movements fall apart when they are fueled by anger or hate. Eventually, that energy backfires internally.

Mohsen: I am grateful to all of you for hearing my story. For a child from Palestine who didn't think he would live past eighteen, and who is now thirty-five, my inner child feels seen.

I leave you with three messages: First, act from a place of love. Second, stay positive; despair is a dark energy that allows harm to continue. Third, raise your voice in a loving way and share the truth. Your voice matters.

Gil: Thank you, Mohsen. If you would like to support Mohsen’s peacemaking work, you can donate through the Sati Center. We are also beginning a "Peace Chaplaincy" speaker series and training program to help people engage with conflict through the capacity for love and empathy.

Mohsen: Before we close, I have one last request. Could we close with a loving-kindness prayer?

Gil: Yes, please.

Mohsen: Wherever you are, sit in a relaxing position. Pay attention to your breath.

Breathe in love. Breathe out love. Breathe in love. Breathe out love. Try to feel it in your body.

Now, join me in this prayer, starting with ourselves: May we be well. May we be truly happy. May we be released from all kinds of suffering.

Now, expanding to those joining us in this conversation: May we be well. May we be truly happy. May we be relieved from all kinds of suffering.

Expanding to our loved ones, family, and friends: May we be well. May we be truly happy. May we be relieved from all kinds of suffering.

Expanding to our neighbors and our countries: May we be well. May we be truly happy. May we be relieved from all kinds of suffering.

Expanding to the whole world, including those by whom we feel hurt: May we be well. May we be truly happy. May we be relieved from all kinds of suffering.

And finally, expanding to all sentient beings: May we be well. May we be truly happy. May we be relieved from all kinds of suffering.

Whenever you are ready, you can come back to the screen. Thank you all for being here. May this message of love, empathy, and truth be carried in your hearts out into the world.