The Buddha is most often quoted as saying that, “All of life is suffering.” And on this I tend to agree. For everywhere I gaze, it is suffering I see.
Wildfires rage; the earth’s fervent thirst not enough to tamp the flames of human greed and corruption that amplify their blaze.
The winds incite the flames; rolling waves of fetid breath. One huge exhalation and POOF, there is nothing left.
Nothing that is, but the ashes of what came before. A blanket of blackened earth scorched upon the forest floor.
Ash and bone, flesh and blood; the stuff of nightmares, the stuff of dreams. The stuff that most would rather go unseen.
“Wanting things to be different from how they are,” the wise Buddha said, “is the reason we suffer most"; why we can’t get out of our heads.
With great respect, I humbly disagree. For while this is perhaps a helpful strategy when seated beneath a Bodhi tree, the time for acceptance has long expired.
It is time for action; for revolt and revile. To gather the strength we have acquired, and bring forth all of our wrath and all of our wild.
If not for the us of now, then for the child of way back when; who believed in the promise of a life unique to them.
A privilege born on the backs of our elders, hunched and bent beneath the weight of a dream.
Centuries of ancestors who paved the way; climbed the mountains and forged the streams.
Their sights set on a better world than the one they had gleaned.
Their effort all for naught if we willfully accept the lies of the men so many were eager to elect.
Those lies, the stories, the untruths they uphold, to maintain a status that has long-since begun to mold.
Let it die, let it rot and disintegrate away.
So that we may build a new foundation upon which to lay our hopes and our dreams, and not just ours alone; for this earth we’ve inherited is not only our home.
The Buddha spoke too, of interconnection; the thread of life which knits the web of creation. Harm one, harm all, with thoughts, words, and deeds; the cycle continues until all are freed.
Freed from the illusion of our false superiority, from the notion that any living being—the very earth herself—could be another’s property.
As women have been to men, and Black persons to white, children to adults, and the billions of animals still oppressed and commodified under human might.
This need to own, control, and steer; to make decisions for others when their desires are clear, is a need born of fear, nothing more, nothing less.
A child’s worry that if not picked first, there will be nothing left.
The Buddha sat tall and still in resistance to the inequality he saw outside the marbled halls of his home. His weapon was awareness, his mind the muscle he honed.
Resistance looks different for everyone, Buddha makes that clear. Be it a march on Main St. or a whisper in another’s ear.
But resist we must, in our own unique way. For our words, thoughts, and actions are the spells that just might—once and for all—sway the scales of justice to lean our way.
And by our, I mean all—but especially those who’s suffering has been the most profound; the ones who have been forgotten and dismissed, their images forced underground.
Out of sight, out of mind; that’s what the powerful are betting on. But we are not their horses, and this race is ours to be won.
Let them try to erase the histories of Black and Indigenous persons; trans, non-binary, gender non-conforming folks, and women too.
Hide the imprisonment and torture of billions of animals behind brick walls and barbed wire fences, pasting smiles on their faces when dressed up as breakfast.
For history is loud, and history is near. They can tear down the posters, ban the books, and reward the actions of criminals and crooks.
And still we will sit, we will stand, and we will strive to bring forth again the images burned behind our eyes.
We will resist, in all the ways that we can.
Until all are free. Every human, every animal, every land.
Every human, every animal, every land.
Erica Settino (she/her) is a late-diagnosed Autistic/ADHD writer, artist, activist, and witch whose work has been published in numerous online and print literary journals, blogs and magazines. Most recently, WITCHOLOGY MAGAZINE and GREY COVEN ANTHOLOGY. She is also the author of the forthcoming children's book, MY MOMMY IS A WITCH. As well as an oracle deck creator and tarot reader.
Erica is also a presenting witch at the upcoming The Oracle Within Summit, organized by The Witch of Lupine of Hollow on 2/26-2/28.
Also a long-time yoga and meditation teacher and passionate vegan, Erica is the founder of the yoga-based non-profit organization, Karuna For Animals: Compassion In Action, Inc., which marries yoga, nature spirituality, eclectic witchcraft and activism through art.
She holds a BA in Human Growth and Development and an MFA in Creative Writing. As well as certification as a Mindful Arts Facilitator, and ongoing continuing education in Expressive Arts Therapy. She is also a consultant and educator for therapists, teachers, support staff, and families supporting neurodivergent persons. As well as neurodivergent persons themselves.
Erica lives on Long Island with her husband and their child, as well as their menagerie of rescue animals. To learn more about her and her work, please visit
erica-settino.com, karunaforanimals.com, IG - @erica_settino, and on Bluesky @autisticveganwitch.bsky.social, and @karunaforanimals.bsky.social
