{"id":8935,"date":"2020-06-12T16:52:00","date_gmt":"2020-06-12T23:52:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.elizabethbader.com\/elizabethbadersblog\/?p=8935"},"modified":"2022-07-07T08:43:09","modified_gmt":"2022-07-07T15:43:09","slug":"spirituality-and-law-a-lawyers-path","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.elizabethbader.com\/elizabethbadersblog\/spirituality-and-law-a-lawyers-path\/","title":{"rendered":"Spirituality and Law: A Lawyer&#8217;s Path II"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"133\" height=\"175\" src=\"https:\/\/www.elizabethbader.com\/elizabethbadersblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/E_Bader49711-e13574169642544.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1444\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.elizabethbader.com\/elizabethbadersblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/E_Bader49711-e13574169642544.jpg 133w, https:\/\/www.elizabethbader.com\/elizabethbadersblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/E_Bader49711-e13574169642544-114x150.jpg 114w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 133px) 100vw, 133px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p> This is an excerpt from a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanbar.org\/products\/inv\/book\/338035232\/\">book published by the American Bar Association<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanbar.org\/products\/inv\/book\/338035232\/\">about lawyer well-being<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In <a href=\"https:\/\/www.elizabethbader.com\/elizabethbadersblog\/law-and-spirituality-a-lawyers-path\/\">an earlier excerpt<\/a>,  I pointed out that <em>the practice of law inevitably involves existential and spiritual dilemmas. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here, the benefits and dangers of meditation or others forms of spiritual practice for lawyers are discussed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>Elizabeth Bader, Lawyering as a Spiritual Path, The Importance of Balance and Reflection<\/p><p>An Excerpt from Chapter 2 in: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanbar.org\/products\/inv\/book\/338035232\/\">The Best Lawyer You Can Be: A Guide to Physical, Mental, Emotional, and Spiritual Wellness, <\/a>(American Bar Assn, 2018) Edited with an introduction by Stewart Levine.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><em><strong>A Life of Balance?<\/strong><\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\">The crucial issue [is], then, how to maintain one\u2019s positive and vital connection to life and to others while serving in a role where one must consistently deal with the worst in human nature, and, sometimes, in oneself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As sages throughout the ages have\ncounseled us, the answer is to seek a life where the positive parts of life\ncontinually renew and refresh us. <em>Balance<\/em>\nis not only necessary for mental health, as many have argued; but also for a\nlife which honestly confronts but is not destroyed by spiritual challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><em><strong>\u201cStuck On<\/strong> <\/em><strong>ON\u201d<\/strong><em>?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately balance is impossible\nunless we re-evaluate some of the goals and values widely shared by those in\nthe profession. This is because there is actually a physiological limit to our\ncapacity to shift on demand into relaxation when our real goal is \u00ad\u00adto \u201cwin,\u201d\nto be \u201cthe best,\u201d or to \u201csucceed.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lawyering and competition arouse\nthe sympathetic nervous system, the part of the nervous system that governs\nfight and flight and self-protective responses. If the nervous system is\nstimulated continually over a long period of time, we become more or less\npermanently stuck in a state of arousal and stress.&nbsp;&nbsp; We become \u201cstuck on ON,\u201d \u00ad\u00ad\u00adas some experts\nhave put it.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Stated in spiritual terms, the\nnotion that with more and more effort, we will become the \u201cbest\u201d or the\n\u201cwinner\u201d in life\u2019s contests is an illusion.&nbsp;\nIf we become \u201cstuck on ON,\u201d it is difficult to engage in balanced\nstrategical thinking and action \u2013 the only kind that is truly effective.&nbsp; More importantly, it also leads to a life of\nunhappiness. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>The Importance of Spiritual and Reflective Practices<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The inner strength to remain balanced in the midst of conflict requires the inner power to act according to our sense of truth regardless of external pressures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;This inner power is what the ancient Chinese called <em>te, <\/em>a word which means both virtue and power. Our <em>te <\/em>will not be there when we need it unless we have cultivated it advance. For this, an ongoing, committed, reflective, and spiritual practice is necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Meditation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The sublime practice of meditation can bring balance by focusing us on the present moment in a compassionate, nonjudgmental way. It also brings balance by soothing nervous system arousal. However, there are some caveats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Firstly, for some people, especially those who have experienced trauma, meditation may result in serious impairment or even breakdown. The work of Willoughby Britton at Brown University is beginning to bring this problem to light with regard to mindfulness meditation.<a href=\"#_edn1\"><sup>[i]<\/sup><\/a> This issue has also been recognized by some leaders in the meditation and mindfulness community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also, in our secular society, there is a tendency to divorce mindfulness meditation from its roots as a spiritual practice. It then becomes McMindfulness, merely a therapeutic self-help technique. Self-help techniques may, of course, be useful. But if we use them to avoid deeper issues, in the long run they are counterproductive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When one returns mindfulness and other types of meditation to their ancient, deeper roots, one comes again to the importance of being present, but also the importance of knowing oneself and acting with integrity in the midst of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"#_ednref1\">[i]<\/a> On Willoughby Britton\u2019s work, see Tomas Rocha, \u201cThe Dark Knight of the Soul,\u201d in <em>The Atlantic<\/em>, available at <a href=\"about:blank\">http:\/\/www.theatlantic.com\/health\/archive\/2014\/06\/the-dark-knight-of-the-souls\/372766\/<\/a> (June 24, 2014).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><em><strong>Still to Come<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the last part of this chapter, which will be published here in a last excerpt, additional spiritual\/psychological practices are discussed, including  reflective inquiry.  The dangers of excessive ambition are emphasized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The full chapter can also be found <a href=\"https:\/\/www.elizabethbader.com\/elizabethbadersblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lawyering-as-a-Spiritual-Path.pdf\">here.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<!--themify_builder_content-->\n<div id=\"themify_builder_content-8935\" data-postid=\"8935\" class=\"themify_builder_content themify_builder_content-8935 themify_builder tf_clear\">\n    <\/div>\n<!--\/themify_builder_content-->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An excerpt from Elizabeth&#8217;s chapter on Spirituality and Law in a book published by the American Bar Association.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":8531,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[116,117,78],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8935","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-law-and-spirituality","category-lawyers-and-spirituality","category-understanding-spirituality","has-post-title","has-post-date","has-post-category","has-post-tag","has-post-comment","has-post-author",""],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Spirituality and Law: A Lawyer&#039;s Path II<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Elizabeth Bader&#039;s Blog This post about law and spirituality contains an excerpt from a chapter on this subject in a book from the American Bar Association.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, 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