Yesterday was an exceptionally beautiful day here in Washington, D.C.: mild temperatures, bright sunshine, balmy breezes—it was a perfect day for . . . a bake sale.
When we arrived at our No Kings Day “visibility” spot on Connecticut Avenue, we were greeted by a group of kids excitedly promoting their bake sale to raise money for their local public school.
And they were cleverly leveraging the fact that it was No Kings Day with their enthusiastic chants to draw attention to their table: “Support education, not deportation! Support D.C. by supporting public schools! No kings—Yes: treats! No kings—Yes: treats! No kings—Yes: treats!”
They were awesome.
We stood by the curb and waved our flags and signs, motorists honked to express their support as they drove by, and one of the bake sale moms was kind enough to come over and offer us some free lemonade.
Thirty minutes later, we hopped on the Metro to head down to the main rally near the Capital Building, which was overflowing with people—many in an assortment of costumes—carrying all manner of signs, some of which were exceptionally witty.
According to Leah Greenberg, co-founder of Indivisible, a progressive organization that acts as the main organizer of the “No Kings” marches,
But is there anything less yogic than participating in a political protest, peaceful or otherwise? After all, aren’t yogis supposed to be above politics?
And one could easily get the idea from yoga’s traditional wisdom literature that a country ruled by an all-powerful monarch is consistent with yoga philosophy’s conception of social order aligned with sacred order.
Is it true?
Perhaps under the right circumstances. Certainly not under the current circumstances.
Here’s how the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam describes the responsibilities of a monarch:
If the wanna-be king’s “prescribed duty” is to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, then it’s safe to say that the current circumstances aren’t right.
Here’s how the same text describes life under the rule of an ideal monarch:
In every instance to be found in yoga’s traditional wisdom literature, a monarch’s success is measured by the flourishing of nature and the well-being of every living being in their realm.
What happens when a monarch turns out to be a cruel, selfish, egomaniacal low-life? We find one answer in the story of King Vena, who ascended to the throne in spite of a history of disreputable behavior:
Sound familiar?
The sages tried to flatter and then reason with Vena, but their attempts were all for naught. In the end, they determined that Vena needed to be removed from office for the benefit of the general mass of people.
And so he was.
By the example of the sages, we can see that calling for the removal of a chief executive who flouts the law he’s sworn to uphold is in keeping with the teachings of yoga wisdom.
We don’t have a final independent tally yet, but organizers estimate that close to 7 million people across thousands of rallies nationwide turned out for yesterday’s No King’s Day, including 200,000 people here in Washington D.C.
Our work is just beginning, though. We’re still a long way from a government that gives “all protection to those who are faithful in their prescribed duty,” so organizers and participants will continue to mobilize for future events.
I just hope that, whatever future events are planned, they’re scheduled to be on the same day that Oyster-Adams Bilingual School is having a bake sale. Thanks to those kids, I have a new slogan to chant at the next rally: “No kings — Yes: treats!”
I may even start chanting it in our kitchen.
Wishing you all good fortune,
– Hari-k