Two ongoing events, both initiatives of the most economically and militarily powerful nation on Earth, have captured the world’s attention in recent weeks. Taken side by side, the stark contrast between them highlights the endless potential of humanity to reach for the sublime while simultaneously plumbing the destructive depths of greed and delusion.

The war between the US-Israel alliance and Iran reached a bloody crescendo on 7 April before a Pakistan-brokered, two-week ceasefire and period of negotiations brought the region back from the brink. As of the publication of this editorial, Pope Leo XIV—another American wielding significant (moral) influence on the global stage—appealed to all people to search for “peace and not violence” and to “reject war . . . especially a war which many people have said is an unjust war.” (Letters from Leo)

This earnest entreaty has been widely interpreted as a rebuke of US president Donald Trump reactionary military operation, characterized by contradictory threats, statements, and actions that have seen him inexplicably demand allies and adversaries sail to ships through the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, and order a US-Israeli bombardment of the strategically important Kharg Island just before the recent ceasefire was announced.

In the lead-up to this ceasefire, Trump exhibited a perverse kind of revelry in increasingly violent and sometimes incoherent discourse. He relished at least the threat of attacking the Iran’s vital civilian infrastructure (contradicting his earlier statements about seeking to liberate the Iranian people from a despotic regime). He also expressed rage at the rapidly unravelling geopolitical mess of his own making via posts on Truth Social. One post in particular, dated 6 April, was laced with vicious sarcasm and expletives:

Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the F*****’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP. (Truth Social)

The US president’s language in his Easter address and recent press conferences showed that the Trump administration was willing to—at the very least—use the threat of war crimes and state-backed terrorism as negotiating leverage. Already civilian infrastructure such as universities and bridges have been destroyed in US and Israeli bombardments. Coupled with Trump’s now-infamous threat to wipe out Iranian “civilization,” we see a state of affairs that is unprecedented. This discourse marks a watershed moment and will likely terminally shift the way American power is perceived by allies and rivals alike.

While the world appears to have stepped back from the brink for now. The question of what this has all been for will remain politically significant in the US, where Trump is becoming increasingly unpopular, across the Middle East, as well as in Europe and Asia, and certainly in a devastated but still intact Iran, now hardened with renewed resolve and strategic leverage.

Amid all the violence and chaos, it might be difficult to conceive that the US, and humanity as whole, simultaneously reached new heights at a more cosmic level with the Artemis II mission. The successful rocket launch has led to a historic seven-hour space voyage that marks humanity’s first manned mission to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. Breathtaking images from the “dark side” of the Moon have documented this remarkable achievement.

The mission’s crew, composed of Canadian and American astronauts—a surprising and positive collaboration given how aggressively the Trump administration has behaved toward Canada—have worked together to take stunningly vivid images of the lunar terrain’s impact craters and ancient lava flows that have formed over millions of years. They were also in a unique position to witness an Earthset (as the Earth dropped below the lunar horizon) and an Earthrise, as well as a complete solar eclipse as Moon passed in front of the Sun. (NASA)

The Moon, the most prominent celestial body in our night sky, has held cultural and spiritual significance for humans societies for millennia—a beaming protagonist made all the more beautiful by her glittering attendant stars. Religious traditions have long been enamored by our lustrous satellite.

In Buddhism, the image of the Water-Moon Guanyin is revered in the Mahayana tradition as a portrayal of the bodhisattva of compassion, Avalokiteshvara (also known as Guanyin in East Asia), with the Moon as a halo. This cosmic symbolism is multilayered, expressing the Moon’s illusory nature when reflected in water: in samsara, everything in our world is ephemeral and illusory.

The Moon also reflects the potential for enlightenment inherent in all beings, famously referenced in the Chan/Zen admonition not to be distracted by a finger pointing at the Moon, but instead to gaze upon the reality of the Moon itself. The bodhisattva of compassion has the power to perceive the suffering of all sentient beings in the universe, and no doubt this power needs to be invoked during this time of great global suffering.

If the Artemis II mission represents the pinnacle of human ingenuity, knowhow, and aspiration, this destructive war, most aptly characterized by the killing of 175 children at a school in Minab, represents another extreme of hubris, greed, and delusion. These two extremes embody mankind’s potential for aspiring to the greatest highs while indulging in the most deplorable lows.

Perhaps, to reach some semblance of balance, we should look to a Middle Way: hopeful, yet sober and clear-eyed about our potential to veer toward darkness and light—sometimes at the same time.

Should we keep our eyes fixed on the humanitarian disaster that we are creating in the Middle East? Or train our gaze on the heavens and marvel at how humanity yearns for the stars and transcendence?

Perhaps the Middle Way lies in trying our best to acknowledge both: to tread a delicate balance of mindful awareness of our incredibly destructive Three Poisons while trying to nudge humanity toward peace and aspiration; in the lofty direction of the Moon, rather than the blasted soil and sand of greed and callous violence.

See more

“Contact Your Congressmen” — Pope Leo XIV Enlists Americans to End the Iran War After Suggesting Trump War Crimes (Letters from Leo)
Artemis II Flight Day 6: Crew Wraps Historic Lunar Flyby (NASA)

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