So, I ran across the following article on CNN today:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/02/25/colorado.supermax.silverstein.solitary/index.html?hpt=C2
It tells the story of Tommy Silverstein ("Terrible Tommy") who is currently in solitary confinement in a Colorado prison. For 27 years, he has been cut off from any form of human contact, longer than any other prisoner in the federal prison system. He initially went to jail for armed robbery, for which he received a sentence of 15 years in 1975. Since he entered the prison system, he was charged with 4 murders, one of which was overturned. All of these took place in prison. The most recent was in 1983, when he killed a prison guard who was supposedly harassing him. Ever since, he has had zero human contact, except for a random glimpse of a guard's hand through the food slot.
Now, ordinarily I would just write a story like this off as a sad account of somebody who couldn't handle the poisons of Samsara. While I'd never condone the actions of these inmates, I feel great compassion for them, because their suffering is greater than most of us will ever experience...and for those with a life sentence or a death sentence, the negative karma that led them to a prison cell will follow them into their next life, which will probably be in one of the lower realms. They have very little chance of generating merit in this lifetime, and will continue in the seemingly endless cycle of death and rebirth.
But I noticed something intriguing about Silverstein. The CNN article mentioned that he spends his time doing yoga and meditating. He also does a great deal of art and poetry, as do a lot of prisoners. I decided to look a little further into the life of Tommy Silverstein. I ran a google search and found a blog that included a collection of his drawings and paintings. I was amazed to find that, along with some very sad expressions of his loneliness, some of the most beautiful drawings of many Enlightened Tibetan Buddhist masters. Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Jamang Khyentse Chokyi Lodro, Dudjom Rinpoche, etc. I was shocked and rather inspired. A man who has generated enough terrible karma to spend lifetimes in the hell realms finding the Dharma and using decades in prison to meditate. That's truly extraordinary.
I know many of you may be thinking that he is absolutely beyond hope. This man obviously has a LOT of terrible karma following him. He's a murderer and a thief. He brutally murdered 4 people, used heroin for years, and committed plenty of other crimes. But think about it for a moment...Jetsun Milarepa murdered 35 people. He learned and practiced black magic to harm other people for his own benefit and vengeance. But he found the Dharma, and through deep, devoted practice, attained Enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings. Who are we to deny the inherent Buddha nature of "Terrible Tommy?" If he is given the Dharma, and if he practices it as diligently as he possibly can during his time left in prison (his theoretical date of release is in 2095), he DOES have the ability to end the cycle of death and rebirth and liberate himself.
His living situation is indeed unfair. He shows extreme remorse for his actions, undoubtedly softened through the Dharma, and has spent almost 3 decades without any human contact. Should he not be allowed to re-enter the general prison community? Nobody is arguing that he should be set free. Law is law and karma is karma. But he should be able to join the general prison community.
But regardless of where he serves the rest of his sentence...and life...the Dharma is truly the only hope that he has. So here is my recommendation:
If you have any spare Dharma books, or if you would be able to write a letter or offer words of wisdom, SEND THEM! Use this as an opportunity to offer compassion to somebody who can truly use it. This is a man who had the good fortune of being exposed to the teachings. Unfortunately, he neglected the blessing of being born into a precious human life. But it's never too late to practice, which is all he can do now.
You can contact Tommy directly at:
Tommy Silverstein 2-13-030-L
14634-116 USP Max
Box 8500
Florence, CO 81226
Also, an organization that focuses on fair treatment of prisoners says, "If you do decide to write Tommy, feel free to use our PO Box for your address. Just be sure you give us your real address so we can forward his letters to you...PO Box 285;Blue River, Wi 53518" (from the blog that I mention below) So, if you don't want him to have your address, you can contact the organization and they will forward anything he sends in response.
For some reason, I feel like this is a very important thing to do. This is all coming up on a very interesting day for me. It's nothing huge, but about a week ago, I was at Blockbuster, and really wanted to watch a Dharma-based film. I couldn't find anything, and remembered the film that was made about Milarepa a few years ago. I went up to the counter and asked about it, knowing very well they would probably never have it. Turns out they could send it to me. So I decided to go ahead and do it. I got it and watched it last night. The film itself was alright. But I was frustrated by the fact that it ended too soon. Before he even met Marpa. But regardless, Milarepa has been on my mind all day. Then this article popped up on CNN, and I happened to see the part about meditating, and decided to look this guy up online. I ALSO just found out today that Milarepa's anniversary is on Saturday.
More info on Tommy Silverstein, as well as some of his art, can be seen at the following blogs:
http://tommysilverstein.blogspot.com/
http://artofsilverstein.blogspot.com/2010_01_01_archive.html
Tashi Delek!
-Jampa
"How senseless to disregard one's life by fighting foes who are but frail flowers. How foolish to spend your lifetime without meaning when a precious human body is so rare a gift."
-Jetsun Milarepa
