Integral Transformative Justice

Mission

The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind.
William James

Prison Dharma Network (PDN), is an international, nonsectarian, contemplative support network for prisoners, prison volunteers, and corrections professionals. PDN's mission is to provide prisoners, and those who work with them, with the most effective contemplative tools for self-transformation and rehabilitation.

We support prisoners in the practice of contemplative disciplines, with an emphasis on sitting meditation practice and the practice and study of Buddhist teachings and other wisdom traditions. We promote these paths of wakefulness and non-aggression as ideal vehicles for self-rehabilitation and personal transformation.

We believe in the power of the various mindfulness-awareness practices and body-mind disciplines of the world’s contemplative traditions to change behaviors, transform lives, and ultimately to reduce recidivism, prevent crime, and enhance community safety and well-being.

Vision

You must be the change you wish to see in the world.

Mahatma Ghandi 

Transformative Corrections

We envision correctional institutions and community corrections facilities and programs that genuinely support rehabilitation and personal transformation, making use of the proven effective methodologies and inner & outer body-mind awareness disciplines of the world wisdom traditions and contemporary psychology.

Successful Reintegration
Through the success of such programs, we envision a faster and more successful reintegration of rehabilitated and transformed prisoners into the community and a gradual shift toward more reliance on community corrections programs that keep individuals in the community supporting their families and paying taxes rather than being a tax burden to the community.

Transforming Community Leadership
We further envision a growing number of transformed prisoners and ex-prisoners emerging as community leaders and change agents working to heal and transform individuals and communities both inside and outside the walls of our correctional institutions, thus contributing significantly to the overall health and well-being of society.

Values

Give a man (woman) a fish and feed him (her) for a day. Teach him (her) how to fish and you feed him (her) for a lifetime.
Lao-tzu


We believe in the basic goodness of all human beings and in their innate potential for healing and transformation.

We favor the healing and transformational paradigm of the Restorative and Transformative models of criminal justice practice over the more punitive paradigm of Retributive Justice models.

We support all prisoners, prison volunteers and corrections professionals regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, religious persuasion, politics, or sexual orientation, according every individual the utmost respect and dignity.

We believe in spiritual, humanistic, restorative and empowering models for self-transformation and rehabilitation, preferring to “teach someone to fish vs. giving a fish alone.”