teachings,+Deeper+reflections+on+peace

=Deeper Reflections on Peace= (By Ian Mundi)

I belive that in a sense, the saying "fight for peace" is one of the greatest oxymorons out there, but only when used in the context of imposing peace on another country through war. Invading and forcing "peace" on the other country only breeds hate, and eventually it will all come crumbling down because of massive enmity. So when in a literal sense you "fight for peace" you end up doing very little good. But when you think about it, that is not the only way to define "fight for peace". One could mean fighting for peace in a sense of when you argue for peace, and try to teach others about it. Another way one could mean it is by doing peace by example, both as a individual, and as a country. When other people see how the way of peace works, they will follow. As a person you can act in such ways by for one not provoking arguments, helping to settle things amongst friends, or just acts of kindness. As a country, we can elect the leaders that we think would make a difference, try to spread the message of peace, and lead other countrys by example.

Another way wars are often started is through on of the most basic aspect of human nature, difference in opinion. Many people naturaly think they are right, which is a good thing to be confident in ones opinions, but when they are chalenged they can get very defencive. Such as when a social group or set of opinions are different, in some people a subconsious reasoning goes on, where they believe that them and us are different, one of us is right, one of us is wrong, and im defeinately not wrong. And one could see their mere existence as a threat to their own beliefs. Often this chain of subconsious reaoning can spark racisim, and enmity to the others especialy when the other reasoning chalenges their own beliefs. Often people dont like to have their beliefs shaken, so the guard goes up, and the racism and predujice can start war. A way to see past this sort of defencivness is to respect others opinions, and their right to have them.

Another of the many important steps to peace is begining within yourself. There is a very wise man that many of you hav probably heard of who goes by the name of Thich Nhat Hanh. He is a buhdist monk who has written many books regarding self awarness and peace. He says that one of the most basic things you can do to have peace is just to be aware of your breath, and smile. When he means smile, not a huge, fake, grin, but what is called the buhdist half-smile. Just a contentment and joy of all the wonderfull things that surround you. He also talks about breathing as a tool for inner peace, by being perfectly aware of each breath, one can feel a real peace in mindfullness.

Another one of the most key steps to peace among people is respect. So many wars and conflicts, and just arguments between friends and family are caused because quite often people have little respect for the other. Like in the family situation, arguments are caused by dissagreements with the persons involved lacking enough respect for the other to discuss it and comprimise. Respect is something that if you think about it is lacked in many aspects of our society. Another form of respect is respecting other peoples right to be different, and respecting those other aspects that make them different.

One can't really have a discussion about peace without bringing up the subject of Mahatma Ghandi. He was truly one of the greatest examples of what peace really is. Once again, the worst way to acheive peace among countries is to impose it on one another, or winning the argument by killing those who oppose you. But he lead the struggle to achieve India's independance without either of those. Ghandi was brought up a Hindu, but his temple taught more than just that, the head of the temple would teach religious tolerance, and would often switch from the Gita to the Koran as if they were the same book. During his time, India was Brittish territory. They all paid taxes to the English government, and the English controlled their economy in addition to giving the native Indians citizens inferior rights to those of the ere the same book. As an adult, Ghandi followed not just Hinduism, but Islam, Christianity, and Judeism, and hated to see any of them fight. During his time, India was Brittish citizens. For a long time, Ghandi orchestrated peaceful movements working for equal rights, but after a long time of this he realized that the only way to achieve this was independence. But even then, there was no uprising of arms, and no riots and battles. He would go through peaceful protest after peaceful protest, even when the demonstrators were being massacred by Brittish troops. After years of hard work and labor, eventually, he achieved his dream of independence, showing the world that war is not the only way, and bringing peace by example.

You know, there is a principle that just about everything in this universe goes by: nothing is permanent. This can be a bit of a depressing thought when it comes to it, because it means that peace can never stay forever. Which is true, peace isn't permanent in the world, eventually peace will break and descend into war, but there is a comforting thought in this. The fact that the same rule applies to war and anarchy, it can never be permanent, and it will eventually arise into peace again. So when we go through rough times as a country, or as a person, one can tend to be frustrated, and shake one's fists saying "why?". But realizing that times of war can never last, and war will fall in the end is an empowering thought. It can set one to be inspired to make a difference, and help the process along a bit. Through demonstrations, making our leaders aware of our opinions, and reflecting upon ones feelings and bringing peace internally. In this way one can really make a difference.

-Ian Mundi