What Does Peace Mean to You?
What does “peace” mean to you?
I was asked this question recently and it sparked a string of thoughts.
My first thought was that “peace” is the opposite of “war.” I suspect that my initial reaction is a common one because we see and hear about war so often in our mainstream media. Even our social media is flooded with images, discussions, and (ironically) arguments about current wars.
In my subsequent thoughts, I began to realize that peace — and how to achieve it — isn’t just about ending our wars. Unfortunately, wars are a fact of life and will always be, as long as there are people in the world who want to dominate others. If I focus on that fact, I will find myself in despair over this seemingly intractable problem. It would take a miracle to solve it!
What I chose to focus on instead is how to find peace for myself, regardless of the chaos that is going on all around me.
I’m fortunate that there are no wars happening in my back yard. There is also an absence of war in my city, in my neighborhood, and in my home. In fact, when I consider all the ways in which my life contains an absence of war, I realize how much peace I already have.
Perhaps I am just very lucky and my situation is unique, but I don’t think so. Despite the fact that actual wars that are taking place the world over, the vast majority of people I know have never experienced an actual war up close and personal. Why is it, then, that so many of us feel “at war” and spend our lives longing for peace?
I’m not talking about peace for those actually experiencing war, or peace for our world in general. I’m talking about peace for those of us who do not have literal wars in our back yards. Even without war at our doorstep, we retain an anxiety that feels as if we are at war.
Why does peace feel so elusive?
The answer, I believe, lies in a definition of peace that I found in the Merriam-Webster dictionary. One entry defined peace as “freedom from disquieting or oppressive thoughts or emotions.” This definition, I believe, holds the key to finding peace.
We find peace by finding it within ourselves.
The concept of peace is a rather broad subject and there’s undoubtedly much more that could be said about it. As I’ve grown more adept at finding peace for myself, however, I’m convinced that going inward is the first step toward finding peace in every sense of the word.
When we go inward to try to quiet our thoughts, it’s very difficult at first. We’re met with a barrage of feelings and emotions that may seem overwhelming if we’ve never faced them head on before. Our gut reaction is to blame someone or something else for our woes. We will do just about anything to prevent us from having to face the truth of ourselves.
Difficult though it may be, I’ve not yet uncovered any other way to truly find peace except to take on this treacherous journey inward. I don’t claim to be an expert on the subject and I’m willing to change my stance if someone can give me a better (aka easier!) solution.
What I currently perceive is that after we go inward and find peace within ourselves, we can then carry this peace outward to our family, friends, and communities. Though the mechanism seems complex to me, something about having our own inner peace brings more “harmony in personal relations” (another definition of peace from the source I referenced above).
As the harmony in our personal relations increases, this sense of peace spreads. It moves outward from our homes and families and spreads to our friends and communities. Eventually, if we truly master this movement of peace from our hearts to the spaces outside of ourselves, we will be able to achieve true peace throughout our world.
So, quite surprisingly, I realized that solving the problem of peace for myself is the key to solving it for the entire world. I am, of course, not the first person to think so and though, again, I’m not an expert on the subject, I am optimistic enough to believe that it’s worth a try.
Does my proposition seem like a pipe dream?
Perhaps. But even if we can’t bring peace to the entire world, why not try to take it as far as we can? The only reason not to try is that going inward and finding peace is difficult. I wouldn’t fault you for not trying, actually. Most people don’t.
But for those of us who are willing, let’s give it our best shot. Let us go inward and find the path to our own peace. No matter what peace means to you, when you go inward, the “right” answer awaits. We may or may not solve the problem of world peace, but finding peace within ourselves will be its own kind of miracle.
