Someone said last night, "You can't even have a peaceful day at work, how can you expect world peace?"
This set me off on a series of thoughts that quickly lead to the conclusion that Inner Peace is the starting point for World Peace. (I know this isn't a new concept!) Flying across the world and lecturing combatants or leaders on having a peaceful mind would be ineffective. So what can I do as a lone individual separated from the incredible daily strife of countless beings on the planet?
I can be that happy person who always has a smile for someone else. And no fake grins here. I mean that feeling of internal happiness and joy and projecting feelings of compassion and cherishing to everyone I encounter. You have to start small and spread your positive light however you can. I can brighten someone else's day and bring them a little light as well. If enough of us do this, all individually and locally, eventually it grows. It has to grow and spread! Because if it doesn't, hate and fear will continue to destroy the planet and the countless lives who call it home. And while death isn't the end, an untimely death can certainly impede your spiritual journey.
The cycle of retaliation is a vicious one. If someone wrongs you, the ego mind slips easily into a negative state (often anger) and you retaliate. What good comes of this? Once you retaliate, they need to retaliate again, and it spirals badly out of control. But if you're able to keep a peaceful mind, you can see that the one who wronged you is actually in the position of a spiritual guide. Their negative actions towards you offers you an opportunity to practice, in "real life", the precepts you meditate on. It's easy to say that it would be wonderful if suffering ended for everyone - but you need to actually live it. There's no need to make them suffer more or to increase your suffering by retaliating and continuing the cycle. I'm speaking at a personal level, but this works at a national level as well. The current retaliatory war in the Middle East is just a continuation of the cycle. Even if the US and its allies are able to kill every single member of ISIL, what have we done? Nothing. It won't stabilize the region or address the core problems that are 10s or 100s or even 1000 years old. Another group will just rise up in its place. And in accord with an escalating spiral, they'll probably be even worse than the one we just ousted. Violence begets violence.
The only way is to stop the cycle. As an individual, there's only so much you can do - but you can do much. And it all starts with finding inner peace for yourself. Become that beacon of light in your circle of friends and watch the infection spread.
"World peace must develop from inner peace. Peace is not just mere absence of violence. Peace is, I think, the manifestation of human compassion." -- Dalai Lama XIV
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