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World peace is fragile – it’s no joke but we can all help

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World peace is on a knife edge. The Secretary General of NATO has described the current state of affairs as “the most dangerous point in a generation“. That’s alarming, but it certainly isn’t hopeless.

World leaders need a hand, and it’s down to you and me, kidworld peace children

When things are this volatile, we look to the world’s national leaders for solutions. Like children, we turn to mum and dad to sort out the mess we have made. But the leaders are human beings, too. They have weaknesses as well as strengths, as do we. Their positions of power and authority come not from some divine right but from the people who place them there, whether by election or by default. From that point alone, we all bear some responsibility for world peace. Looking more deeply, there is the question of collective consciousness, and that’s where we really can do something effective.

Consciousness is the key to world peace

In spite of all the time and energy national leaders put into their work, we’re still in trouble. Why? Because humanity’s consciousness as a whole is immature. We’re still in kindergarten. Living with the attitude “what’s in it for me and my friends?” will no longer hack it. Looking after number one does not create stability. A touch of selflessness and kindness, on the other hand, can cure a great deal.

A more altruistic society is essential

Governments know this but struggle because they reflect the consciousness of the country they represent. Altruism may be an ideal but it is impossible for a nation even to move in that direction if its millions of citizens have no taste for it. But we can choose to be kinder and more compassionate. We can choose to live ethically. Many do so already but it is an attitude that needs to become mainstream rather than a niche fashion. Then a more altruistic society becomes possible and world peace more than a pipe dream.

The importance of loving kindness in society is examined more deeply in the book Awakening Heart: The Blissful Path to Self Realisation

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Chaos: How using the breath can rescue us and restore stability

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Chaos seems to be everywhere today. Humanity is very adept at creating disorder. It gets itself into a fine mess and then makes the mess worse. The most powerful nation on Earth elected to the most powerful position on Earth a man whose mission is, apparently, to create chaos. British prime ministers are far from exempt, as recent events show. From everywhere, reports of human tragedy, much caused by other people, continually reach our eyes and ears.

chaos breath

News of chaos creates inner disturbance

Reading about disturbing events, or watching or listening to reports about them, can very easily upset our equilibrium. Unless we have a very thick skin, we cannot completely isolate ourselves from what is going on in the world. Compassion for the suffering others are enduring is natural and right. But chaos can stir up all manner of other feelings, too. We may feel horror, indignation, anger and disgust. Without denying those feelings, we must find a way to restore our inner stability.

Breathe in calmness and let go of chaos

Breathing is one of the simplest remedies. When we are agitated, the breath tends to become shallow and a little faster. Tension in the abdominal muscles prevents deeper inhalation and so the chest does most of the work. This makes us feel ill at ease. Our qi or energy dissipates as the stress response works through the body. Chaos is inside as well as out. (See the previous post for discussion on inside and outside.)

Fortunately, we can reverse this. By training ourselves to breathe more slowly and a little more deeply, we can initiate a calming response.

A simple technique

Here is a simple technique. There are others but this is delightfully easy and works quickly.

  1. Place one hand flat on your abdomen at the navel then move it down about an inch (a couple of centimetres) and rest the other hand on top – palm to back of hand.
  2. Breathe gently, feeling the rise and fall through your hands. If your abdomen pushes against your hands as you inhale, this is good – it means your diaphragm is helping to draw air into the bottom of the lungs.
  3. As you inhale, imagine drawing in calmness from your surroundings. As you exhale, let go of chaos. Imagine it being absorbed into the earth.

If we practise this for a minute or two, and maybe two or three times a day, we will soon notice that the way we breathe affects how we feel. Events in the big wide world may still continue but inside chaos will quickly subside.

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Light lies ahead – we just have to see it

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Light is a real tonic, isn’t it, especially as now when the days are short and often dark? The world of humanity seems to be in something of a dark place at the moment. We need some light, some joy and something to look forward to.

Light up an ostrich today!

Ostriches are extraordinary birds. They are reputed (wrongly) to hide their heads in the sand when trouble approaches.light ostrich

I know a number of people, and you probably do, too, who refuse to read newspapers or watch or listen to news on television or radio. There is merit in that because what we are served up as a picture of reality in the media largely focuses on what is wrong. Apart from being negative in nature, there is the added factor of news manipulation, so we don’t even know if it is correct anyway.

So we can probably agree that news bulletins are generally neither very bright nor uplifting. But if we only want good news or none, and choose to ignore the existence of human suffering, maybe we too have become an ostrich.

We become what we digest – in the mind as well as the body

The old adage is “we are what we eat”. We know that what we take in as food and drink affects the body. It’s not just what we swallow, either. What we breathe affects us, as statistics on poor air quality and health clearly show.

But in many respects, the mind is more important than the body because it dictates everything we say or do. It is responsible for everything we think and all that we make of our world. The mind largely governs our feelings and our moods – it controls our life. It needs light.

The media is an aspect of our environment

Environment is much more than our physical surroundings. Our mental environment is just as important. If we keep taking in information that is predominantly negative, there is a danger that we could become gloomy, too. At the very least, it will sap our energy.

Positive people carriers of light?

Positive people tend to uplift us. They create a light environment. They may be a pain at times, too, but usually only because their lightness and cheerfulness accentuate our shadows.

light aheadEveryone has light within them. The difference between a positive person and a negative one is how that light manifests. The former carries light and passes it on. The latter chooses not to.

There is more light than dark

The world is not Trump, Putin, Brexit, the NHS or anything else. The world is as we are – as we perceive it. If we look around, there is far more goodness being done by ordinary people than there is bad. By making a habit of seeing that, we create a positive mental environment for ourselves which affects those around us. Our words and behaviour reflect increasing amounts of light. Isn’t that why we are here? Happy new year!

More on social responsibility and the need for love in society can be found in Awakening Heart: The Blissful Path to Self-Realisation. If you fancy a long read, I recommend Matthieu Ricard’s Altruism.

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Violence can never be the answer

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Violence is never the answer to any problem. It is the province of the insane. High profile cases such as the Pulse attack in Orlando earlier this week and the murder of UK Member of Parliament Jo Cox yesterday hit the headlines and make us think how awful such things are. They are indeed terrible and it is almost impossible to imagine the grief and impact on the lives of the loved ones of the victims. Shamelessly cruel events happen all the time across the globe. We can and do blame the perpetrators because the human trait is to blame someone when things go wrong. But violence is a symptom of general insanity, a sickness shared by the whole human race. Isis is committing genocide, according to the UN. Unthinkable. But have we stopped it? Do we even know how to stop it? It seems not.

Violence starts in the mind

We normally associate violence with harmful actions and angry words. But before those words and actions, there are thoughts. The process may happen very quickly, so we may say someone acted without thinking. There have to be thoughts, though. Arms and legs don’t move by themselves. The mouth doesn’t enunciate without brain activity.  It all starts in the mind.

Where do the violent thoughts come from? A psychologist will be able to identify a million and one causes. However complex, there is always the underlying cause of separatism. With a belief that we are different, we see the other person (or race) as less human than we are, or not human at all.

Can there be justified violence?

If we are attacked, it may be necessary to use force to defend ourselves. Even so, most would agree that force is a last resort. A true martial artist would rather walk away from trouble than use his or her fighting skills. A military general might argue the benefits of a preemptive strike to prevent an attack. By and large, however, violence is a recipe for trouble and merely sows the seeds for retaliation at a later date.non violence gandhi

Non-violence

Mahatma Gandhi proved that non-violence can achieve enormous results. Corporal punishment of children, once considered essential, is now generally regarded as primitive, cruel and unnecessary, in the west at least. Not all societies follow that view and there are many countries where barbaric cruelty is still meted out, and not only to children. In the long run, do we want our communities to be run on the basis of fear? Or is it better to have kindness and mutual respect? If it is the latter, the place we have to start with is ourselves.

 

The importance of love in the conduct of business and politics is developed in my second book Awakening Heart: The Blissful Path to Self-Realisation

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  1. Light lies ahead – we just have to see it
  2. World peace is fragile – it’s no joke but we can all help
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  4. Chaos: How using the breath can rescue us and restore stability

Christmas is nowhere to be found

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Christmas, if we look for it, cannot be found. Years ago, I kept looking for Christmas. Then I realised it is intangible and has no form. This is the beauty of Zen: when we look for something, it isn’t there. Everything is wonderfully empty.

Christmas nowhere
Everything is empty

The Zen Diarist’s pen is taking a break until the new year. Enjoy yours!

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