From Inner Peace to World Peace

(The title of this blog is borrowed from Mr. Kawada’s lecture series for want of being able to come up with a more appropriate one.)

“To put the world in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must put the family in order; to put the family in order, we must cultivate our personal life; and to cultivate our personal life, we must first set our hearts right.” - Confucius

More than ever the human desire is turning towards peace and happiness and harmonious coexistence with fellow humans. And these are some of the current solutions floating in the minds of people to achieve everlasting peace - Hang Ajmal Kasabs and Afzal Gurus, Gun Down all the terrorists living on the face of the earth; bomb the militant outfits springing in different parts of the world. Ban the use of weapons, arms and ammunitions, nuclear bombs. Arrange a dialogue between the nation heads which most often prove futile; Any more ideas that you can come up with?

To my mind none of these mentioned above is a plausible solution to achieving world peace. It is far more complex and deep rooted than these simplistic ones. It requires an ideological change and a fundamental reform in the human heart because that is where the seed of hatred and war originates. Only when we are at peace with ourselves and one another, can we inch closer to the dream of creating a peaceful world. Therefore inner peace is the roadmap to achieving world peace.

To begin with, the whole idea of ‘World Peace’ sounds a distant dream, elusive and unattainable.  So it would be helpful to narrow it down to something more achievable and realistic.  Let’s look at it this way –  world peace begins at home. If each one of us makes efforts to create peace and happiness at home and then extend it to our neighborhoods, through ripple effect we will have many more happy households and soon a happier world.

Even in order to create a peaceful environment at home, we first need to be happy and peaceful within. That inner joy will radiate outward and create an amicable environment. On the contrary, if we ourselves feel gloomy and unhappy within then there is very little that we can do to enliven the environment around us.

It is natural to encounter people in our environment with whom we will have differences of opinion. But it is respect for another human life transcending and rising above any differences that will help us look beyond the differences. We need to base our actions on this fundamental principle of respect for the other person. And yet this simple act of respecting another human life is the most difficult problem before humanity.

And till we have inculcated this as a habit in our daily lives, a peaceful world will remain merely but a wish.

Kindness pays back

Our present circumstances are by no means accidental. As the Buddhist sage Nichiren Daishonin wrote, quoting a sutra: ‘If you want to understand the causes that existed in the past, look at the results as they are manifested in the present. And if you want to understand what results will be manifested in the future, look at the causes that exist in the present.’

I have been immensely encouraged and motivated by these words to pursue the path of goodness even amidst unpleasant situations. The urge to give up has crept in every now and then but these lines have served as a constant reminder to persevere and not give up.  What the above lines try to convey is very simple – that our present is a result of the causes made in the past and that our future is determined by our actions or the causes we create through our thoughts, words and actions in the present.  While I have little control over my past actions, the future is very much in my control. This is an absolutely delightful and empowering thought for me. So for the sake of a brighter future, I have to be cautious about the causes I create in my present existence.

This simple awareness has been a deterrent to many negative causes that I could have created along the way. Not only does a good cause made in the present have a positive effect in the future but the effect is manifested right here and now. We all know deep within our hearts when we go wrong. When we are able to suppress that urge to do wrong and convert it to a positive cause, the feeling is one of tremendous joy. So the present becomes happy and is a bonus for the future too so a win-win situation in all cases.

This is not to say in the least that I have never faltered but the magnitude has definitely reduced with this understanding. While we have little control over the reaction of others, our responses are very much our own choice. So the key really is changing ‘oneself’ and not waiting for others to change.  Sometimes people are unreasonable, mean and rude for no reason. And to be kind to them in return is probably the most difficult thing under the sun. It is easier to ‘give it back to them’.  Having tried and tested both, I realize the first option is the better of the two. This is not the conventional route, so don’t fall into the trap of viewing it as a sign of weakness because being good to someone who is hurting you is actually a sign of tremendous strength. To choose to remain calm while someone else is instigating to bring out the devil in you is a sign of victory and the immediate benefit one derives is a sense of triumph over ones weaker self.

It is definitely a difficult task to persevere in the act of kindness to others but I am totally convinced that kindness pays back in our lives in a way greater than we imagined. It is just a matter of when. So I will strive to be patient until then and continue my acts of kindness towards others with complete sincerity in my heart. Will you?