Change from Peace (2)

Many of the people with whom I closely associate perceive that the world is in a heap of trouble. It seems the status quo is on a collision course with its own unsustainable future. The current trajectory includes an economic system based on infinite growth and a population boom that won’t stop expanding. Earth is a finite object, and it is where we live. Greed, avarice, financial-only based value systems – all of it – contribute to a malfeasant “bottom-line”.

We all – my friends and I – agree that to live simply, conserve, waste not, and consume little are good things to do. We share a belief in focusing on friendships, not malls, as where we gain sustenance in our lives.

But then, there is a divergence of attitudes. Some argue that “if you’re not afraid, you obviously don’t get the magnitude of the problem”; while others maintain that a fear-based response to the problems at hand is likely to keep the dilemma going.

Since I am of the latter group, it is easiest for me to speak from and about this viewpoint. I notice that fear often leads to attack, which is part of the problematic dynamic in the first place. Recognizing a situation of the magnitude of the one facing us can also be an invitation to dig down deeper into our own psyches to collectively find a different way to go about doing things. Making decisions from a space of peace, with actions designed as kindness to all involved would be a distinctly different way of going about things. Peace as a format really does require each of us, individually, to find that place-of-peace in our own souls. Otherwise it is simply lip-service – which sounds rather like the basis for thinking that got us into this mess.

Being deeply authentic and sincere in the actions of peace can only come about when – we are peaceful. And that, it turns out, is (or can be) hard work. It requires being honest with ourselves about our own fear, loathing, hatred and condemnation and facing these places squarely inside ourselves.

The goal, here, is peace as our operating principle. Because this will most likely support acts of kindness that accommodate the wellbeing of others as well as ourselves. This dynamic can only start from within each of us as an operative space. That means that we allow any fear or anger we feel about a situation to lead us into the place where we tell the truth in a way that deeply intends no harm – to self or the other. This is the collective difference we most need to make. The recognition that to do harm to any other by acts that originate from greed, fear or anger ultimately harms the soil on which we stand.

Live. And die.

Being at Peace where We Are

I’ve been grappling with a question a beloved reader sent: how to feel peace in a world so torn by war and greed, rape of the environment and each other?

It can be a hard world. The news bears that out and drives it home. I’m not sure it’s ever been otherwise, but the sheer volume – of people; of the technologies that make destruction possible more rapidly; of the frequency we are reminded of trouble via media – has upped the ante of our experience of it all. I, too, have wondered, “what to do?” Here are a few of my thoughts.

We tend to think that the only way to provide relief from suffering is to fix something. Something outside of us that is terribly wrong. Obviously something is wrong – or else why would there be so much suffering? In our frantic search for “what to do?” we often feel ourselves worn out and drug down. Hopeless. Defeated.

And, indeed, there are things that, being changed, would reduce the suffering for many. But I’ve concluded that turning our faces to the sun for a little will not likely make matters worse for our lack of attention. Like a plant fixing nitrogen in the soil to enrich it, allowing a few rays of joy into our own lives and hearts can do more good than all the worrying we might be doing. This is not an act of denial, but rather an act of allowance. Allowing the Sunshine in. A bit of Divine Grace. Giving ourselves the nourishment we need to follow-through with the Heart’s inspiration for action.

This is not to imply a judgment against ourselves if we are feeling depressed about the state of affairs – in the world or in our lives. Rather, it is a call for attention of a different sort. To turn around and be caring for the suffering we, ourselves, hold is a bigger step than we realize. If we wait to attend to our own Precious Hearts until after the world is cleaned up, we may miss a whole lot of life. A lifetime spent in the dregs has not likely helped the state of the world, either. If there is a hidden belief that we are not allowed to feel Joy while others suffer, it is a consignment to hell - because when will that be, exactly?

Try this: face that place inside that is suffering. Go there. Imagine putting your arms around her/him. Say “I care.” Pause. Just hold you for a while, pouring the caring of your heart into this place of suffering. Then – imagine allowing a little space in which you open in genuine curiosity. Ask: “What do you need?” Keep it personal. Don’t set yourself up for failure by making your own happiness dependent on the state of the world or other people’s behavior. This is hopeless. Rather, keep it at the level of self-honesty – for self. This is not as selfish as it may sound, as we’ll see in a moment.

Finally, simply invite Divine Grace – or wisdom – in. Imagine handing the inner turmoil over to a Benevolent One. Be receptive to help – in whatever form and surprise it may take. Stay receptive as ideas come to you, and then stay receptive for a while longer to feel yourself deeply nourished. Whatever you feel called to do will then be tapped into a well of nurturance that you can return to again and again – independent of outcomes or reactions from the outside world.

What I find is that to be of an open Heart within myself, living in an internal environment that is kind, I have the energy to “show up” where I’m needed. Depressed? Not so much.

Being kind to ourselves is under-rated – and not a substitute for caring for the world. It is, rather, at the very core of it!

www.maryanniyer.com
September, 2011