I cannot make peace because I am peace. Peace is not made, it is awakened.
How did Jesus bring peace to the world? He did not preach an ideology, or organize a protest movement. "He breathed on them and said, receive the Holy Spirit." True peace is a living breath, a radiant energy. It overflows from the Being deep in the silent core of our hearts. Tense angry people don't need our politics or our protest: they need our presence.
Peace is not anti-war. Anti doesn't work. Being against Israel will not bring justice to Palestinians. Being against Islam will not make Christians safe. Being against the Right will not make the Left more convincing. Being against the rich will not prosper the poor. Being anti-war will not bring peace. Anti only polarizes our energy and fuels our conflict.
I don't need to be for or against anybody. I need to transform my own Being so that I can breathe love, I need to expand my own awareness so that I can embrace both side of the conflict.
My way to peace is not marching in the streets, but diving into the heart's silence, where a new kind of energy awakens. Peace begins when the inner power of shakti is ignited, releasing a fountain of divine light. Then, when my own cup runs over, I can pour peace into the world.
It matters not whether I call this energy agape, Christ's forgiveness; metta, Buddha's compassion; prema, Krishna's grace. The name of love doesn't matter. Love is not an ideology or a political point of view. Love is the power of creation. Love enlightens consciousness, infuses the nervous system, and streams into the world. The power of this all-embracing love is very subtle, because it is not a doing, it is a being.
When a mother watches over children in the sandbox, she doesn't take sides when they fight. She doesn't call one child good and the other child evil. She enfolds them both in her love, patiently waiting, whispering, "Fight as long as you must. When you're finished, I will make you lunch." If we want peace in our community, we must develop the compassionate neutrality of a mother.
When the star beings gaze upon humanity on earth, upon our endless wars and political disputes, they are not for or against, and they don't interfere. They watch with all-encompassing wisdom, and wait for us to grow up. If we want peace on earth, we must develop the patient awareness of a star being.
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