Inner Wisdom
Harboring hostilities, even the
Seeking Peace
by Christina Grant, PhD
Most everyone I know feels drawn
to the idea of peace – inner
peace, a peaceful home, a
peaceful country, a peaceful
world. But what does it take to
have it? As we all know, peace
isn’t an easy goal.
Wars and invasions have pre-
vailed in the world throughout his-
tory. In order for this to be the case,
I think the majority of people who
live on the planet are at war within
themselves. How could it be any
other way?
If we have mini-wars within us,
what do we do about them? This
is an important question for all suc-
cessful peacemakers. If you be-
lieve, like I do, that inner conflict
ultimately leads to wars in the
world, then doing our own inner
housekeeping is the most powerful
way we can contribute to plane-
tary peace.
The noble goal of seeking a
more peaceful environment in-
cludes fostering serenity and har-
mony in our innermost selves. If
each of us maintained our own
serenity, we would never consider
invading or harming another per-
son or “tribe.” It wouldn’t even oc-
cur to us.
28 A Distinctive style
lack of awareness that each per-
tiny ones we pretend we don’t
have, creates an ideal environ-
ment for conflict. Even the annoy-
ances we feel toward others – their
attitudes or opposing beliefs, their
mannerisms and expressions, the
things they might say or do, the
way they drive – have the opposite
effect of what most of us really
want, which is peace.
So what would it look like to
cultivate an inner sense of peace
in a way that promotes external
peace? We would begin by taking
responsibility for our feelings. We
are a society addicted to blaming
others for our own unwanted cir-
cumstances. We wouldn’t do this
anymore. Instead, we would work
through disturbing thoughts and
emotions, refusing to fling them out
into the world the way we some-
times do. Instead of taking oppor-
tunities to express our hostilities to-
ward others, we would express
them constructively (exercise, jour-
naling, singing, dancing, releasing
the sounds of hostility in healing
ways). And we might even think
about cultivating compassion and
understanding for our own suffer-
ing.
“If we could read the secret his-
tory of our enemies, we should find
in each man’s life sorrow and suf-
fering enough to disarm all hostil-
ity.”
This quote by Henry Wordsworth
Longfellow appears to reveal our
son’s pain is not unlike our own
pain. When we can see that the
person who just drove past us like
a maniac, or our rude co-worker,
or our angry partner is actually in
some sort of pain (otherwise there
wouldn’t be the aggression) then
we can begin to understand, “Ah,
this person is suffering. It is not
about me. Perhaps the best thing I
can do in this moment is offer them
compassion, for their suffering is not
unlike my own.”
What people need most of all
is compassion for their ignorance
and the way they inadvertently
hurt others.
So maybe you will join me on a
quest for peace. But let’s not just
talk about it or march for it or won-
der why it hasn’t happened yet.
Let’s actually cultivate it within our-
selves. In this way no matter what
happens in our world we can know
our own role has been to actively
promote peace.
Dr. Christina Grant is a holistic healer
and spiritual counselor who works in per-
son and by phone. She has helped hun-
dreds of people attain physical, mental,
emotional and spiritual well-being
through personal transformation. Her
writing is published nationwide. She is
co-author of Eight Minute Muse and is
completing a book with a fresh perspective
on women’s health.
www.christinagrant.com