It is yet another 21st of September for humanity to celebrate peace. But the concept of peace itself means different thing to different people. So the question today is what is peace to you? Is peace to you tied to fast cars, beautiful mansions, or billion dollar account? Is peace to you tied to that academic certification, professional certification, or career accomplishment? Is peace to you tied to friends and family support, respect, or sense of belonging? Is peace to you tied to your physique, level of intelligence or societal approval? Is peace to you tied to religion, ethnicity, or country?

Well, there are countless indices to measuring and understanding peace at individual and group levels in our contemporary world. In the group context, to some, peace is most often attached to the absence of war, while to others it is the presence of development, democracy, human right and gender equality. But our focus in this article is peace at the individual level which is the bedrock for family, communal, national and international peace. Before I proceed, let’s be guided by the views of some of the greatest thinkers in the world about peace:

Dalai Lama has this to say about peace “Although attempting to bring about world peace through the internal transformation of individuals is difficult, it is the only way. . . . Peace must first be developed within an individual. And I believe that love, compassion, and altruism are the fundamental basis for peace. Once these qualities are developed within an individual, he or she is then able to create an atmosphere of peace and harmony. This atmosphere can be expanded and extended from the individual to his family, from the family to the community and eventually to the whole world.”

The greatest non-violent teacher, M.K. Gandhi thought us that “nonviolence is a weapon of the strong. . . . The law of love will work, just as the law of gravitation will work, whether we accept it or not. . . . The more I work at this law the more I feel the delight in life, the delight in the scheme of the universe. It gives me a peace and a meaning of the mysteries of nature that I have no power to describe.”

Popularly regarded as the father of the academic discipline of peace and conflict studies, Johan Galtung posit that “if we begin with the need to survive, we immediately see that peace is a primary requirement of the human condition itself.”

Albert Einstein, one of the greatest philosophers in history also opined that “the importance of securing international peace was recognized by the really great men of former generations. But the technical advances of our times have turned this ethical postulate into a matter of life and death for civilized mankind today, and made the taking of an active part in the solution to the problem of peace a moral duty which no conscientious man can shirk.”

From the accounts of the great thinkers above, it is evident that world peace can only be achieved from the individual level. This informs the theme of this year’s International Day of Peace: Together for Peace: Respect, Safety and Dignity for all. You cannot give respect, ensure safety and dignity for all when you do not have inner peace. The global call for us today is to acknowledge the sufferings of millions of refugees and internally displaced persons around the world and show love, provide safe haven and respect their human dignity. This is the whole essence of humanity: to reach out to those in need, those in pains, those in despair, those suffering from human created wars and natural disasters either in the Middle East, Asia, Africa, Europe or in the Western Hemisphere. You can get comfortable with that dream job, car, house and family and play the “I don’t care attitude” but remember that when the evil of war is unleashed on humanity, posterity will judge you for keeping quiet, for not taking any action to ensure peace. Remember that you can’t stay peacefully in that big mansion when Nigeria is at war. Remember that we will all be casualties when Kim Jong Un decides to nuke America and Donald trump responds with mutual assured destruction. Now is the time to get busy for peace. now is the time to come out of our comfort zones to speak and act with one voice towards a better world. The suffering of one is the suffering of all.

Personal peace therefore is beyond having that dream car, that dream husband, that dream money, that dream family, that dream house, that dream job, that dream business, that dream career, that dream friend or that dream position. Peace is an inner beauty that is not tied to any physical material possession or metaphysical phenomena. It is a personal conviction of happiness irrespective of what is happening in and around you. This is the state at which every human being is said to be at peace. So, do not allow your peace to be determined by material things or abstract ideas, but be transformed by the renewing of your spirit feeling good and happy at all times in all situations.

Radiate your inner peace to the world, I will radiate mine, and together we will make the world a peaceful place.

Let’s all be slaves to the cause of peace!

Happy International Day of Peace!

Source: https://thinkdiplomacy./2017/09/21/celebrating-international-day-of-peace-what-is-peace-to-you/