Choosing a Path of Peace

Peace as a concept is underrated. It is often defined by war—specifically, the absence of war. But peace is so much more. Peace is not just the absence of something but a significant presence. Peace doesn’t require the absence of conflict; it requires that it is handled respectfully and open-mindedly. From a personal perspective, peace is not the absence of challenges, heartaches, or stress; it is coming to terms with them. Peace is not a switch—it’s a path you can take. 

Peace in the world

There are a variety of ways to think about peace. A common way is international peace, or the lack of conflict between nations. The prevalence of war has made international peace a rare and precious condition. The human species has only been at peace for 8 percent of the last 3,400 years (1). The significant reason for this is that we define success in conflict as winning a war when the only genuinely successful outcome is peace—not to begin to fight. When events transpire, such as conquest, genocide, or slavery, and all diplomatic efforts have failed, there is often no other choice except for military action, but it should always be a last resort.

International peace is often a reflection of how peaceful a culture is. People’s attitudes toward conflict arise from their experiences and their values, which are significantly influenced by their culture. For example, a culture in which meeting aggression with aggression is considered strong will likely be more violent than a culture that values finding peaceful solutions. Those who live in more violent cultures will likely have violent experiences that reinforce violence as a preferable means to resolving issues. 

Personal peace

Another vital concept of peace is the peace that exists within us—the peace in our hearts. Personal peace is composed of our level of inner peace and our approaches toward conflict or potential conflict. If we are at peace within ourselves and can sustain that peace, we are much less likely to look to violence as a solution. Attaining peace within ourselves will lead to a life of alignment and balance. Alignment in our lives refers to how well our perspectives, words, and actions align with our values and our vision for our lives. Balance refers to sufficient time spent in serenity and reflection to balance out the necessary challenges, headaches, and stress that come with living. 

Peace is something that you can exude and embody. If you have inner peace and strive for peace in your interactions with others, peace can become part of you and spread to those around you. We can all find peace in our lives. There are many examples of peaceful leaders who make a difference in violent circumstances (2). You can choose a path of peace, and although you may have challenging and even violent experiences, a core of peace will remain with you.

Peace is a path. But you have to choose to take it.

(1) Hedges, Chris. 2003. “What Every Person Should Know About War.” The New York Times. July 6, 2003. https://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/06/books/chapters/what-every-person-should-know-about-war.html. Accessed October 9, 2024.

(2) Suba, Silma. 2023. “11 Inspiring Leaders and Their Words of Peace.” Interfaith America. https://www.interfaithamerica.org/article/words-of-peace/ Accessed October 16, 2024