I will probably quit blogging so much but I wanted to start a different one with a different address, and take most of this blog down entirely.
The last couple days I've been looking for work and housing and trying to figure some things out, so I haven't had a chance to go through and get rid of stuff.
But today, the verse that came to my mind was: "I desire that all men should pursue peace..." but I couldn't remember which book it was from so I tried to look it up.
I think it is Hebrews 12:14. "Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctificiation without which no one will see the Lord."
Then I found a cool site that had a lot of different sayings from different countries around the world, about peace--which I will post.
In the last 2 days I've realized some new things. Truly. And I realized that no man is an island. That by offending one person, it's sometimes offending an entire group. And that community is very important, and sometimes they take sides in order to protect eachother, understandably.
I have offended so many people I don't know where to start. I never had the perspective I have now.
Having that, I understand how great my offenses have been. That even if I apologized in the past, I have a different understanding of what I've done and people I love or even people I don't even know, whom I've hurt or endangered possibly, just by getting others angry with them as well.
I didn't know what my new blog, if I should have one...what it should be about even. I wanted it to be about something that's just general and not about people I meet except for positive things to say or write.
Instead of wanting just peace, I now have a perspective of peace between communities and for myself among all as well. Between families, communities, countries, everything.
I told someone today, it's not that I don't want to get to know different people better, it's that I want to have an open house. I now see how certain groups HAVE tried to help and I didn't see it or offended them.
I don't understand why the rules can't be changed. Why we can't switch it up. It seems it's easier to have an inter-racial relationship now than inter-cultural mixes and communities.
I don't want to take sides, left or right, right or wrong. I don't want to be an outsider either. What I want, if I am able to make the choice for myself, is to change it. Change the rules that say you must take sides, that you must prefer one to the other.
God has a great umbrella that covers everyone. That insists each person is valuable. I didn't practice this myself, this attempt at understanding how even words can cause great harm, almost as much as physical harm. And I was wrong. Then I see great conflicts in the world, and I just say, I want to be safe, yes, but I still want covering for everyone.
I want to be able to marry who I love, whomever that should be, regardless of who they are, where they're from, what they do. Rich or poor, black or white, no matter where they're from. I want this for everyone. I want to be able to welcome anyone and everyone, in an open house, to be able to say "You are welcome in my house, and will find sanctuary here, no matter who you are." Your past is irrelevant, and I don't what you want for your future, but I want you to have peace.
I don't even know if sometimes pacificism is dangerous. Will it harm any group or person? Sometimes I've seen this is true, in that if one group is really being bullied, they have to protect themselves or be demolished. So I understand, but is there a way to include all and to somehow promote less violence or less conflict, even if things go on and happen?
I want my family to be my family and I believe in adoption too and then outside of that, also, I believe in guests. I suppose sometimes you're closer to some, more than others, and some will be more supportive than others, but still, is there a way to find and promote peace and put past wrongs aside and find a way to reduce any harm that could come to anyone in particular?
I know there are some who have really come forward to help me when no one else did. So in this way I feel an allegiance, but then too, I don't want to cast aside others.
I believe in, and understand, sometimes having to separate oneself from something because those who would do good turn to harm, but what I want to know, is if there is any place for finding a peace among all.
Sometimes, I think we could be happier with a whole other group or family even or living in another country. For whatever reason, things just don't work out. But still, is it possible to have both?
Why can't we all have both? Why can't we all get along sounds very cliche, but it is what I somehow would like to explore.
Some have done very, very, bad things to me and my son. And I, as well, not understanding the impact of my words, thinking it's not like physical harm and half the time not understanding how the impact could harm. So I didn't understand this and now I do. I should have been writing apology notes and just not going on about my problems to begin with. I should have understood how to let things go when necessary but I don't think I quite understood the power of a voice and how it can harm or heal. It didn't make sense to me. A lot of things didn't make sense and a lot of things still do not make sense to me. Having understood how I've created problems, I am slightly interested in maybe studying pacificm or conflict resolution. I have not been very successful at this myself. I would like to hope, that possibly, I could change. That maybe I don't need to know more more, but that I know enough now to change and have it actually mean something to me, in what I need to change or the harm of words.
I would like to think I could maybe study conflict resolution and possibly, nursing, in order to help others, whomever they may be, in a practical way. I would like to find a way to blend philosophical ideas of change or conflict resolution, with practical application. But I'm interested in actually studying case history of conflict and resolution, to get a better grasp on what has worked for the most people in the past and understand what doesn't work. I once went to a peace--conflict resolution conference at George Fox University in Oregon many years ago. I have no idea why and I think I stumbled across it and just went ahead and went to it. It was sort of interesting, but I didn't get it and I didn't know how it really applied to me or my life or to the lives of others. But I'm sort of interested in it now.
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall see peace." I forgot which verse that is, but it's one I haven't followed much. I don't think I would have even understood how to go about finding it if I tried, even if I should have known, there is a lot I didn't know and don't know still. I haven't realized what a late bloomer I am. Some people have said to me that my "eyes" were "dangerous" and yet I don't think I had eyes to see the things others see or saw. I had bits and foolishly pursued my own haphazard course, thinking it didn't affect anyone else and then wondering why I had so many problems.
Is there any way to keep those who might love me, and I don't know sometimes who these people might be...safe from harm and for a complete resolution? Is there a way to keep communities safe from me and the damage I've done with hurtful words. Is there a way to keep countries able to sustain themselves and on their feet, but in a peaceful way?
I never used to believe it was very likely, once things get rolling, in country conflicts, to find a way to "make everybody happy". People are fighting for resources, for protection for their families, land, and interests. But still, I think it has to be possible. Even where I feel it is impossible, I feel now it has to be possible. Greater peace MUST be possible. The rules have to change. People can change it up and work together and find a way to extend their hands and even make small sacrifices for less fortunate to be able to get ahead. Not to top them, or demolish them, if that is the intention, but there has to be a way to find better peace. I don't know how but I want to study it. I feel sad, like crying in a way, because it seems hopeless but I don't think it is. It cannot be impossible and I cannot give up.
****************************************************
World Scripture
PEACE
Peace is one of the most desirable fruits of salvation in all the
world's religions. We begin with passages describing the fruit of inner
peace. The peace that comes with reaching Ultimate Reality brings
tranquillity to the heart and clarity to the mind. It is the absence of
passions, desires, anxieties, and wandering thoughts; the heart becomes
cool and content. Nirvana is often translated 'Peace.' Islam and
Christianity both praise the peace and tranquillity that come to the soul
that is firm in faith. The soul of the saint has been likened to a deep
pond whose surface remains undisturbed by waves despite the many currents
or streams that flow into it.
A second group of passages describe the peace of God that brings
harmony among people and nations. Outward peace is emphasized in the
Abrahamic faiths, for whom the work of God has a social and historical
dimension. The love of God breaks down the walls of hostility between
people, and thus becomes the foundation for their lasting peace. Yet
peace in this social and political sense is not only given by God; it must
also be built by the efforts of human beings. Those who are blessed with
inner peace have the responsibility to become peacemakers, reconciling
conflict.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do
I give to you.
Christianity. Bible, John 14.27
In the remembrance of God do hearts find satisfaction.
Islam. Qur'an 13.28
The Master said, "In the morning, hear the Way; in the evening, die
content!"
Confucianism. Analects 4.8
This is peace, this is the excellent, namely the calm of all the impulses,
the casting out of all "basis," the extinction of craving, dispassion,
stopping, Nirvana.
Buddhism. Anguttara Nikaya v.322
O tranquil soul,
return to your Lord
so pleasant and well-pleased!
Enter among My servants
and enter My garden!
Islam. Qur'an 89.27-30
May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.
Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Numbers 6.26
And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your
hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Christianity. Bible, Philippians 4.7
He it is who sent down peace of reassurance into the hearts of the
believers, that they might add faith to their faith.
Islam. Qur'an 48.4
Thou dost keep him in perfect peace,
whose mind is stayed on thee,
because he trusts in thee.
Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Isaiah 26.3
If a man sings of God and hears of Him,
And lets love of God sprout within him,
All his sorrows shall vanish,
And in his mind, God will bestow abiding peace.
Sikhism. Adi Granth, Japuji 5, M.1, p. 2
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anguttara Nikaya v.322: Nirvana is the Ultimate Good because it is the
complete end of all the impulses and passions that produce evil. Cf.
Dhammapada 96, p. 230. Qur'an 89.27-30: Cf. Qur'an 56.27, p. 353.
Numbers 6.26: Part of the Aaronic benediction, Numbers 6.24-26, p. 56.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just as a deep lake is clear and still, even so, on hearing the teachings
and realizing them, the wise become exceedingly peaceful.
Buddhism. Dhammapada 82
As rivers flow into the ocean but cannot make the vast ocean overflow, so
flow the streams of the sense-world into the sea of peace that is the
sage.
Hinduism. Bhagavad Gita 2.70
Men do not mirror themselves in running water--they mirror themselves in
still water. Only what is still can still the stillness of other things.
Taoism. Chuang Tzu 5
The monk looks for peace within himself, and not in any other place. For
when a person is inwardly quiet, there is nowhere a self can be found;
where, then, could a non-self be found?
There are no waves in the depths of the sea; it is still, unbroken. It is
the same with the monk. He is still, without any quiver of desire,
without a remnant on which to build pride and desire.
Buddhism. Sutta Nipata 919-20
The Lord lives in the heart of every creature. He turns them round and
round upon the wheel of his Maya. Take refuge utterly in Him. By His
grace you will find supreme peace, and the state which is beyond all
change.
Hinduism. Bhagavad Gita 18.61-62
Should anyone be victim of great anxiety, his body racked with maladies,
Beset with problems of home and family, With pleasure and pain
alternating, Wandering in all four directions without peace or rest--
Should he then contemplate the Supreme Being, Peaceful shall his mind and
body become.
Sikhism. Adi Granth, Sri Raga, M.5, p. 70
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dhammapada 82: Cf. Anguttara Nikaya iii.34, p. 531; Dhammapada 413, pp.
231f. Bhagavad Gita 2.70: Cf. Bhagavad Gita 6.7-9, p. 226. Chuang Tzu 5:
Only a person at peace with himself can calm others. Cf. Tao Te Ching 4,
p. 525; Great Learning, p. 842; Tao Te Ching 56, p. 840. Sutta Nipata
919-920: Cf. Dhammapada 279, p. 899. The peace which comes from finding
union in the midst of the world's bewildering diversity is also expressed
in the Peace Chant of the Isha Upanishad, p. 55. Cf. Katha Upanishad
3.13, p. 840, Bhagavad Gita 5.10-12, p. 724. On the wheel of Maya, see
Svetasvatara Upanishad 1.6.8, p. 398.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Victory breeds hatred, for the defeated live in pain. Happily live the
peaceful, giving up victory and defeat.
Buddhism. Dhammapada 201
Tao invariably takes no action, and yet there is nothing left undone. If
kings and barons can keep it, all things will transform spontaneously. If,
after transformation, they should desire to be active, I would restrain
them with simplicity, which has no name. Simplicity, which has no name, is
free of desires. Being free of desires, it is tranquil. And the world will
be at peace of its own accord.
Taoism. Tao Te Ching 37
Some children were playing beside a river. They made castles of sand, and
each child defended his castle and said, "This one is mine." They kept
their castles separate and would not allow any mistakes about which was
whose. When the castles were all finished, one child kicked over someone
else's castle and completely destroyed it. The owner of the castle flew
into a rage, pulled the other child's hair, struck him with his fist and
bawled out, "He has spoiled my castle! Come along all of you and help me
to punish him as he deserves." The others all came to his help. They beat
the child with a stick and then stamped on him as he lay on the ground....
Then they went on playing in their sand castles, each saying, "This is
mine; no one else may have it. Keep away! Don't touch my castle!" But
evening came, it was getting dark and they all thought they ought to be
going home. No one now cared what became of his castle. One child
stamped on his, another pushed his over with both hands. Then they turned
away and went back, each to his home.
Buddhism Yogacara Bhumi Sutra 4
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!
Christianity. Bible, Luke 2.14
The whole of the Torah is for the purpose of promoting peace.
Judaism. Talmud, Gittin 59b
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dhammapada 201: Cf. Nitivaktyamrita 344, p. 1052. Tao Te Ching 37: Cf.
Chuang Tzu 7, p. 588; Tao Te Ching 80, p. 291. Yogacara Bhumi Sutra 4: In
this parable Nirvana is likened to the diminution of jealousy and passion
for existence with the cool of evening. In the Pali version (Samyutta
Nikaya iii.188) the sand castles are likened to the body, which had been
the object of grasping; with Release it becomes a thing to be disregarded
and broken up. Luke 2.14: The proclamation of the angelic hosts at the
birth of Jesus, the Prince of Peace; see the larger passage Luke
1.26-2:14, p. 596. Cf. Yasna 60.5, p. 289.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All things exist for world peace.
Perfect Liberty Kyodan Precepts, 14
God is peace, His name is peace, and all is bound together in peace.
Judaism. Zohar, Leviticus 10b
For Christ Jesus is our peace, who has made us both one, and has broken
down the dividing wall of hostility.
Christianity. Bible, Ephesians 2.14
Our Father, it is thy universe, it is thy will:
Let us be at peace, let the souls of the people be cool.
Thou art our Father, remove all evil from our path.
African Traditional Religions. Nuer Prayer (Sudan)
They shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more.
Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Isaiah 2.4
Now is the gracious Lord's ordinance promulgated,
No one shall cause another pain or injury;
All mankind shall live in peace together,
Under a shield of administrative benevolence.
Sikhism. Adi Granth, Sri Raga, M.5, p. 74
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
Christianity. Bible, Matthew 5.9
He brings together those who are divided, he encourages those who are
friendly; he is a peacemaker, a lover of peace, impassioned for peace, a
speaker of words that make for peace.
Buddhism. Digha Nikaya xiii.75, Tevigga Sutta
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Precepts, 14: A sentiment common to most of the new religions of Japan.
Zohar, Leviticus 10b: In Hebrew, shalom includes the concepts peace,
wellness, and wholeness. Cf. Numbers 6.24-26, p. 56; the Kaddish prayer,
p. 54. Ephesians 2.14: Cf. John 17.20-21, p. 271; Atharva Veda 7.52.1-2,
pp. 272f. Matthew 5.9: Cf. Abot 1.12, p. 239.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If two parties of believers fall to fighting, then make peace between
them. And if one party of them does wrong to the other, fight that
wrong-doer until it returns to the ordinance of God; then, if it returns,
make peace between them justly, and act equitably. Lo! God loves the
equitable.
Islam. Qur'an 49.9
During the short eons of swords,
They meditate on love,
Introducing to nonviolence
Hundreds of millions of living beings.
In the midst of great battles
They remain impartial to both sides;
For bodhisattvas of great strength
Delight in reconciliation of conflict.
Buddhism. Holy Teaching of Vimalakirti 8
Peace be to earth and to airy spaces!
Peace be to heaven, peace to the waters,
peace to the plants and peace to the trees!
May all the gods grant me peace!
By this invocation of peace may peace be diffused!
By this invocation of peace may peace bring peace!
With this peace the dreadful I appease,
with this peace the cruel I appease,
with this peace all evil I appease,
so that peace may prevail, happiness prevail!
May everything for us be peaceful!
Hinduism. Atharva Veda 19.9.14
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment