The Road to
Peace
The Road to Peace
(Individual Inner Peace)
(Part I of IV)
Meignanasiriar.
M. SUBRAMANIAM B.E., M.B.A.,
(Trustee, Universal Peace Foundation)
We have understood earlier, peace is nothing but having a conflict free state of mind. Let us now figure out what are the causes of conflict and how to resolve them. How do we classify conflicts in our life? From birth to death – childhood to old age each man or woman has a different type or nature of conflict. So also the depth or intensity of conflict varies with each episode. It is now certain,every human being has to face some kind of conflict with three parameters – one – it can happen at any age, two – it can be of different nature every time and three – the intensity can also vary. No human being can escape this. Having understood this, let us remember that when a lock is produced the relevant key is also produced by the manufacturer. So also for every problem there is a solution. If you find the right key the problem gets dissolved.
For every deeper or higher intensity problem if we squeeze our brain, we will evolve with a completely new solution unimagined by us earlier, leading to a new discovery. So getting head on with a formidable conflict leads us to a very comfortable new discovery or answer or solution. Soabsolutely no need to panic confronting a problem. Just sit
relaxed and think for hours or days and we are sure to hit at the bottom of a profound solution. What are the types of conflicts or problems?
Conflict is nothing but a type of emotion. Now we need to learn the origin, causes, types and remedy of controlling or soothing an emotion. Some types of emotional reactions are anger, sorrow, love, hatred, laughter, sympathy, fear etc., Let us consider three types of conflicts commonly encountered.
(i) By a student facing exams.
(ii) By a married couple in conjugal relationship.
(iii) By an aged person above 60 years.
I. Student facing an exam2:
The origin of fear is peer pressure to get good marks as those of his classmates. The cause is either the student inherently does not have interest or the teacher is not competent to deliver to inculcate the student. No subject is bad or uninteresting – as long as it is taught well till the student starts appreciating. One solution is either the student or teacher or both taking extra time and effort to ensure transfer of knowledge. Once both understand it is not feasible, just leave it and be happy with whatever mark the student scores. Initially the second solution might appear difficult to digest. But in reality the student might be just brilliant in some other field of study or subject. Many famous characters in the world have proved this often. A few top notch movie actors, scintillating singers, musicians, world class business men were found to be utter failures in school days.
So success awaits those who dare to live beyond emotions.
II. Conflict for a married couple:
There could be innumerable instances every day a couple facing some kind of conflict. For example let us take a newly married couple. They beget a visually impaired or hearing & speech impaired or a physically challenged child at birth. Their hopes and aspirations of a beautiful chubby child, similar to those that are born to others, get shattered. This emotion grows into anger between the lady and her husband, trying to blame each other for their deficiencies. Slowly the anger spreads to the parents of both and then slowly it gets sympathy from their neighbours and society.
The couple must be quick enough to realize that there are trillions of combinations that nature has in store for everybody and it is beyond medical comprehension for such happenings. Instead of repenting, they must take mental courage to accept the reality and make room for adjustment, tolerance and finally sacrifice of their actions and to appreciate the fact that they are one among the few nature has chosen to take care of such children. Time is a healing force but by practice of inner silence this perceived hurdle can be converted to an opportunity. If one swifts through society, you can find blind men and women creating master pieces of handicraft, hearing and speech impaired giving out news bulletins, physically challenged participating in Olympic Games. So control of emotions leads to clarity, peace and tranquility of the mind.
III. Conflict of a Senior Citizen :
As a person grows old he tends to get imbalances in physical health, mental stability and a host of other issues. Lack of adequate physical exercise can cause several health problems apart from deficiencies arising out of aging.Their ability to converse with a large number of friends and relatives gets gradually reduced. They tend to become aloof and tend to show their anger on the near and dear ones who
attend on them. It must be understood by the younger ones that habits die hard and elders rarely change their attitudes or behavior patterns. So it is for the younger generation to be calm, understand the reality and show compassion and love for the elders until they pass through life peacefully. Summing up, the process of emotion control is a process of internal re-conciliation of the mind. By conscious effort one can resolve all conflicts by going through the mind all pros and cons of a situation and settling for the best option which does not hurt either party. Practice of inner silence gives greater strength to such internal reconciliation. "Silence is stronger than words". Test it. And truly enjoy the reward of peace of mind.
" SANTHOSHAM "
