Finding peace through yoga

“Has there ever been a time when this world has evidenced global peace? Has world peace ever been more that an idealist’s fantasy, more than a fond dream, more than some vague memory of a utopian golden age?
This rise of what we call civilisation is riddled with an endless succession of violent and bloody wars. Our species has proliferated across the face of this planet creating huge urban centres with populations of between 10-20 million people, where half the planetary population of six billion now live. Of this population, one billion are at risk of starvation, another quarter have insufficient food and inadequate water supplies and medical services. Economic gain and political allegiances motivate many wars and prevent the resolution of the crises of human suffering caused by the lack of these basic needs.
Meanwhile the exquisitely beautiful and delicate living web that supports our life as we journey through space and time is undergoing massive destruction. Our oceans and skies become more toxic, the land and water courses poisoned as we successfully decimate species diversity and the fragile ecosystems that our survival depends on...
This perhaps cynical perspective misses the profound achievements of human creativity, spirit and beauty. It ignores the incredible and beautiful acts of love, compassion and ordinary kindness that are carried out every day...
Peace is identified in the etymological dictionary as an accord or agreement, a covenant, also as tranquility. The covenant between body, mind and heart is a first step to peace.
It is our division and separation between body and mind and heart that allows us to act with brutality and violence. The separation of mind, and the versions of self we create, combined with the reality of our physical needs is the first step to denying and disrespecting others’ needs...
Peace is a process or state of being. In the absence of armed conflict, in a place of plenty, human beings still live in deep inner turmoil and pain. ‘Shantih’ (Sanskrit, meaning ‘peace beyond all understanding’) then is needed as the peace beyond our verbal capacities to summate and classify, as part of of that which pervades and runs through every movement and event. This deep peace grows from the unity of body-mind-heart-spirit This is Yoga...“

Written by Christopher Gladwell, FINDING PEACE THROUGH YOGA discusses what peace is, and how yogic practice and meditation can help to achieve peace.

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