Achieving Peace

Reading this article authored by A.T. Ariyaratne deeply touched my heart. Peace is the foundation of survival and sustenance of our life. All spiritual traditions sing the song of peace. Inner peace is the foundation of outer peace. We cannot create and sustain outer peace without creating and sustaining inner peace. The challenge for all of us as humanity is to learn, practice and apply ways and means of creating and sustaining peace. Meditation is one of the most effective ways for creating and sustaining peace and harmony at all levels: intrapersonal, interpersonal and collective. Peace is the sumam bonum of life. Without peace, there is no survival, no security and no safety. Upanishadic mantras end with these inspiring and uplifting words: Aum! Shantihi, shantihi, shantihi! Aum! Peace: intrapersonal, interpersonal, and universal.
My father was an ardent follower of Mahatma Gandhi. When I was a five- year old child, my father used to take us to attend evening meditation and prayer meetings in Gandhi Ashram in Sabarmati, a suburb of Ahmedabad, I will never forget these spiritual gatherings. Attending such gatherings laid a spiritual foundation in my life. Daily meditation has been my spiritual practice in my relatively long life. Practicing mindfulness meditation has been very helpful to me for leading a peaceful and fulfilling life. Every Saturday evening I meet with a group of meditators. We do Mindfulness Meditation regularly and share our experiences in the group. We have become a family and have created a strong, enriching, peaceful and nurturing foundation. May we all join our hands to pray and meditate for a peacful and loving world to live in and flourish!
​Namaste!