TOWARDS A WORLD OF PEACE!

TOWARDS A WORLD OF PEACE!

Dr M. D. Thomas

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The word ‘peace’ derives from the Latin word ‘pax’, which means ‘pact, compact, control, agreement, absence of hostility and treaty of peace’. The term ‘peace’ further originates from the Anglo-French term ‘pes’ and the Old French ‘pais’, meaning ‘peace, reconciliation, silence, tranquility and harmony’.  

The English word ‘peace’ came into use in personal greetings from the 14th century, as a translation of the Hebrew word ‘Shalom’, meaning ‘to be complete and whole’. ‘Shalom’ is an equivalent of the Arabic ‘Salaam’, which has multiple meanings, like ‘peace, justice, good health, safety, wellbeing, prosperity, equity, security, good fortune, friendliness’ and also ‘hello, farewell and goodbye’. 

‘Peace’ is a peaceful and peace-emanating word. On the personal level, it includes peaceful behaviors, like ‘being kind, considerate, respectful, just and tolerant of others’ beliefs and behaviours that tend to manifest goodwill’. It is oriented to ending war, dispute or conflict between people, nations or groups that are hostile to each other, too. It is freedom from public disturbance. As a result, it refers to a quiet or calm state of mind.

Peace requires being good in oneself, having regard for others and not engaging in violence and aggression towards others. Peace calls for acting always in a peaceful manner. Peace has three variants. End of war is ‘negative peace’, harmonious relationship is ‘positive peace’ and justice is ‘structural peace’, by way of ‘everyone having his or her due’.

Peace is positive when attitudes, institutions and structures create and sustain peaceful societies. Methods of peace-making include negotiation, enquiry, mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial settlement, regional arrangements, sanctions, blockading and violent intervention.

As a sentiment and an experiential reality, peace has three dimensions, peace ‘within’, peace ‘between or among’ and peace ‘above’ or ‘beyond’. Peace within is ‘individual peace’, peace between or among is ‘social peace’ and peace above or beyond is ‘spiritual peace’. All the three aspects are equally important and are complementary to each other. Together, peace becomes a complete and sustainable reality.

Peace can be passive and active, as well. ‘Passive peace’ is silence and it is the peace of the cemetery. It is static and ready-made. It is identified as ‘absence’. On the other hand, ‘active peace’ is inherent in interaction, sharing and give and take. Active peace is recognized as ‘presence’. It is never complete. It is ever in the process and it keeps evolving. Passive peace is inherited and active peace is acquired.

Peace is not a goody-goody feeling. Peace is an action. Peace has eyes, ears, nose, hands, feet, heart and brains. These faculties act their roles, so that peace emerges. Hate, violence, discrimination, division, etc are challenges to peace and overcoming them is the way of peace. Peace is the sum and substance of the collective action of all the individual and social faculties, both at the personal and social realms.

Peace is good news in itself. ‘Doing to the other what one would have the other due to one’ is the ‘golden rule’ of behaviour that befits good news. ‘Becoming good news to the other’ is the natural way of fostering peace. Peace can be sustained through ethical values, which in return define peace in action. This is the sociological and sustainable dimension of peace.  

Francis of Assisi has a prayer for peace, par excellence, with the title “Lord, make me a channel of peace”. Bringing love, where there is hatred, pardon, where there is injury, hope, where there is despair, faith, where there is doubt, light, where there is darkness and joy, where there is sadness is the way of being the channel of peace.

The plan of action for peace would be consoling, rather than being consoled, understanding, rather than being understood, pardoning, rather than being pardoned, giving, rather than receiving and loving, rather than being loved. Besides, dying to oneself is the way of being born to eternal life and that is the way of a living and lasting peace.

Peace is an idea of societal friendship. It celebrates harmony, in the absence of enmity and violence. It is a social state where there is no conflict, but freedom from fear of attack from individuals or groups. The policy of peacekeeping ensures interaction, collaboration, economic growth, prosperity and social wellbeing.     

The psychological peace or the ‘peaceful inner disposition’ is an essential requisite for behavioural peace. A sense of satisfaction, quiet, happiness and fulfillment contribute to the internal temper of peace. The peaceful mindset contributes immensely to reconciling competing interests and settling unsolved questions and tensions.

The introspective understanding of peace highlights the concept of oneself, as ‘being at peace’ in one’s mind. A sense of quiet and reflecting calm, along with being serene and meditative, signify relationships that tend to be avoiding quarrels and seeking tranquility, along with the absence of agitation, for all times.    

Peace has to proceed from a simple silence of arms and absence of war to mutual settlement of relations. The relations have to be characterized by justice, mutual respect, respect for law, good will, and the like. Positive and active peace has to be integrated into a larger theory of peace that affects the entire social life of the humans.

Peacekeeping has another major concern. Often, there is a tendency to destroy the cultural heritage of the opponent. In the event of conflicts, local, national and international cultural assets have to be safeguarded. Protection of culture and heritage calls for a strong policy that has to be implemented with the cooperation of military units, civilian personnel and of the local community.  

Peace is the most vital accomplishment of the human culture. Without peace, human life is meaningless and futile. With peace, human lives obtain the best of its meaning and dignity. Peace is a divine endowment. It is a spiritual treasure that is placed beyond the boundaries of all religious, social, ideological and cultural traditions. At the end of the day, for the humans, peace is life and life is peace. ‘A world of peace’ is the esteemed destination the humans are called upon to incessantly travel towards. 

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The author is Director, Institute of Harmony and Peace Studies, New Delhi, and has been committed to cross-cultural perspectives, cross-scriptural values, constitutional values, interfaith relations, communal harmony, national integration and social ethics and social wellbeing, for the past over 40 years. He contributes to the above cause through lectures, articles, books, video messages, conferences, social interactions, views at TV channels, and the like.

He could be viewed, listened to and contacted at the following portals – websites ‘www.mdthomas.in’ (p), ‘https://mdthomas.academia.edu’ (p), ‘https://drmdthomas.blogspot.com’ (p) and ‘www.ihpsindia.org’ (o); social media ‘https://www.youtube.com/InstituteofHarmonyandPeaceStudies’ (o), ‘https://twitter.com/mdthomas53’ (p), ‘https://www.facebook.com/mdthomas53’ (p); email ‘mdthomas53@gmail.com’ (p) and telephone 9810535378 (p).

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Published in ‘The Secular Citizen’ (Weekly Magazine), Mumbai, Vol. 31, Issue No.37, p.19-20 – on 12-18 September 2022

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