The Price of Peace

The world moves at such a fast pace today, news aired an hour ago becomes obsolete. Children are being taught to pursue a good education for a better career so that once they settle in their career, they will be capable of making enough money and eventually, they are taught to share the money with their family and distribute it in different sectors. Our lives have become nothing but a never-ending race for money and we are perpetually trying to make sense out of it. The young ones are taught that money is the root of evil, but ultimately they are asked to choose a career that offers the best pay.

People are ready to accept a few days of power rather than a lifetime of purpose and satisfaction. Being wealthy has never led to satisfaction; one spends all their life earning and spending money without ever realizing that money is momentary. Donating gold shrines to statues while ignoring the hungry beggar on the street, our concept of satisfaction has completely changed. People spend years in temples waiting for God to appear, but can’t spend enough time with their parents who desperately want some care and love.

We have a twisted concept of satisfaction. For most people satisfaction is just earning enough that your grand children won’t have to work a day, but how? You need to ask yourself that question to, how will your money help your kids be satisfied with their lives, and how would it signify that their lives matter? Will it help them make a change? Will they be remembered for the life they lived? And how will it give you satisfaction? How will your huge bank balance serve your children if they haven’t learnt the value of money? How will your investments help the poor feed their family? What have you done for society? What have you done that will make this world a better place? Will your children look up to you as their role model?

It is time we realize peace is an inside job. The world does not need any more successful business stories that only wealthy people can afford. The world needs philosophers and peacemakers who can bring the world together. The world needs people who can bring a change. The good news is, the world has people like this already, and you are one of them. Not all super heroes wear capes; a small change in society can go a long way. A seed planted today will give fruit and oxygen to many for the years to come. Sitting under the shade of a fully-grown tree that you grew all by yourself will give you satisfaction without any guilt. The realization that God literally is everywhere will help you understand nature, society and life in general so that you can make a better contribution to everything around you.

God did not make the world with money. God made the world thinking that someday they will all work together in harmony and bring peace but we clearly lost our way. God does not divide us, our thinking does. For you to find peace you must first define peace and before you define peace, you must witness it in someone else. We often mistake peace for quiet, but they’re very different.

A man in search of peace and serenity spent all his money in vain, until he stumbled across a Guru sitting under a tree meditating. He desperately asked the Guru, for an answer to all his problems. The Guru replied,  “now that you’ve spent all your money what do you have?” and the man replied, “Nothing” and the Guru replied, “Wrong! You have your body, mind and soul and as long as there is life in you, you will always have something to live for. We take nothing from this world when we leave it but we are blessed with everything it has to offer while are still living, like the shade of this tree and it’s fruit. I planted a seed 15 years ago, and today, I can enjoy the fruit of my labor. The man suddenly remembered, “I have a family too, I left them to search for Peace”. The Guru replied, “That was your first mistake, they were the seed you planted, and it is your duty to take care of them, as I did with this tree, go back to them, for without them, you will never find peace”. The man couldn’t believe how foolish he had been, for the very thing that bought him peace and happiness, was with him all this while. He returned, sought forgiveness from his family, and lived the rest of his days, atoning for his wrong doings and eventually achieving peace.