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Setting the Bar for Peace

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Journalists this week didn’t even know whether to call the country Myanmar or Burma. Tens of thousands of citizens and monks rose up at last in response to the SLORC, the State Law and Order Restoration Council, the military regime that has been in charge of that country for decades, to demand the establishment of the democracy they voted for.

The great icon of this movement for democracy in Myanmar is 1991 Nobel Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi. She is the daughter of the general who first won independence for then Burma. Since 1989, The Lady, as she is known, has been under house arrest in Myanmar. She cannot leave the country; the junta will not let her back in. Her husband died whilst she has been under arrest. Her two sons are not allowed to see her.

And yet, and yet, this petite woman stands still, no matter that she is silenced, as a loud witness for the possibility of peace in her beloved homeland.

She writes,

“The Burmese associate peace and security with coolness and shade:

The shade of the tree is cool indeed
The shade of parents is cooler
The shade of teachers is cooler still
The shade of the ruler is yet more cool
But coolest of all is the shade of the Buddha’s teachings.”

Myanmar is a hot land. Fear and violence have run that country for many years. At long last, the people—individual persons, one at a time—stood up to hold an ideal for peace in their home. Last week, they reached their tipping point, and the one voice became many voices.

The Lady writes, “In the years of house arrest, I have come to the realization that the world is not divided into those who are good and those who are bad but rather into those who are capable of learning and those who are not. It is hate that is the problem, not violence. Violence is simply a symptom of hate.”

Let us take heart with the citizens and monks of Myanmar and continue in our individuality to hold the possibility for peace in our world. No matter the hate that we sense, no matter the violence that we witness, no matter the rhetoric that we reject.

Let us stand with Aung San Suu Kyi, a beacon for peace for the peoples and the places and planets we love.

posted by Susan Corso on 9/30/2007 2:23 pm | COMMENTS (4)

Comments (4)

For all three previous posters, Thanks for writing. Yes, oh yes, the monks have already risen up to challenge the regime in Myanmar. And we can all meditate with them whenever we want. Set your intention to meditate for Suu Kyi. You know I think we need peace within ourselves and in our grocery store check-out lines before we'll be able to create peace on earth. What keeps me going is every time I am able to choose peace for myself. (And I'm no saint, believe me!) Be blest, Susan Corso

posted by Susan Corso on 1/22/2008 8:32 am

We can raise the bar for peace when we stop the divisiveness within us. If we are one with our selves, we cant be divided.

As we witness how this lady bears all... she shows us the strength of inner spirit. It is invincible with highest good as the greater purpose.

Raising the bar for peace begins with stopping racist thinking, language and actions. When we are at peace with ourselves, we can embrace people's differences and not be tempted to wage war for supremacy. Because after all, there is no such thing as supremacy -- just diversity.

When we use the power of diversity, we achieve supremacy COLLECTIVELY... as humanity.

I think, if people unite to stop violence in other countries, and create a pact that local sovereignty that creates violence is superseded and overruled by AN INTERNATION PACT OF PEACE, then violence of all sorts can be stopped.

What can non-governmental organizations or even Unitd Nations do if nations are not really united within for a cause of PEACE to begin with?

PEACE is not only for saints or fools. It is for all who want sanehood more than sainthood. If we are sanitized from the tragedies of violence, then indeed, we are not in sanity.

PEACE has a price to pay. It begins with peace within each of us. How to achieve that? Stop violence in all forms -- thoughts, words and deeds.

Passive silence, apathy and indifference where there is a greater cause to raise are forms of violence -- in covert form. It is not even qualified as peace inspite the absence of physical aggression.

If peace is our mantra, then peace we have -- no matter the price to pay.

We remember Ghandi's advocacy on non-violence. It united people in different sects for peace to achieve democracy. It is now Su Kyii's turn to lead people to a war of peace in non-violence.

posted by grace.bakunawa on 10/12/2007 8:31 am

In response to Adam's blog above:

Monks meditate all the time, and they are prob. doing it for positive change also. Maybe, we can find out what the hours/timezone, etc. and just do this together. I don't believe we would have to tell them.

I remember seeing an exerpt from a book written by an Asian scholar (his name I don't remember "senior moment") he proved how monks all over the world meditating all beauty at once (same time) on a glass of water. Later the water was frozen to produce ice crystals and they were stunning. He then did the same with negative thoughts, ugly, upon a glass of water and when frozen was muddy and mirkly like.

Count me in!

Charlotte

posted by charlotte on 10/ 9/2007 7:38 am

Aung San Suu Kyi is indeed a remarkable person, one who has understood how we are one, and therefore her family and friends and the people of the world are always with her, no matter what her circumstances.

All along during recent events, I have wanted to invite the monks to meditate all together at precisely the same moment in time, all over Myanmar. There was an experiment conducted in an American city (I forget which one it was), and another on Merseyside in the UK (among about 40 other studies in scientific literature), where a group of 1% of the population of an area were asked to carry out a session of Transcendental Meditation (TM) together to assess the effects of it on the immediate environment. The effect was marked in both instances, with reduced crime rates, levels of violence, accidents, suicides and a general reduction in negative emotions and tendencies.

Given how many monks there are in Myanmar, it seems like a wonderful opportunity to meditate for the joy of it, and see whether this makes any impression on the situation there. Although TM was used in the other examples, deep meditation is always positive. So it seems likely that any form of deep meditation would have some effect.

I wouldn't know how to transmit the message of this possibility to the monks in Burma, except through news channels here in the UK who are still in contact with reporters and others still in the country. If anyone else knows of any other links, would you please suggest this to the monks? Any opportunity for a positive change brought about by inner peace and stillness will make itself felt everywhere, not just in Myanmar. So if anyone knows of a way to make this invitation to the monks, please either let me know directly (agilly63@hotmail.com), or post a comment on here how we can all try to communicate this possibility to them. Thank you!

posted by adamgilliland on 10/ 3/2007 5:58 am