How to Find Personal Peace?

Everyone knows our world is full of conflict and division, and it seems that world peace, or even a semblance of peaceful coexistence within our immediately town or city, is hard to come by.

However, there are ways to find personal peace within ourselves, that will help us cope with conflicts and challenges we meet along the way.

Personal peace has to be developed and nurtured otherwise it will go the way of other tenuous situations.

Personal peace really starts to grow in a person when he or she begins to look inside themselves. The first thing you must do on the road to personal peace is to examine your feelings and attitudes and discover who you are.

Many people live life not really in tune with their inner selves and how that affects what they do and how they interact with others. Taking the time for introspection is the first step in trying to “clear out the trash” within us.

“Trash” could be anything from holding grudges, bad attitudes, prejudice, and other negative things.

Clearing out the trash helps one to be able to relate better to others and helps one to feel better about oneself. It begins to clear the way for one to help and support others, rather than taking the selfish route in everything.

Practices such as meditation, yoga, and tai chi are examples of getting in touch with one’s self and reaching inner peace. Meditation clears the mind, and if it is practiced regularly, sets the stage for inner peace.

The exercises of yoga and tai chi use physical movements that are said to ultimately enhance body and mind functions.

For those that are spiritual, prayer is a great resource for inner peace. Lifting up one’s heart to God in a reverent and faithful way brings many people peace. Many people seeking inner peace go to monasteries for awhile to take part in a community where there is silence and prayer and communion with the earth.

Many deeply religious people of any faith are true examples of inner peace. Do you ever wonder why the Dalai Lama always has a smile on his face?

Attaining personal peace then is a combination of constructive reflection on one’s life and attitudes, taking the time to clear one’s mind of negative or troubling thoughts, exercising the body and the mind, and nurturing one’s spiritual life.

For resources on attaining personal peace, read Billy Graham’s book, The Key to Personal Peace (2003).

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photo by Luis Montemayor, flickr.com