Jan2017Positive Possibilities

Time for Peace, by Parvati Devi

I get a snapshot of world politics from the things I experience as I move through each day: captions in newspapers and on magazine stands, conversations on social media, and through the atmospheric vibration I touch in my daily meditation practice. I know that there have been clouds of dissension in the ethers for some time. I can see them in the media and sense them in the unseen. Over the past decade, our world has been struggling with increased local and global unrest as well as greater natural disasters. I know, as I am sure you do you too, that in every moment, all over the world, people are violently attacked, raped and brutally murdered in wars between nations and disputes between people. There are millions who are in pain right now from profound lack – not just from lack of the basics such as food, water and shelter, but from lack of fundamental goodness, such as kindness, respect and love. We live in a beautiful, yet agitated, confused and suffering world.

Just as cloudy thoughts pass through my mind, clouds in the atmosphere and in people’s thinking will come and go, while the sun continues to shine. Clouds are temporary. If I focus too closely on them, I lose sight of the sun that has always been luminous, just simply out of view.

This is why, beyond passing weather reports, I am more deeply interested in that which inspires clarity of mind and compassion of heart. I need this, because I – like most of us on the planet – am growing and learning to become more conscious, loving and aware. I know that in order to be clear, I need to feed my mind, heart and soul with things that make me into the most patient, kind, wise and loving person I can be. I rely on that which helps me focus on the light of the sun, so that I may imbibe its qualities and have the greatest amount of compassion to serve those who are suffering from passing clouds or torrential tsunamis.

As I face the ebb and flow of each day and witness the consequences of human greed and inevitable suffering, I need to make sure that I don’t lose sight of the eternal light – our true nature. As I focus on the source that inspires true understanding, compassion and love, I do not deny the presence of the clouds, the suffering and the pain we all inevitably feel. But I do not add to them by feeding my own inner agitation and wanting. Like serving a drowning man, I must make sure I extend a hand to those in need from solid ground. If I jump into the whirlpool, I too will be lost in its eddy and pull. The solid ground I must stand upon is the ground of my inner peace.

We all get seduced by our mind’s desire to perceive a situation based on what we think we need. This is no criticism. It is simply our human tendency, the way our ego operates. It is how we live to some degree or another until we are enlightened and have remembered that only love is real.

In every situation there are two sides to every story, then that which is really going on. How easy it is for us justify our desire to make someone right and another wrong. But finger pointing only highlights our reptilian brain’s need for conquest. If we are transparently honest with ourselves, we come to realize that we each have cast stones of hatred and revenge – even just as passing thoughts – at some point in our lives. We all can buy into the clouds and forget the sun. We all err. We all need to make amends with ourselves, with our families, with our brothers and our neighbours. We all can learn to love better, in each moment, of every day, until we have realized that our true nature is not right or wrong – only love.

There can be no external peace in our world until we experience inner peace – peace with ourselves, who we are and why we are here. As I say in my song Precious, “If I want peace in the world, I know it begins with me.”

If you want to be a hero at this time of war and inspire peace, don’t take sides, pick up a gun or post vengeful notices on social media. Return to the reality of the eternal light – the sun ever shining, the light of love that you truly are – and make peace with this moment.

Parvati headshotParvati Devi Known as the Positive Possibilities Lady, Parvati inspires magnificence through music, yoga, words and activism. An award-winning musician, Parvati brings joy and hope to top 40 radio with her celestial pop songs “I Am Light”, “Yoga in the Nightclub”, and “Shanti Om”. Founder of “YEM: Yoga as Energy Medicine” and author of “Confessions of a Former Yoga Junkie: A Revolutionary Life Makeover for the Sincere Spiritual Seeker”, Parvati has been featured on radio and television talk shows and news and wellness magazines globally. She is the founder of Parvati, a not-for profit dedicated to realizing MAPS: The Marine Arctic Peace Sanctuary to help stop global warming. More about MAPS, free YEM videos, self-help articles, her music and more at parvati.tv and parvati.org.

More about MAPS, free YEM videos, self-help articles, her music and more at parvati.tv and parvati.org.