Fostering inner peace

Inner peace is what we feel when our body, mind, heart, and soul are at rest. Instead of striving to control or resist ourselves and others, we feel a sense of profound acceptance, forgiveness, love, and compassion for ourselves, others, and all of life. Inner peace is synonymous with being in touch with your True Nature: it is a state of inner rest. Perhaps most importantly, and above all, inner peace can only and ever be found in the present moment (which is all we truly have).

And yet, many of us live with the assumption that inner peace can only be found “out there” in some perfect future state of being – but this very belief perpetuates our lack of inner peace.

Reading Thich Nhat Hanh makes you stop and think – suddenly, each breath seems to carry a whole new level of simplicity and wonder. His teachings invite us to let go of our fears, embrace our interconnectedness, and cultivate a deep sense of inner peace.

To cultivate inner peace, one can focus on building habits that promote mindfulness, self-care, and gratitude.

“Mindfulness allows you to live deeply every moment that is given you to live.”

– Thich Nhat Hanh

The Buddha’s Smile
When I was a novice, I could not understand why, if the world is filled with suffering, the Buddha has such a beautiful smile. Why isn’t he disturbed by all the suffering? Later I discovered that the Buddha has enough understanding, calm, and strength; that is why the suffering does not overwhelm him.

He is able to smile to suffering because he knows how to take care of it and to help transform it.
We need to be aware of the suffering, but retain our clarity, calmness, and strength so we can help transform the situation.
The ocean of tears cannot drown us if karuna is there. That is why the Buddha’s smile is possible.

– by Thich Nhat Hanh, from Teachings on Love

Inner peace isn’t about chasing, striving, and trying to ‘earn’ tranquility. You can’t. Trying to ‘fight’ for inner peace is contradictory and pointless: it just deepens our suffering.

Instead, finding inner peace is about relinquishing our need to control and fight. Essentially, you could say it’s about giving up – but not in a disempowering way. Rather, it’s a form of resignation that is based on a deeper understanding that Life is perfectly orchestrating everything we’re experiencing based on a deep wisdom we cannot possibly fathom – typically for our growth and healing.

Living life from a place of letting go and surrendering isn’t about allowing ourselves to be used or abused.

We still need to practice self-care, self-respect, and self-love. This can mean setting boundaries, saying no, and removing ourselves from harmful situations. But letting go also means surrendering our resentment, blame, and hatred toward others. Do you see the difference?

Life is about balance.

Please feel invited to reach out to me for help incorporating these practices into your life.