What is Peace?

Is it a beautiful sunset beyond suffering?

In The Road to Kedarnath, Krishna shares this about suffering and compassion:

Arjuna: 'But how can we hope for inner peace when there is so much suffering. Everywhere I turn I see suffering. When I see people laugh I feel that they are ignorant of the truth or they are ignoring the truth of all-pervasive suffering'

Krishna: 'Beyond the everyday illusions of what makes us laugh and smile, there is only the ragged, leprosied face of suffering. She is dreadful to look at. Yet, when you are compelled to turn away and run, resist. Stay a while and look at her. You will see that even suffering is a veil of illusion waiting to be lifted. As you sit with suffering and look into her bloodied eyes with love, and converse with her, you will see she is just joy with blotchy makeup.

Sometimes it takes deep conversations with suffering, to discover inner peace. Grief and happiness, two representations of the same deep spiritual experiences, become inseparable.

So learn to sit with your own suffering and listen. Soon you will learn to listen to the suffering of others too, and you will realize that we are all in this together. Since we will understand how suffering feels for us, we will not add to the suffering of others, perhaps even seek to relieve theirs. This is compassion. And it all starts with listening.'

May you find the courage to look gently at the chaos around you and discover the peace hidden amidst the storm!

With my love and gratitude,

Immanual