Lessons in Peace: A Karma Drama

by Judith Pennington

Do you remember the scene in "The Wizard of Oz" where Auntie Em advises Dorothy to go play in a place where nothing bad happens? Dorothy (Judy Garland) worries how to find this place, quiets her fears, and from the depths of her heart sings "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."
These days, a great many people would like to wish upon a star and wake up where troubles melt like lemon drops. Of course there is no such place on Earth except in the depths of meditation-or so I thought until recently, when I came face to face with a fire-breathing dragon in the sanctity of my meditation room.

The Lesson Begins

The lesson began with my sending love to U.S. President George Bush, among others, as a way of healing my difficulties with him. I was perfectly happy with doing this, as it felt good and right, but suddenly, a series of downfalls sent the president into a political tailspin.

I concluded that millions of prayers for world peace were bringing an end to his reign of terror. This judgment was my undoing. Soon I began to crow triumphantly at his misfortunes, joyfully anticipating the end of a presidency that has thickened my plot for years.

Later on, I realized that my opposition to him was based on fears of global war, which I thought justified, but was, nevertheless, a fear-driven source of opposition. Since this faithless attitude was out of harmony with love, my drama whipped up some karma in the form of a vortex of electromagnetic disturbances that sent me into the tailspin I'd wished on someone else!
As it was for Dorothy, my spinning tornado set me down on a yellow brick road to self-discovery. Happily, I landed in my meditation room, descended into the realm of my still, small voice and listened more carefully.

Not a Single Seed of Opposition

I learned some exquisite lessons on peace, beginning with the notion that lasting peace cannot contain a single seed of opposition. Given the boundless freedom of the human soul, we are here to express and understand who we are, so I cannot wish or force peace upon anyone else, nor upon our planet, no matter how much it is needed.

I'd been given this guidance before, but blocked it with the impulse to rise up and fight the president's drive to war. My opposition evidenced a lack of love and oneness within me; in love and oneness, my deeper self told me, there is no reason for opposition.

I'd been told by previous writings that protest against anything fuels it; that the very thought of defeating someone else makes defeat impossible, since we can't defeat ourselves. Since I saw no other way to be a peace activist, I had not fully perceived these lessons, which went over my head.

Now I quieted my ego, surrendered to Spirit and asked for guidance, whereupon a creative solution flowed peacefully into my mind.

Shout peace from the rooftops, said my soul, but speak in the language of love. Speak of what can and will be in time to come: a place of brotherhood in which all are equally respected and honored; a place of engagement in new ways of being in the world, which is no longer ruled by fear, control and domination, but instead is safe and free.

The old struggles will give way to higher ways of being, as young and old perceive that peace is the way.

How to bring about this era?

"By living it now, without lapse or participation in anything that is other than love," said my soul. "Any opposition, any ill word spoken in defense or offense of another creates the opposition that undermines the possibility of peace.

"Speak, then, of these possibilities. Shout them from the rooftops and go back into the heart repeatedly to find strength and connection to do so. Waver not. Be whole and free in this and peace will result."

Open Your Heart

This sounded impossibly idealistic, but the next day, the Thursday before Motherâ??s Day, showed how to live the lesson. In opening my e-mail I saw a message about a "Peace of the Pie" initiative of the U.S. Department of Peace (www.thepeacealliance.org) and read an extraordinary call to peace by Julia Ward Howe, the founder of Mother's Day.

Stirred by Howe's spirited eloquence, I bought and on Friday delivered two fresh-baked pies to a congressman who found space for me in his busy schedule. Both of us were amused by this clever, homespun approach, so it was easy to talk about a cabinet-level department that would make peace an organizing principle in our society.

Speak in the Language of Love

Later on, I realized that it was the gift-giving which so naturally opened our hearts to the language of love. In mutually respectful peace, the congressman listened, asked questions and promised to share his shoefly pie with colleagues in Washington.

It was an excellent meeting that will reverberate peace, as will the messages in the flash movie on my upcoming website, HealTheEarth.net. The idea for it came up in meditation as an answer to my sense of powerlessness. This inspired project keeps my mind squarely on speaking peace and only peace.

Share Your Vision

What is your vision of a more peaceful world? If it is the vision of love-to hurt no other, to encourage and support, to give what is needed, to serve and be served by love-then it will bring you peace. If it is to speak in the language of love and call the world to a higher way of being, then, says the OneSoul, "It is time to soar on the wings of love.

"In the winds of time, life has prepared you for these moments. Speak what is known and felt to be true and none else. Call the world to its heart and the love in the heart."

I have realized from these words that this is the secret of all great spiritual leaders. Jesus, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. and Mother Theresa, among others, spoke no words of division or difference, but called people to the essential spiritual truths that resonate in our hearts.
Peacemakers are the children of God, said Jesus. This means we are able to live in the light-filled awareness that so easily rises above fear to co-create a more peaceful, enlightened world.

Live in Perfection

When I look around, I see peace rippling across the planet as millions of people create exciting new ways to inspire inner peace, spiritual growth and earth-centered activism. We are beginning to understand that emitting the light of love, goodness, wisdom and healing sets the stage for global transformation.

If you like, you can join a growing network of planetary healers by taking a few moments each day to send light to the world. Healing light will evolve your mind, heal your body and wash over the Earth, enveloping people and communities that will respond in positive ways.

This is already occurring, as people stand up and speak their hearts for the sake of peace and justice. So it is with Al Gore's superb docu-drama on global warming, "An Inconvenient Truth," and James Redfield's movie, "The Celestine Prophecy," which shows us the light-filled path to multi-sensory evolution in our New Earth.

The soul of our planet calls us to take peaceful action to bring about a quantum leap in human consciousness. If you are ready, ask your heart to show you how to meet your greatness in this hero's journey called life. Or support and participate in plays, lectures and groups working to restore balance to the Earth.

One such production in my area, a Hindu stage play of dance and song entitled "Shanti" (meaning oneness with all of creation), sealed my lessons in peace with a reminder from Mother Theresa on why we are here.

Her words shine a guiding light illumining the path to harmony and reconciliation. "If we have no peace," she said, "it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other."


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