News from Peace Begins With Me

The 2010 Winter Olympic Games are finished. Along with hundreds of thousands of others I was fortunate to witness this two-week extravaganza first hand and to immerse myself fully in the Olympic experience. Not only did I get to marvel at the ability of the human spirit to excel at their chosen endeavour, I enjoyed the companionship of the world's citizens coming together in peace and harmony. My heart was lifted by the sharing of deep emotions ranging from laughter and joy to intense grief and loss.

For me the most powerful event of the Olympic experience wasn't part of the planned schedule. Rather, it was one of those experiences that is a by-product of a highly visible international affair. The event that had a deep impact upon me was the anti-Olympic protest that occurred on Day One. Thousands of individuals filled the streets of downtown Vancouver to express their dissatisfaction with the values and priorities the games represented. At the core of their message was the wish that the world's resources had been spent on other dreams and directed toward other needs of the human condition.

I have compassion for these individuals who felt a sense of frustration and resentment with the Olympic dream. Some of these individuals are champions in their own right offering a high level of commitment to creating a world where humanity lives in harmony and dignity with one another.

My sense of compassion and admiration did not extend, however, to those protesters who chose to behave in ways that undermined the safety, joy, and harmony of others. In particular I did not support those individuals whose actions were primarily focused on destruction rather than creation, and who chose to be disguised rather than open and transparent.

One of the lessons I've gathered from reviewing culture changing events is that all significant human transformations achieved success because of the power of the ideas they promoted and the integrity with which they were presented. Their actions were directed toward creating something new and better rather than on attacking and destroying what they disagreed with.

Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King succeeded in transforming our society and our consciousness, not by being 'against' something, but rather because they were 'for' something even bigger. Their actions were respectful, open, and creative rather than aggressive, secretive, and destructive. And, though they made a commitment to non-violence they were clearly not passive or powerless. Their actions were active, intentional, firm, and powerful.

David Hawkins, author of 'Power vs. Force' makes a distinction between 'power' and 'force'. Much of what we witness in the world today are demonstrations of humans creating change by force. The regime change in Iraq or the intended modernization of Afghanistan is being done through the efforts of force rather than the effects of power. True power does not require force.

Gandhi had no military to force the liberation of India from colonial rule. What he had was the power of an idea. So too King did not use guns and bombs to force the civil rights consciousness upon the United States. Rather King used the power of words and images. King's "I Have A Dream" speech offered words and ideals that transformed a nation. The Olympic protesters who chose to destroy reflected the energy of 'force' rather than 'power'.

The gold medal I took away from the 2010 Olympic experience is the reminder that if I want help transform and transcend mankind's current beliefs, priorities, and ways of being in the world I must evoke this change through the inspirational power of high ideals and the offer of a grander vision rather than through the use of negativity, judgment or other destructive forces which only serve to bring out the worst of humanity.

Peace advocate Phra Phaisan Visalo states -"To reassert and strengthen moral values is the duty of everyone, but it should not be done in hatred or anger. The true battle is in each and everyone one of us, in being able to view the other side as fellow human beings while continuing to push for the return of peace and ethics to society."

I hope your Olympic experience enabled you to experience golden moments as well.

Cheers,
Ted