1. Everyone has a notion of peace. Each person has his/her own experience and understanding of it. Some ideas are common to many, while others are more particular to certain individuals.
2. There are four components of personal peace. Peace with the self, with others, with nature and with God.
3. All the different components of peace are important and interrelated. You cannot have peace if there is a problem or difficulty with one component.
4. Peace is shared. It is communal. One's peace is dependent on the peace of others. One cannot be at peace if those around him are not. Therefore, working for one's own peace demands working for that of others.
Module 2
Personal Peace
L E C T U R E
T h e f o u r c o m p o n e n t s o f p e r s o n a l p e a c e
Personal peace has four components which are interrelated. This means that they are not entirely separate from one another.
Achieving harmony in one component is related to the other components. This also means that we cannot attain complete personal peace until concerns relating to all four areas are addressed.
The four components of peace are:
1. Harmony with the Self. This is related to an individual’s physical, emotional, psychological and mental health. People feel at peace when they are physically healthy and well — when their basic needs are met, when they are able to sleep soundly and when they have had physical exercise.
This, of course, is related to financial stability, as one’s ability to meet his basic needs are dependent upon one’s economic status.
Emotional, psychological and mental health pertains to a sense of well-being and happiness. It is when a person harbors no worries, fears and hatred in one’s heart, feels safe and secure, is confident of oneself, feels accepted and valued by others, is able to accomplish one’s plans, and has a clear conscience. This translates to a feeling of calmness and relaxation, and allows a person to be comfortable with and by himself.
2. Harmony with Others. To the Filipino, there is no Other.
Everyone is potentially kapwa— one with whom one has a shared identity. This is why this particular component is very salient to Filipinos. The family, co-workers, neighbors, friends and fellow countrymen all figure in a Filipino’s sense of
Module 2
Personal Peace
personal peace. One’s own peace is very much tied to the peace of one’s kapwa.
When one is with one’s family, when the family is together, safe, healthy, cooperative, understanding and loving, there is peace. When one feels that one is able to provide and serve one’s family, and that the family is, in turn, supportive of one’s endeavors, there is peace.
Peace can also be attained by sharing one’s talents to others, making another person happy, and helping others. At work, this is expressed in one’s commitment to fulfill one’s responsibilities, and not only to complete one’s given obligations but to do them well.
Among friends, co-workers and neighbors, there is peace to be found when they are contented and happy, and when there is respect and understanding among them. It is when one has not inflicted pain of any kind to any one, when even the unlovable is loved, when there is reconciliation and forgiveness, and when one has done something good for others.
The contentment and happiness of society is recognized to be connected to social and political realities. It can only be achieved when there is economic progress, when there is no war, no discrimination and oppression, and when people work together as one country, and as citizens of one world. In Mindanao, particularly important is the harmony between Christians and Muslims, and stopping militarization.
3. Harmony with Nature. This particular component is often overlooked. People do not consciously think of their relationship with nature as having an effect on their personal peace. However, it is evident that a peaceful and healthy environment is crucial to our sense of harmony and peace.
Violence on the environment, in the form of pollution, excessive logging, fishing and mining, etc., also transmits violence unto human beings through illness, natural disasters, disruption or destruction of livelihood, and poorer living environments.
Module 2
Personal Peace
One cannot have a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction when one is apathetic to the destruction of the environment, or when villagers fall ill because of the pollution of rivers from one’s mining operations. If people continue to live out of harmony with nature, the world will turn into an environment too harsh for human beings to live in.
The Filipino need only rekindle his ancestor’s respect for all creation and to once again learn to treat them as brothers and sisters in order to restore his harmonious relationship with nature.
4. Harmony with God. Being a strongly religious culture, a strong relationship with the Creator is essential to the Filipino’s sense of peace. Many perceive that there can be peace despite difficult and worrisome circumstances when one is in the presence of God. Being able to talk to God through prayer, to confide one’s troubles and to give thanks for one’s blessings can grant strength and peace to a person.
Thus, the church or mosque, as a holy place of worship where one can commune with God and with other brothers and sisters in the faith, is a place where one can take refuge from a conflit-filled world and find peace.
For many people, harmony with God is the foundation of peace, as God is love, and it is love and compassion which will bring us to a better relationship with ourselves, others and the environment. It also gives people the strength and hope to continue striving for personal peace throughout life, although this can never be achieved completely and perfectly.
The four components of personal peace illustrate that one’s sense of peace is not detached from that of others and the rest of the world. Peace begins with oneself, but must be extended to and include others, and should be founded basically on love and respect for all creatures and human beings. Achieving personal peace is a difficult task, but it can be made easier when one works together with others.
Module 2
Personal Peace
A c t i v i t y
S T I C K A R T
Objective:
To have participants expound on the four components of personal peace and to have an appreciation for working together on peace.
Materials:
Barbecue sticks, matchsticks and walis tingting, black cartolina or used illustration board (black side clean), white glue.
Optional: colored pentel pens or paint, glitter