Peace: Inspirations and aims

Disha
Pathways World School
India

Peace. It's just a simple five-letter word in the English dictionary, right? Wrong. It's just the opposite. Who could imagine that such a simple word is actually the most important thing we need in today's world just to survive.

The word 'peace' means many different things. Peace of mind is the main thing it can mean. Peace of mind leads to loving your family, loving your friends, loving your community, loving your culture and, most importantly, loving yourself. Throughout generations of history, humans have strived for this word. Yet, in each generation there is also somebody who has different political, cultural or social views that result in the complete opposite: war, hatred and unhappiness.

As you are reading this, there are approximately 30 wars taking place around the world. Many of these wars are taking place in areas such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Africa and Iraq. The past year saw events such as the Israel-Lebanon crisis, the United States of America sending more army troops into Iraq and combat between India and Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir.

But we must stop and think. Who is facing the brunt of these wars? There are soldiers dying everyday, but it is their families, sisters, mothers and children, who must face and live with these losses. There are civilians dying. These are innocent people, who have caused harm to no one, and yet they die. Why? Because there are governments or groups that disagree on some matter and ordinary people, like you and I, must pay the price. These people feel that the only way we can sort out problems is by using more violence. They feel that force and action are the only methods of bringing about change. This is completely wrong.

Growing up in the 21st century, we have always been taught to live and act like global citizens. Global citizens are the generation of today and the most important thing we've been told is to never resort to violence to solve a problem. Instead of sending troops into another country or bombing an enemy's land, we've learned that peace talks, discussions and meetings are much better options. Why? Because in the process, no one gets killed, no one loses a loved one and there's no pain involved.

'Whenever you are confronted with an opponent, conquer him with love'. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, more familiarly known as Mahatma Gandhi or Gandhi ji, said this. Mahatma Gandhi was a major spiritual and political leader of India during the Indian independence movement. He was the first one to pioneer Satyagraha, which is known as 'non-violent resistance'. Satyagraha is founded on Ahimsa, which means 'total non-violence'.

Gandhi led nationwide campaigns in India for the eradication of poverty; for the rights of women; for cultural and religious equality; for an end to untouchability and caste discrimination, which is a practice that is very common in rural villages in India and Africa; for the economic self-sufficiency of the country; but most of all for 'Swaraj', the freedom of India from foreign rule. But, even to achieve all of this, he and his followers never resorted to violence, even in the most extreme situations. Gandhi ji led peaceful protests and marches and yet, he played a major part in making India independent. He achieved all this without any form of violence.

Mahatma Gandhi also influenced other leaders, such as Martin Luther King Jr., during the civil rights movement in the United States of America, to use peaceful methods and nothing else. After looking at examples like Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., we see that it is definitely possible to eradicate war and unhappiness in this world by only using peace as a weapon.

Inequality and injustice are the two biggest problems the world faces today. Inequality takes place in social, economic and religious circumstances. We, as the new generation, need to fight this. Only when we start tackling the problems in our own neighbourhood and country, can we begin to understand the bigger picture of the world as a whole, and so deal with similar issues, on a larger level.

I, living in the 21st century, feel that it is extremely important for everybody to be a global citizen in today's world. Global citizens are defined as those who understand the need to deal with injustice and inequality and sympathise with the problems of others.

We, the generation of today, must work together to help make the world a better place to live in. It is not us who will have to live in a world full of hatred and anger, but our children and grandchildren. Do we want a world full of unhappiness and war? Or do we want a world of equality and happiness? It is up to us, to make this decision and choose the right choice. It is up to us, to make this world a safe place to live in. It is up to us, to live in harmony. But, we must act now!

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