Inner Peace

Category: Personal Development for Adults

Which matters more: the calm around you or the calm within you?

It is increasingly evident that our lives have grown restless and stressful. Why? There seem to be more and more stimuli packed into every twenty four hours.

Today we are flooded with information, products, insights, discoveries and events, while time feels ever more scarce. Our attention drifts toward everything happening around us, and we try to weave it into a coherent whole so we can respond as effectively as possible.

At times it feels impossible to tell what is what, where things begin and end, what purpose something serves and why we do what we do. For example, we may read several studies or tips on healthy eating in a single day, yet apply none. Or we follow them for a few days, then stumble on something that appears to be "better," faster and with less effort, the so called magic fix, or we simply forward that "perfect recipe" to others.

Then, for a while, we slip back into old habits until the next "perfect recipe" appears. We go in circles. This never brings genuine, lasting contentment or peace. If we keep searching outside ourselves for what we believe will bring happiness, health and satisfaction, we can search without end and never truly find it. There may be brief flashes of joy, yet they grow shorter and less intense over time.

Even so, this too is part of the journey inward. In the process we learn who we are in relation to the many "things" that surround us. That is part of insight. It does not mean the "outer things" are unnecessary. It simply means we must find a sound balance between the inner and outer worlds.

Sometimes everything around us seems in order. We may even have what we longed for, yet we still do not feel peace, contentment or fulfillment.

Calm seas around you, yet swells within. A large question mark appears.

In that moment we begin to understand that the heart of the matter is not in external "things" but in what unfolds within us. That is when we can turn our senses inward, explore our inner world and observe the relationship between the inner and the outer.

We start to view people differently. We realize that those who appear to "have it all" are not necessarily at peace within.

Then we look to history and ask whether there has ever been a time when everything was at peace, everyone was happy, the system worked perfectly and harmony reigned. It seems not. On a global scale there have been eras of great unrest and chaos, as well as calmer periods. Yet even amid upheaval, some people lived well and felt happy. For some, those years were remarkably fruitful. Much depended on where they were and how they navigated change.

There have always been both happy and unhappy people, regardless of what was happening in the "outer world." In truth, every person experiences both happiness and unhappiness at different points in life.

In the end we see that the key lies in what happens within us and in how we perceive calm and turbulence around us.

The way forward is to turn inward and explore what moves us toward happiness or unhappiness. Rather than getting lost in external searches or blaming others, we can listen within to learn what lifts or lowers our energy, happiness and satisfaction. This does not rule out seeking help from outside. It simply means we must stay aware and take an active role in our own transformation. If we wish to be authentic, self reliant creators of our experience, we need to engage with life at every level.

When we cultivate inner peace, life and the world feel peaceful, no matter what swirls around us.