Peace is every step, by Thich Nhat Hanh

In 2003 Tim Ryan, then a congressman from Ohio, invited the Buddhist monk and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh to address members of the U.S. Congress. The invitation came as part of Ryan’s effort to promote mindfulness practices in the government and explore ways they might benefit public policy, particularly around mental health and wellness.

Last week Lion's Roar reposted his talk. It is sad to note both how much more relevant his comments are today, and how much more idealistic they seem. This doesn't make them any less true.

"When you communicate with compassion, you are using language that does not have the elements of anger and irritation in it. In this way, we can help each other remove wrong perceptions. All the energies of anger, hatred, fear and violence come from wrong perceptions. Wrong perceptions result in a lot of anger, mistrust, suspicion, hate and terrorism. You cannot remove wrong perceptions through punishment. You have to do it with the tools of deep and compassionate listening and loving speech. With deep, compassionate listening and loving speech, we can bring harmony to our families, and our communities can become communities of understanding, peace and happiness." - Thich Nhat Hanh

Transcript: The Path is Peace