Comments on: Peace On Earth

By: Elizabeth V.

Elizabeth V. — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 16:47:36 +0000

I accept your frustration in your New Year’s Eve expounder. I personally question the concept of idealism over pragmatism. God knows we all dream of “peace”. But — has there ever been true peace on earth? Man has been in conflict with man probably since the Stone Age. It’s difficult to look back at history and find a time when someone was not a war with someone else. Only now, there is more population, more technology, and more (dare I say it?) media coverage. I am not saying that the U.S. of A. is necessarily perpetuating this, but there are countries who have been a war practically forever. It is said that human nature doesn’t change. Perhaps that is our biggest enemy. Try to have a Happy New Year, Stephen — we’re all in the same boat.

By: ashley

ashley — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 06:34:54 +0000

that’s good. definately a tad depressing, but i’m with you. we gotta hold on tight and forge ahead.

By: stephen

stephen — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 00:22:01 +0000

And Happy New Year to you as well. “New” perhaps being the most important word…

By: stephen

stephen — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 00:20:38 +0000

Thank you.

By: Incognita

Incognita — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 05:02:00 +0000

“The world is round and infinitely complex and deserving near worship”

“Good stuff takes time. Lots of it. Plus patience. And wisdom.”

“Real time, is on the side of evolution.”

Fundamental truths concealed amidst the frustration and anger of your post. Hope is alive and well inside you and inside each of us.

Maybe it’s all about finding that peace within oneself in the face of all the external turmoil. And if each individual(ok, even a mere handful of us for starters) worked on this inner process, it could start a chain. And real time could work in our favor.

This comment on your earlier post is worth another look in this context.

http://stephengyllenhaal.net/tyranny-and-carl-jung/#comments

I quote a part:
“It always amazed me that no matter how rough the water was on the surface, it was completely still at the bottom. There’s a still point down there; and I’d go there to find it. In the constant shifting and uncertainty of our world, it was a kind of a haven.

“I think that’s what “the point” is: to find THAT point. T.S. Eliot called it “The still point in a turning world.” It’s the point at which we touch base with our essence –not just with out individual selves but with our common humanity, our shared archetypes, our primordial dances of memory.

“Beyond the shifting changes that take place on the surface–beyond the currents of politics or the eddies of culture, important as they are–it’s there, still and serene; and when we touch base with it, it’s as if we touched bedrock. Somehow it brings peace, and it feeds us.”

So, as you ask “What’s the Point?” may you reach for that “still point” and find it. That’s my wish for you and all of us for 2010. Good luck with everything Stephen and Happy New Year!

By: Ken Schaefer

Ken Schaefer — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 04:00:28 +0000

When I read your marvelous writing it was as if you had read what was in me. It is exactly how I feel but didn’t know how to say it. This piece touched me deeply and I feel united in a oneness with it. I am in awe! This states how I feel and how I recognize what is happening to us and with us. Thanks for writing this.