Claiming Back Your Inner Peace

“Peace comes from within.  Do not seek it without.”
― Gautama Buddha

“Nobody can hurt me without my permission.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

Inner peace is something we are all entitled to, but all feel at some time or another we have had to fight against the world to achieve.  The first part of the problem is allowing the world to control and influence us right to our core.

The journey towards inner peace starts with a choice, the choice to accept and use our own power over our lives.  This is important because it sets the intention and the goal  It gives us something to visualise and aim for in our lives – in every aspect of our lives.  Once we have made this choice the next step is potentially harder, but no less vital.

Trust.  If we spend our lives doubting our abilities or decisions they will always be lacking.  Beyond this though any inner peace you might have will be overwhelmed by doubt and insecurity.  We all have the tools we need to tackle any life situation, all it takes is a little trust from ourselves.  Judgements, both our own and others, can also block inner peace.  Whether they’ve come from us or from someone else it is us who gives them permission to affect us.  When anyone judges anyone they only judge based on their own life, they have no idea about anything else – making their judgements useless, and only as powerful as you decide you want to make them.

Image via http://www.themastershift.com

Past experiences can haunt us, disrupting efforts for a more peaceful existence.  Nullifying the negativity and pain is essential and the answers to this lie like many great truths in the ancient world.  One answer was developed by Socrates and the Ancient Greek Stoics in particular.  Self-questioning, observing and asking why:

• Why does that make me feel like that?
• What triggers this feeling?
• What does this feeling do to me?
• Why am I letting this happen?

As we question ourselves we begin to understand what we’ve been doing to ourselves, and to break the circle of negative thoughts once and for all.  Taking the experience as a lesson and being grateful for what it has taught you renders the experience less and less powerful until the memory is just another memory.  Mindfulness, developed by Eastern cultures, especially by Buddhism, is another vital tool.  Doing things mindfully, giving yourself fully and only to the awareness of the task you are doing, gives you space away from pain and negativity.  It gives you space but also time to reflect impartially on it as thoughts and realisations float freely through your cleared mind.

As I have said previously gratitude is also an exceptional way to deal with negativity, letting us learn and grow – embracing all things with positivity.  As we embrace our power over ourselves and remove the stumbling blocks we learn how to stop falling but bound high into inner peace and a life lived at our full capacity.

Love and blessings,

Susan xx

Gratitude – One Of The Most Powerful Tools We Have

“Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.”
― Marcel Proust

Gratitude is one of the most powerful forces in our lives.  It has the power to eclipse negativity and to transform it.  It has the power to show us the beauty present in our own lives and to remind us to thank those who make our lives what they are.  What are you grateful for today?

Living a grateful life doesn’t require that you thank people profusely for every single thing they do, it’s a life of little but meaningful actions.  A quick thanks there and there to the people or even the forces that have helped you along your journey expresses your gratitude perfectly.   Two or three minutes of silent reflection in the morning or the evening also allows you to silently share gratitude and reflect on your day or life.  There is so much of our lives we can find gratitude in.

People like to be appreciated and so the gratitude spreads, improving the days of everyone.  This reflection also allows you to celebrate the good in your day and embrace gratitude’s transformational power over negative events.

Family, friends and strangers – all of these can improve our days by giving us things to be grateful for and we can in turn improve theirs by sharing our gratitude with them.

Here is a wonderful gratitude prayer to leave you with.

Love and blessings,

Susan xx

Be Thankful
Be thankful that you don’t already have everything you desire,
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?

Be thankful when you don’t know something
For it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations
Because they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be thankful for each new challenge
Because it will build your strength and character.

Be thankful for your mistakes
They will teach you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you’re tired and weary
Because it means you’ve made a difference.

It is easy to be thankful for the good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are
also thankful for the setbacks.

GRATITUDE can turn a negative into a positive.
Find a way to be thankful for your troubles
and they can become your blessings.
~ Author Unknown ~