#7 Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God.
It is only one who is free of any tendency towards hard-heartedness, retaliation, vindictiveness, greed or anger, and who can show mercy to all peoples, who can be a peacemaker, because the peacemaker is one who brings together disconnected groups. We can't take sides if we are to be a peacemaker. We must see all as children of the Source, without judgement, and without favour.
"Keep your heart pure. A pure heart is necessary to see God in each other. If you see God in each other, there is love for each other, then there is peace," (Saint) Mother Teresa of Calcutta.
And this naturally leads us to the next beatitude, which we will also consider today, "blessed are the peacemakers".
What's the meaning of Peacemaker?
A Peacemaker is a person who brings about Real Peace, especially by reconciling adversaries. In this spiritual context, we are not talking about a passing peace of the world, but rather an entry gate to the great inner Peace, the Ananda. We speak of Peacemakers, in this spiritual context, with a capital P, and as distinct from worldly forms of peacemaking, which nonetheless may be linked to the Great Peace.
As Lord Jesus said: "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid" (John 14:27).
What's the opposite?
The opposite of being a peacemaker is to be an instigator, agitator, or a troublemaker; this can be evident in various ways, including through gossip, half-truth, character insult, racism, sexism, innuendo, disrespect and harassment.
That level of peace though, is the passing peace of the world; it is not Real, so too its opposite is not Real (it has a beginning and an end).
The True Peace is the nature of the Divine, which is free of all dvanda (pairs of opposites). The Divine Peace is without beginning or end, it is Saccidananda, the nature of our True Self. Through purification we uncover this True Self and limitless Peace.
To reiterate the words from an article above: "Father Cantalamessa said secular movements for justice and nonviolence use the beatitude, "Blessed are the peacemakers," but too few people realize the social impact that would come from following the call for purity of heart, a call to live the values one preaches."
If we try to be a peacemaker in the world without first having developed the earlier virtues listed in the beatitudes, including purity of heart, we risk again acting from a place other than right motivation.
What's to be renounced?
To be a peacemaker one must renounce the self-centred desires for power and positions of prestige, and also passion. The lyrics of the song "Imagine" by John Lennon, who was shot dead, are the words of a Peacemaker.
The Peace-maker is amongst the most powerful, passionate and revered of people, as s/he becomes an instrument of the Divine.
Indian Saints
According to Swami Prabhavananda, being a Peacemaker (#7) is another fruit of increasing union with God. To explain, Swami Prabhavananda quotes from the scripture, the Bhagavata Purana: "He in whose heart God has become manifest brings peace, and cheer, and delight wherever he goes." (See Francis X. Clooney's writings for more reflections).
For Swami Sivananda, this beatitude is sub-titled "Children of God". "He who brings peace works in unison with the Divine Law. He is therefore worthy of being called a real child of God. For, he has inherited the divine qualities of the Lord in the fullest measure."
The nature of God – Saccidananda - is Peace (ananda).
What does it mean to be "children of God"?
To live from the True Self and be instruments of Peace in the world, is to be like God. We are living from the universal consciousness and moving towards union with the Divine. As Peacemakers we are truly offspring of the Source.
The story of Malala – Nobel Peace laureate.
In 2012, Malala was shot by the Taliban in Pakistan. In 2014 she received the Nobel Peace prize.
In the last paragraph of her autobiography she wrote these words, as a child of God: "I love my God. I thank my Allah. I talk to God all day. God is the greatest. By giving me this height to reach people, God has also given me great responsibilities. Peace in every home, every street, every village, every country – this is my dream."
Next talk:
In the next and last talk in the series "The Blessed Ones", we will look at the eighth beatitude: "Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
YOU ARE READING
The Blessed Ones
SpiritualIn this series of nine talks, we contemplate the Beatitudes from the perspective of Indian spirituality. We also link each beatitude to current day events and how the virtues can be practiced in our daily lives of work and family. The first talk is...
