Peace
From ArticleWorld
Peace and its value can lead to different interpretations and rational communities may hold entirely opposing views on what they think they mean by peace. Alhough the essential dictionary meaning of peace - quietude and tranquility - is agreed upon by every one in the world, one person’s peace may mean another person’s war; indeed, people strive to attain peace and wonder if it can ever be realized.
Meaning of peace
The concept of peace changes according to circumstances and situations as well as regions. To a warring nation it may mean end of war, to a city dweller it may mean an afternoon away in the mountains with no noise, trouble or hard work, to a young mother it may mean to be live in the midst of all that and still have serenity of heart.
In it most used and clichéd application, peace means no war. Thus, countries like Switzerland and Sweden may be said to be the most peaceful on earth since they have remained neutral through the major wars. Some thinkers have described peace as elimination of violence and evil; Martin Luther King Jr. defining it as justice and equality for all within a nation, a society without oppression of one group by the other.
There is also the concept of continuous peace which, like happiness, consists of small moments and unlike the belief in a singular, coherent definition of peace rather believes in a harmonious balance between everything in nature – a balance between all living creatures and their environment.
Peace may also be said to be a state of mind, a mindset and inner condition which does not get dislodged with exogenous incidents. Environmentalists of course consider protection of all living creatures as the epitome of peace.
Some notable Nobel Peace laureates
- Theodore Roosevelt
- Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
- Mother Teresa
- Aung San Suu Kyi
- Nelson Mandela