One very important element of achieving both inner peace and world peace that’s not often spoken of in the context of peace, is the humane and compassionate treatment of animals. All aspects of life are interconnected and are part of a greater web of life. We as human beings are part of the natural world on Earth. We are also strongly connected to the animals of the planet. Human beings have historically treated animals with immense cruelty for many millennia. I suppose that’s really no surprise when we consider the fact that we have treated each other the same way. Cruelty, meanness and abuse are definitely not agents of peace.
We as humans tend to believe that we have come a long way in regards becoming more civilized, and in many ways that’s true. Yet, still there’s a prevailing abuse of animals for profit, food, sport, tradition and yes, even as pets many of them get horribly mistreated. Poor treatment of animals being raised for food, and the abuses animals must endure in the name of science or sport are absolutely heart-breaking. One of the procedures used in science is called vivisection. This is the surgical cutting apart of live animals, and it’s often done without any anesthetics.
Hugh Lord Dowding, who was an exceptional human being, addressed the House of Lords in England on July 18, 1957 and concluded his speech by saying (quoted from “The New Science of the Spirit” by David A. Ash):
All life is one and all its manifestations with which we have contact are climbing the ladder of evolution… It is an important part of our responsibilities to help them in their ascent, and not to retard their development by cruel exploitation of their helplessness.
What I am now saying, if people would realise it, is of great practical importance, because failure to recognise our responsibilities towards the animal kingdom is the cause of many of the calamities which behest the nations of the world. Nearly all of us have a deep-rooted wish for peace – peace on Earth; but we shall never attain to true peace – the peace of love, and not the uneasy equilibrium of fear – until we recognise the place of animals in the scheme of things and treat them accordingly.
Most people will become stressed if they, or anyone else they see or know, is cruel, mean or inhumane to any animal. Yet, this stress is often not even recognized by these same people because they push it aside and rationalize and justify what happened in their minds in various ways. This type of stress is generated from deep within our bodies. Our bodies KNOW they’re connected to and interdependent with all of life… that is the body’s natural state of existence.
For years I did work with a type of biometric equipment that was produced by the Institute of HeartMath®, which I had been certified by for this purpose. To make a long story short, people generally sought to go through the Voyage to Heart Intelligence® program that I was certified to provide by HeartMath® because they wished to be more empowered in their lives in various ways. However, what they all discovered along the way was just how much stress they had been living with. Once you have a tool for reducing or even eliminating stress, then you begin to understand how much of it had slowly crept in under the carpet so to speak.
I relate this only because it speaks to how people can be stressed about various things and not even know it. Whether we are aware of it or not, that stress robs us of our inner peace and our energy. If it’s robbing us of our peace, then it’s also robbing the world of peace, especially when the majority of the people in the world are in similar states.
Therefore, kindness to animals can in fact be a type of therapy that brings you into a deeper state of inner peace and which promotes world peace. The animals that are receiving your kindness, love and compassion also benefit greatly and feel more at peace in themselves. Other people and animals will sense this deeper state of peace and relax a bit more too. Therefore, every time you treat an animal with kindness, respect, love or compassion… you are in fact doing a lot to help promote world peace too. So be kind to animals FREQUENTLY!
Go out of your way to find animals needing some love and kindness. Become pro-active in ending abusive animal practices. Notice how when you do these things that you feel so much more peaceful inside too! Make an intention to send your newfound peace out to all animals and all people everywhere!
Please let us know your views on how humane and compassionate treatment of animals is important to peace below!