Peace | Rohini Ross

Looking Toward Your True Nature For No Good Reason

I’m sitting on our sage living room couch that has seen better days, but with two teenagers still living at home, I am going to hold off on getting a new one. The spills and stains that show up after friends’ visits or the occasional party don’t bother me that way. My legs are stretched out on the chaise lounge portion of the sofa. I had to look that word up. I thought it was chaise long, but I stand corrected. Our cat Twilight named by our girls when they were younger after the dusky color of the sky before...

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A Wide-Open Heart Does Not Discriminate

My heart goes out to the families and communities of the victims of the two mosque shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand. I am heartened that their government’s response is to immediately commit to making changes to their gun laws.  The Islamophobia that fueled the terrorist attacks in New Zealand makes life uncertain and unsafe for Muslims everywhere.   If you want to support grassroots Muslim led organizations working to the support the rights, safety, and dignity of Muslims in the US please click here. Also, Jewish groups in Pittsburgh are also supporting the New Zealand families reciprocating the kindness that was shown to...

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Wishing You A Heart Filled With Gratitude!

Wishing you a Happy Holiday Season, and a Happy Christmas Eve for those who are celebrating!   I am having a quiet time over the winter break. It has been a very full year. I am very grateful for all that has unfolded. I am also reminded, however, of how I can overdo it. I am much better than I used to be in this regard, but when my back went out last week I got a not so gentle reminder to rest.   It is my intention to rest over the break. To have a quiet stay-cation and get cozy with Angus. Our...

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Letting Go of Judgment and World Peace: What Do They Have in Common?

Grief shook my foundation. It left me feeling foggy. My days felt like they were moving in slow motion. My energy seemed to be sapped out of me. Even my physical self felt less solid. It was like my joints were more loosely connected. I felt less held together in all ways. One of the blessings of this disruption was becoming more of a witness to my habitual thoughts. I didn't realize how much I thought about Bella through out the day and how much of a place she held in my life. I know the loss of a dog is...

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The Problem is Fear. The By-Product is Violence. The Solution is Love.

The enemy is fear. We think it is hate; but it is fear. ~ Gandhi   I remember waiting on the platform of the underground in London when the station was flooded with skinheads. I felt fear and did my best to be as unobtrusive as possible. I know not all skinheads are fascist neo-Nazi’s, but I was afraid. I was no longer with people on the platform. I was with an “other” that scared me.   As I watched the news of the violence in Charlottesville, and heard about more upcoming white supremacist marches across the United States, I felt disturbed and sad....

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Deep Peace Cannot be Destroyed — Not even by Teenagers

I was participating in the Global Peace & Love Meditation on Sunday facilitated by Julianne Chazotte. While listening to her guided meditation, I was filled with deep feelings of love and peace. It felt so blissful. I thought about the simplicity of every person on the planet feeling these beautiful feelings and connecting with the oneness and universality of the human experience. I saw how world peace is possible. No sooner did I have that thought, I remembered how I had not been feeling particularly peaceful lately with regard to my two daughters. I thought, "How can world peace be...

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Reflections on Love and Unity on Presidents’ Day in the U.S.

There is only one religion, the religion of love. There is only one language, the language of the heart. There is only one race, the human race ~ Sai Baba   Today is President's Day in the United States. It started out as a holiday commemorating George Washington's birthday on February 22nd, and was later moved to the third Monday in February to celebrate all presidents past and present. I choose this day to speak of love and unity.   There is tremendous division, anger, and upset over the current state of American politics both nationally and internationally. I have my Canadian and European friends...

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Love Trumps Hate!

I just got back from the LA Women's March. What an adventure! It started with the best laid plans going awry. I was traveling to downtown LA with my youngest daughter, our neighbors, who are good friends, husband and wife and their daughter, and another of my daughter's friends. We thought we were smart in deciding to take the end of the line North Hollywood Metro to Pershing Square. The difficulty finding parking should have given me a warning to how crowded the Metro would be. When we got the station the crowd was enormous.   We managed to descend the staircase...

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Let the Example of Martin Luther King Jr. Point Us in the Direction of Love and Justice

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. -- Martin Luther King, Jr.   Today is Martin Luther King Jr. day in the United States. It is a holiday that commemorates Dr. King's life and work. He lead a movement for racial justice and equality, and embraced nonviolent action as a powerful revolutionary force for social change. He employed Gandhi's philosophy of nonviolence as the means to confront racist laws and discrimination in America. His work made a significant contribution to President Lyndon Johnson signing into law the historic Civil Rights...

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History Lessons From My Father and the One Solution for World Peace

My father was born in Jaffna, Ceylon in 1939. Ceylon was under British rule at the time and did not become Sri Lanka until 1972. While on vacation in Sri Lanka over the winter break, I asked my father about the civil war in his homeland and whether or not he thought the issues between the Tamils and the Sri Lankan government have been resolved. Sadly my father was not hopeful.   Over the course of our trip, my father shared an abridged version of his understanding of Sri Lankan history with me and his own story. It was on beautiful beaches,...

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