Peace Ideas - Issue No. 78

No.

78

peace ideas

‘’If five percent of the people work for peace, there will be peace.’’

A Quarterly Publication of the Peace Center Theosophical Society in the Philippines, 1 Iba Street, Quezon City, Philippines

Tel. No. 741-5740; Fax: 740-3751; E-mail address: philtheos@gmail.com; Webpage: http://www.theosophy.ph

Self-Improvement ________

Let Your Light Shine Jesus Christ once said to his followers, "You are the light of the world," reminding them that love, wisdom, compassion, and joy are all in man's true nature.

That said, we should not let the light of our true loving nature shine only during Christmas day, for we need to love each other the whole year through. Here are a few tips from Victor Parachin, an ordained minister and author of 365 Good Reasons to Be a Vegetarian and a dozen other books, for "letting your light shine": 1. Commit yourself to being a 200-watt light bulb rather than a nightlight. Do not allow, say, fear or feelings of inadequacy to prevent you from manifesting your true loving nature. Be inspired by the joy you will give to others when you show love to them.

2. Use your light to bless your part of the world. Wherever you are, you can always make a difference. Give your seat to a lady in the bus. Give your neighbor a hand. Hug a loved one or pet.

3. Remember that small actions can create a large impact.

Smile. Say a kind word. Every act of love and kindness counts.

4. Let your light shine when noone is looking. The love that truly shines is that which comes from the heart and not that which is shown to attract attention to oneself.

Source: Victor Parachin, "Let Your Light Shine," Pure Inspiration Anniversary Issue (Fall, 2009)

Inner Peace __________________________________

Habits of Supremely Happy People In his 2004 TED talk, Martin Seligman, considered today as the father of positive psychology, pointed out that people try to live happy lives through pleasure (ma te rial en joy ment, lei sure, etc.), engagement (work, parenting, etc.) and meaning (higher purpose, spirituality, etc.). People who derive their happiness from the last two enjoy more lasting happiness. They share many common habits some of which are: they-· surround themselves with other happy people. They know joy is contagious. · cultivate resilience. They bounce back from failure. · appreciate simple pleasures.

They find meaning in and are grateful for little things. · devote time to giving. They allow altruism to give them that "helper's high." · let themselves lose track of

· · · · · · · · · · ·

time. They easily get into that peak state called "flow." nix the small talk for deeper conversation. They talk about what makes them tick. make it a point to listen.

They are not self-centered because they are secure. value personal interactions over digital communication. look on the bright side.

They know all difficulties pass away. enjoy listening to music, especially happy music. unplug and give time for digital detox. get spiritual, meditate, etc. make exercise a priority. go outside. They love to connect with nature. spend enough time on the pillow and sleep well. laugh a lot. They get the most of endorphin boosts.

Source: Kate Bratskeir, "The Habits of Supremely Happy People" The Huffington Post (Sept. 16, 2013)

Inside ____________________________________ World Population Clock: the Staggering Numbers Is Violence a Contagious Disease?

Teaching Your Kids That Silence is Golden To Text or Not to Text The Zen of Cooking Should Students Spend More Time on Music?

Thinking Angry? Think Again

Why Retaliating is Not a Wise Thing to Do How to Feel More Love in Your Life Know How Much Water is on Your Plate Healing the Wounds of the Earth Climate Change: a Global Security Threat And More…

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Peace Ideas, No. 78

Peace Advocacy _________ Outer Peace___________________________________

More Guns, World Population Clock: More Killings The Staggering Numbers The National Rifle Association --the powerful pro-gun lobby that is always having its way in the US legislature--still insists that the best way to protect schoolchildren and other civilians from mass shooters is to arm more "good guys" with guns even though statistics for the last 30 years show that: · in not a single case has a killing been stopped by a civilian using a gun! · in other recent (but less lethal) rampages in which armed civilians attempted to intervene, the civilians not only failed to stop the shooter but also were gravely wounded or killed! · the rate of mass shootings has increased in recent years—at a time when millions of additional firearms have been sold in the US (mass shootings have increased from five a year between 2000 and 2008 to 16 a year from 2009 to 2012!).

The truth is that scientific studies have consistently shown that places with more guns have more violent deaths, both homicides and suicides.

Sources: http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/09/mass-shootings-investigation; http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/01/02/3113171/mass-shootings-speeding/

peace ideas No. 78 A quarterly publication of the Peace Center of the Theosophical Society in the Philippines, 1 Iba Street, Quezon City, Philippines. The Theosophical Society is a non-profit, non-sectarian organization dedicated to the promotion of universal brotherhood without distinction of creed, caste, sex or color.

It is hard not to get alarmed when you watch how rapidly numbers go up on a live worldpopulation-growth counter (see http://www.worldometers.info/w orld-population/) while knowing that the world's supply of natural resources is limited and present global human consumption already exceeds the capacity of the biosphere. Our world cannot live in peace while people fight over dwindling re sources and yet, World Population Clock statistics show that -· More than 206,000 people are added to the global population every day. · The annual rise in the global population is more than 75 million or the equivalent of the entire UK population. · During the 20th century alone, the population in the world has grown from 1.65 billion to more than 6 billion. · The global population is expected to reach 8 billlion in 2024 and 9 billion in 2050.

Although the world population is expected to stabilize at 10 billion before the end of the century, the worsening overpopulation problem will aggravate all our environmental problems including those that threaten the very survival of the human race like climate change and mass extinction.

Peace Ideas seeks to disseminate workable ideas that will promote lasting peace and universal brotherhood. Contributions from readers are welcome, whether their own or clipped from their readings. Previously published materials must include name and address of publication from where the materials were taken.

The views expressed herein do not necessarily express those of the editors or the publisher.

Subscriptions: In the Philippines: P120.00 per year. Foreign: US$8.00 per year (postpaid airmail). Single copies:

Here are just a few environmental facts and stats that should help convince us of the urgent need to address the overpopulation problem adequately: · 50-80% of all living species will be extinct by the end of the century if the present trend of human-induced global warming continues. · One billion people, or one out of every seven people alive, go to bed hungry. Every day, 25,000 people (18,000 of whom are children) die of malnutrition and hunger-related diseases. · More than one billion people lack access to sufficient water. By 2025, around 2 billion will live in absolute water scarcity and two-thirds of the world population will live in conditions of water shortage. · Oil has taken between 50-300 million years to form, and yet we have already burned half of all oil reserves in merely 125 years or so. It is estimated that we will run out of oil between 2025 and 2070. · Severe conflict over resources in the decades ahead brought about by overpopulation, overconsumption and climate change is expected.

Sources:http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/; howmany.org/environmental_and_social_ills.php; graphs.net/global-water-crisis-stats.htm; www.carboncounted.co.uk/when-will-fossil-fuels-run-out.htmll

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E-mail address: philtheos@gmail.com Editor: Joselito B. Cendaña Editorial Staff: Vicente R. Hao Chin, Jr., Estrellita V. Gruenberg, Jenifer Aposaga

© Copyright 2014 by The Theosophical Society in the Philippines. Permission to reprint is granted provided

Peace Ideas, No. 78

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Peace Perspective _______________________________ Interpersonal Relationships

Is Violence a Contagious Disease?

Recent scientific studies have shown that violence is contagious. But taking it one step further, Gary Slutkin M.D., a Chicago epidemiologist, says that violence is literally a contagious disease. With extensive epidemiological knowledge gained from his participation in WHO's work of reversing epidemics in Africa and other parts of the world, he points out the following pathological characteristics of violence: 1. Violence is contagious. Acts of violence are the germs, but instead of lodging in parts of the body, they lodge in the brain by causing changes in its neurological functions such that the person exposed to violence perceives threat as enhanced and violence as normal. This makes him more prone

to violence.

2. Patterns of violence are often cyclical much like disease epi dem ic s. At a mac ro scopic population level, an initial wave of violence may recede but this is followed by successive waves that result from infected individuals reaching new populations.

3. Violence can be prevented.

For example, Slutkin's highly successful, pioneering Cure Violence program stops the spread of violence in communities by using methods and strategies for controlling disease such as detecting and interrupting conflicts, identifying and treating the highest-risk individuals, and changing social norms.

Source: www.iom.edu/Activities/Global/ViolenceForum/2012-APR-30.aspx; cureviolence.org

Parenting_____________________________________

Teaching Your Kids That Silence is Golden A precious gift we can give our children is making them understand the importance of silence, and the inner stillness that lies beneath it, to physical, mental and spiritual health. Here are ways of teaching your kids that silence is golden: 1. Model both outer and inner silence. Observe periods of quiet.

Show inner calm in the face of problems. Respond with understanding and loving communication rather than an ger and scolding to bad behavior because children pick up the attitudes and habits modeled by their parents.

2. Talk with your kids about the value of stillness. Explain to them the benefits of silence to body, mind and spirit, like how it

relaxes the mind and body, and renews the spirit.

3. Teach your kids to use silence to tap inner happiness. For example, set aside times at home where no one is plugged in to anything and use the time together to meditate, read or have a quiet, meaningful conversation about the deeper realities of life.

4. Go for walks with your kids in nature and allow them to appreciate the peace of solitude and retreat — away from all the urban noise, distractions and stress. In time, teach them to enter moments of inner silence and inner retreat at any time and place.

Source: Joanne Stern, "Teaching Your Kids That Silence is Golden" (http://www.care2.com/greenliving/ teaching-your-kids-that-silence-is-golden.html; www.nextavenue.org/article/2012-02/benefits-quiet-body-mind-and-spirit)

To Text or Not to Text Texting etiquette is not yet commonplace because technology is advancing faster than we can formulate the ethics of how to use the latest gadgets. But here are some common-sense texting don'ts you can follow to avoid being rude to other people: 1. Never text while another person is speaking, unless it is extremely important. If you really have to text, offer a brief explanation at once so you do not hurt his feelings.

2. Do not text while eating or drinking with others unless you can talk about what you are texting, or it is an emergency.

3. Do not text while walking.

Step to the side to avoid causing any obstruction.

4. Do not text someone you know is driving to avoid causing harm.

5. Avoid sending too many texts to a single person. Think of each text conversation as a phone call and ask yourself whether you are imposing on the other person.

6. Remember that a reply is not always needed. It is acceptable to respond to a text message with a phone call, an e-mail message, or any other form of communication.

7. Do not send texts after bedtime unless it is an emergency or absolutely necessary.

Source: ezinearticles.com/?Texting-Etiquette---Everyone-Should-Know-These...

Peace Ideas Online Read entire issues of Peace Ideas plus outlines of essays on Self-Transformation in the Internet.

The webpage of the Theosophical Society in the Philippines can be found in: http://www.theosophy.ph/

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Peace Ideas, No. 78

Spirituality ____________ Education ____________________________________

The Zen of Cooking How about cooking in a way that is good for the soul? Here are some Zen tips for doing this: 1. Prac tice gratitude. Be thankful for the food ingredients you are about to use in your cooking, all the people involved in making them available to you, e.g., farmer, market vendor, etc., as well as the sunshine, water, and other things in nature that are involved in the manifestation of these food ingredients.

2. Practice respect. Take good care of the environment in which you prepare the food, making sure it is clean and organized. Be careful not to waste anything out of respect for the earth, the hungry and poor, and so on.

3. Practice loving-kindness.

Prepare the food with love in your heart for those who are about to eat the food you will cook. Make it a point to always think of positive thoughts.

4. Practice mindfulness. Be fully aware of each present task from moment to moment, witho u t j u d g i n g . I n c l u d e yo u r thoughts, sensations and other things that happen during your cooking, without losing focus of the present task.

Source: www.your-healthy-eating-helper.com/zen-of-cooking.html

Bulk Copies of Peace Ideas Bulk quantities of Peace Ideas either in newsprint or standard paper may be ordered at very low prices. It is a very economical way of promoting inner and outer peace. Contact the Peace Center, 1 Iba St., Quezon City, Philippines, Tel. 741-5740; Fax No. (63-2) 740-3751.

Should Students Spend More Time on Music?

An increasing number of educators are saying that music should be given a more prominent place in schools. After all, evidence show that students involved in music pro grams do better in school.

Conservative educators, however, go for the status quo, saying that academic learning is far more important than musical learning to students' future professional careers. While educators debate on this issue, neuroscientists have been shedding light on the importance of music education in school with the following findings: 1. Listening to music boosts the brain more than reading, writing, doing math problems, and so on.

Through MRI and PET scanning, neuroscientists have observed that while a specific area in the brain is involved when a person reads,

writes, and so on, music listening lights up multiple areas of the brain at once as they process the music--breaking it down into melody, harmony and rhythm and then putting them back together as a unified musical experience.

2. Playing a musical instrument boosts the brain even far more than just listening to music. While listening to music engages the brain in multiple activities, play ing mu sic is the brain's equivalent of a full body workout, as practically all areas of the brain (especially the visual, auditory and motor cortices) simultaneously process the different information they receive in intricate, interrelated, and astonishingly fast sequence.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= R0JKCYZ8hng

St. Francis of Assisi: Patron Saint of Ecology St. Francis of Assisi, the 12th-century Italian founder of the Franciscan Order, is Roman Catholicism's patron saint of ecology by decree of Pope Pius II. One of the most venerated religious figures in history, St. Francis exemplified the best attributes of what it means to be a humanitarian, animal lover, and environmentalist all at the same time, thus becoming an unintentional ecological peace advocate par excellence far ahead of his time. His circle of love and compassion included "all of God's creation"--humans (he took tender care of the poor and the sick, including lepers nobody dared to touch), animals (he loved and preached sermons to animals), and the environment (he praised all creatures and all things in nature as his brothers and sisters). It is this kind of all-encompassing love that we human beings of the present day all need to embrace if we hope to have a chance of preventing the precarious ecological condition of our planet from reaching tipping point.

Since overpopulation and overconsumption are the primary drivers of all our other ecological problems, including global warming--the greatest challenge we face today as a species--we can also learn from St. Francis' example of living happily as a renunciate. Indeed, "we need not ravage the Earth in order to become happy," we can hear him say, "for the Kingdom of Heaven that we have been looking for outside ourselves is within us!"

Peace Ideas, No. 78

Peace Practice_________________________________

Why Retaliating is Not a Wise Thing to Do Why should we respond to aggression with love and understanding rather than hatred and retaliation? Here are two good reasons supported by both religion and science: 1. Violence does not solve, but only aggravates, the problem. As the Buddha put it, "Hatred will not stop in this world by hatred but by love. This is an eternal law." Zen teacher Thich Nhat Hanh elaborates, "When another person makes you suffer, it is because he suffers deeply within himself, and his suffering is spilling over. He does not need punishment; he needs help." Modern psychologists agree with this.

And so do a growing number of political analysts. For example, Michel Rocard says that the ongo-

ing wars in Syria and Iraq would have been prevented if the US sought to improve the lives of the Arab population to ensure the continued peaceful cohabitation of religious and ethnic groups, rather than think mainly of its strategic interests. But instead, it launched destabilizing military interventions upending the fragile balance among these groups, and escalating war and violence.

2. We cannot harm others without violating ourselves because we are all one at the deepest level of our be ing. Quan tum physicist David Bohm called the field where all things are an undivided whole the "implicate order."

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Peace Quotes You can bomb the world to pieces, but you can't bomb it into peace. Power to the peaceful.

MICHAEL FRANTI

In the home begins the disruption of the peace of the world.

MOTHER TERESA

If you divide the world into them and us, and history into ours and theirs, or if you think of history as something only you and your affiliates possess, then no matter what you know, no matter how noble your intentions, you have taken one step toward the de struc tion of the world.

ROBERT BRINGHURST

Source: Michel Rocard, "Peace in an Age of Extremes" Philippine Daily Enquirer (Sept. 8, 2014)

The moment that judgment stops through acceptance of what Interpersonal Relationships _______________________ it is, you are free of the mind. You have made room for love, for joy, for peace.

How to Feel More Love in Your Life

Are there moments in your life when you feel like you are unloved? Author and relationship specialist Eve Hogan gives the follow in g thin gs-to-re m em b er which can help you find ways to feel more love in your life: 1. Love is an inside job. We tend to blame others for the lack of love in our lives. But someone could love you so much and you might still feel unloved. Or someone could not even know you exist and you could feel full of love for them. The truth is that the source of love is within you.

2. Love is your natural state.

Love is who you are on a soul level. It exists within you, totally independently of your lover or loved one. Love has little to do

with the proximity or even the existence of the other person. When you love someone and he dies or when you break up with him, love does not go away. We just block the flow of love.

3. Ego is what blocks love. Ego shows up in the need for attention and need to control due to negative childhood experiences of lack of love and security. It materializes in relationships through nagging, jealousy, judgment, disappointment, resentment, possessiveness, hurt, and so on.

4. Spiritual practice is the best way of letting go of ego pain because it connects us with our true nature of love and joy.

Source: Eve Hogan, "A Simple Practice to Make You Feel More Love in Your Life" (http://spiritualityhealth. com/blog/eve-hogan/simple-practice-feel-more-love-your-life)

ECKHART TOLLE

If in our daily life we can smile, if we can be peaceful and happy, not only we, but everyone will profit from it. This is the most basic kind of peace work.

THICH NHAT HANH

Always our wars have been our confessions of weakness.

MURIEL RUKEYSER

Is it not better for a man to die for a cause in which he believes, such as peace, than to suffer for a cause in which he does not believe, such as war?

ALBERT EINSTEIN

A vegetarian is a person who won't eat anything that can have children.

DAVID BRENNER

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Peace Ideas, No. 78

Health and Healing_______ Environment _________________________________

Hooked to Coffee?

If you are a coffee nut, you might want to know whether your coffee-drinking is just a habit--or an addiction. Laura M. Juliano, an associate professor of psychology at American University, establishes the following criteria for caffeine addiction: 1. You need to consume more and more caffeine to feel its effects.

2. You interrupt regular activities to satisfy your craving.

3. You spend a significant amount of time seeking out caffeine, consuming it, or recovering from its effects.

4. You regularly consume more caffeine than you intended to.

5. You continue using caffeine even if it causes interpersonal problems or conflicts.

Here are some quitting tips if you are hooked to coffee: 1. Know your numbers. Be aware of how many milligrams of caffeine you are consuming daily.

2. Expect fatigue and headache. These symptoms typically occur but last for only a couple of days to a week.

3. Lower your intake gradually. Caffeine withdrawal is inevitable but cutting back steadily will decrease the discomfort.

4. Try to get down to less than 50 mg a day. As little as 100 mg of caffeine per day can maintain dependence.

5. Consider decaf. But remember that even decaf contains some caffeine, so do not overdo it.

6. Rest and dis tract yourself. Meditating or picking up a new hobby can take the edge off your being hooked to coffee.

7. Redirect. For example, try taking a walk when you feel like drinking another cup.

Source: http://spiritualityhealth.com/articles/caffeine-habit-or-hooked

Know How Much Water is on Your Plate Only 2.5 percent of the Earth's water is fit for human consumption and 2/3 of it is locked in glaciers, ice caps and permanent snow. Out of this stock, 99% is deep underground in aquifiers.

The global water scarcity is such that more than a billion of the world's population lack access to safe drinking water and a child dies every minute due to a water-related illness.

So it goes without saying that every drop of water we save counts. But do you know that the water that goes into the foods we eat is about a hundred times more than we use for personal needs? Here are the water footprints of just some of the foods we eat:

· Meat-based diet: Eggs — 573 gallons Chicken — 815 gallons Cheese — 896 gallons Pork — 1630 gallons Butter — 2044 gallons Beef — 2500-5000 gallons · Vegetarian diet: Lettuce — 15 gallons Tomatoes — 22 gallons Potatoes — 30 gallons Bananas — 102 gallons Tofu — 244 gallons Rice — 403 gallons A vegetarian consumes about 600 gallons less water per day than a meat-eater (yes, 600 gallons!) — another reason why going veg is the green way to go.

Sources: www.treehugger.com/green-food/...the-water-footprint-of-your-food.html

Animal Welfare _______________________________

How to Be a Voice for the Voiceless Every single moment, countless animals around the world are being abused or forced to undergo great, if not unimaginable, suf fer ing. If only they could speak, we humans would give more attention to their desperate plight. Here are some ways you can be a voice for the voiceless: 1. Use the web. Spread awareness on social networking websites like Facebook by posting links to animal-welfare websites, together with messages that can arouse compassion for animals.

2. Distribute material. Posters, flyers and leaflets are available from many animal-welfare groups, often for free.

3. Wear your messages. You can display your messages on your clothing and accessories, on your pet's clothing and accesso-

ries, through car stickers, etc.

4. Make it a topic in school.

Use your reports, presentations, projects, etc. to raise awareness of animals' desperate plights.

5. Join peaceful demonstrations. Always remember that the most effective way to get your message across is to touch hearts so never use judgmental, accusatory or personal language.

6. Talk about it. Always be ready to give out information on, or answer questions about, animal-welfare issues. Be wary of opportunities to connect these issues with conversation topics.

7. Model compassion to animals. People admire examples of love and compassion and tend to pick them up.

Source: http://www.animal-rights-action.com/stop-animal-abuse.html

Peace Ideas, No. 78

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Parenting ___________________________________ Self-Improvement ________

Thinking Good Study Habit Twists Angry? Think You Should Know Parents normally have strong enables him to con cen trate Again opinions about how kids should better and feel more comfortstudy. If you are a parent, you may think that your kids should do their homework right after school. Or study in the same quiet place every day. Or sit until all the homework is done.

Well, parents aren’t always right. Research show that many study habits that parents teach their kids are not the best ways.

Here are some study habits recommended by research that you should consider: 1. Allow your kid to move before he studies. Maybe you tell your kid to do his homework right after he arrives home from school, but he feels like energizing himself through exercise by, say, shooting hoops or having a brisk walk around the corner. Research show that exercising for about 15 or 20 minutes gives the brain a big boost for mental work.

2. Allow your kid to pick his study spot. You may have set up a special place for your kid to study like a study room or the home library, but he feels better doing homework in the privacy of his bedrrom because there are less distractions or on the floor in the living room because he feels fresher in a setting different from the kind of sitting he does in school. His preference is good if it

able. Research also show that some kids study better when they do homework in different places just to break up the routine, and he may be one them.

3. Allow your kid to listen to music while he studies if you notice that it is good for him.

Research show that listening to music while studying has different effects on different children.

Some kids study better with music because it helps them ignore other sounds around them and keeps them going. But other kids get into the music too much that it becomes a distraction.

Observe whether your child's listening to music (preferably soft background music) while studying is beneficial and decide accordingly.

4. Allow your kid to take breaks during his study period.

Maybe you want your kid to sit and do his homework until it is done, but he feels he needs short rests once in a while. Research show that taking a short break after continuous mental work is more productive. Moving around or exercising like doing jump jacks is best for breaks.

Source: http://fit.webmd.com/kids/move/article/good-study-habits

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Anger is almost always a response to the thoughts we run through our minds when someone or something offends us. Considering that our emotional brain (limbic system) often takes over our thinking brain (neocortex) when we get angry, it should help that we calm down and ponder more deeply on whether these angry thoughts have wisdom and benefit us—or actually bring more harm than good. To do this, try following the steps below the next time you find yourself thinking angry or resentful thoughts about a person who hurt you, making sure you give ample time for each question and write down your answers on a piece of paper: 1. The first step is to ask yourself: Who am I angry at and why?

2. The second step is to ask yourself: Why should the other person say what I want him to, or behave the way I want him to?

Why do I have the right to judge his behavior? Why should he be held responsible for my feelings?

Did he intentionally inflict emotional pain upon me or am I doing it with my own thoughts?

3. The third step is to ask yourself: How might I be benefiting from my anger? What is the positive payoff on holding onto the belief on why I am angry?

4. The fourth step is to ask yourself: How is my life being damaged by holding onto the belief that this person has wronged me?

5. The fifth step is to ask yourself: How would my life change by letting go of the belief that this person has wronged me? Would it be better for my health? Would it give me peace of mind?

Source: http://www.personalgrowthapproach.com/articles/personal-development-tip-controlling-anger/

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Peace Ideas, No. 78

Interspirituality _________ Outer Peace __________________________________

Healing the Climate Change: a Wounds of Global Security Threat Defense establishments the the Sahara desert into Mali which the Earth world over increasingly see cli- contributed to the jihadist uprising In his book, The Healing Breath, roshi Ruben Habito ech oes a timeless spiritual truth that lies at the mystical core of the world's great religions by pointing out that the source of our woundedness at all levels--personal, social, ecological, and global--is a forgetfulness of our true Being and identification with a false separate self that sees "others" as objects. He gives us the following six-point recovery program for "coming home" to the one true Being we all are and "healing the wounds of the Earth": 1. Recover the Now. Here, we recover from a life in pursuit of some ideal of happiness projected somewhere "out there" in the future, realizing that true happiness can only be found in the present moment which, as Thich Nhat Hanh puts it, "is the address of the Kingdom of God." 2. Recover the body. Here, we shift from using our body for mere self-satisfaction to using it as a sacred instrument that is one with mind, spirit and the cosmos.

3. Recover our shadow. Here, we embrace that part of our self that we see as dark and negative with love and compassion.

4. Re cover the fem i nine.

Here, we transform our patriarchal cultural habits of subjugation, exploitation and violence into those of connectedness, cooperation, nurturing, and caring.

5. Recover the wonder in nature. Here, we see the natural world as our own body rather than object for use and abuse.

6. Recover and reconnect with neighbor. Here, we open our spiritual eyes to our essential connectedness with all beings.

Source: Ruben Habito, The Healing Breath (Massachusetts: Wisdom Publications, 2006)

mate change as a serious national and international security threat, according to a review of highlevel statements by the world’s governments, called "The Global Security Defense Index on Climate Change: Preliminary Results."

Re sults of recent sci en tific studies are already showing that climate change is strongly linked to increases in violence around the world, with even small changes in temperature or rainfall correlated with a rise in assaults, rapes and murders, as well as group conflicts and war.

The main mechanisms that seem to be at play are-1. Changes in economic conditions which inevitably affect people's decisions. For example, crop failures resulting from both se vere droughts (due to extremely hot weather) and flooding (due to melting glaciers and rising sea levels) in various parts of the world contributed to food shortages that helped spark popular unrest in key Arab countries, paving the way for the upheavals known as the Arab Spring. Another example is the food and water crisis brought about by the steady expansion of

in that country in 2012 and Al Qaeda's occupation of northern Mali since then.

2. The physiological effect of heat on people which make them more prone to aggression. For thousands of years, people have as so ciated hot ter weather and higher incidence of human aggression and violence both through obser vation and first-hand experience. This association is being corroborated by modern scientific studies.

As a report from the US national intelligence (DNI) put it clearly: “Extreme weather events (floods, droughts, heat waves) will increasingly disrupt food and energy markets, exacerbating state weakness, forcing human migrations, and triggering riots, civil disobedience, and vandalism.” Climate change is also a “threat multiplier” or a problem that could enhance or contribute to already existing causes of global disruption, or compound and accelerate the older threats— including that posed by the thousands of nuclear weapons still sitting so patiently in their silos.

Sources: http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-23538771; http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/03/climate-change-now-seen-as-security-threat-worldwide/ www.transworldnews.com/NewsStory.aspx?id=96262&cat =20Peace Perspective

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The Center is located at the National Headquarters of the Theosophical Society in the Philippines, 1 Iba Street,

Quezon City, Philippines.

Tel. No. 741-57-40. The Board of Trustees of the Center is composed of the following: Vicente R. Hao Chin, Jr. (Chairman), Rudy Rodil (Executive Director), Flerida Ruth P. Romero, Leticia R. Shahani, Concepcion L. Madarang, Luis Torres, Leonardo Salazar and Patricia G. Muñoz (Trustees).