The peace that we are looking for is not peace that crumbles as soon as there is difficulty or chaos. Whether we’re seeking inner peace or global peace or a combination of the two, the way to experience it is to build on the foundation of unconditional openness to all that arises. Peace isn’t an experience free of challenges, free of rough and smooth, it’s an experience that’s expansive enough to include all that arises without feeling threatened.

Pema Chödrön (1936-), Pema Chödrön is an American Tibetan Buddhist. She is an ordained nun, and disciple of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Chödrön has written several dozen books and is principal teacher at Gampo Abbey in Nova Scotia, Canada.