Should Trump Meditate?

I’m very concerned about the lack of peace in our country and in our world, and I’m surely not alone. So I started to write an article about how our country’s political climate might change if Hillary, Bernie, Donald and Ted would begin to meditate. But then I had a change of heart.

I realized that was the wrong approach for several reasons. First, for all I know, these candidates may have a more solid meditation practice than I do. (Okay, that's unlikely - but possible!) And second, I could spend far more time in meditation than I already do, so perhaps I ought to focus on "trumping up" (no pun intended) my own practice. How might that add more peace into our world?

Telling our presidential candidates to meditate more and campaign less would be throwing the blame on other people and taking it off myself. Expressing my anger at a particular candidate and getting into lengthy rants with others to trash them is only contributing to the chaos.

The more time I spend watching debates and town halls, the angrier I get and that creates more internal chaos. This not only takes time away from meditation, it makes it harder to connect to stillness when my system is still reeling from rage. Sometimes I’ve even skipped meditation to watch another debate.

When it comes right down to it, it’s none of my business whether presidential candidates meditate or not. It’s not within my control. What is within my control is cultivating my own sense of inner peace, which I find most readily on the yoga mat or meditation cushion.

Since I don’t have plans to run for office, organize a rally or even attend one, what can I do beyond complain and create more war within myself and around me? I can hold my own rallies for peace every week in my yoga classes. I can help one body at a time experience more peace on the mat.

I see many people helping others to experience more peace in their own unique ways, ways that our culture may not honor or consider to be a political movement, but they really are.

Like the grandparents that provide a calm port in the sea of activities that their grandkids’ lives are made of, there are many, many ways to help our world experience more peace. The responsibility is on every one of us, not just those running for president.