Peace Cannot Be Purchased.It Cannot Be Forced

Added: 2026-05-19

[00:00:00]Vesak is not only a celebration for Buddhists.

[00:00:05]It is also an opportunity for humanity to reflect deeply upon the condition of our world, our societies, and most importantly, the conditions of our own hearts and minds.

[00:00:26]In today's world, technologies and sciences have made remarkable developments.

[00:00:35]We can communicate across continents within seconds.

[00:00:41]We can cure diseases that were once fatal.

[00:00:46]We have built powerful system of great complexity and efficiency.

[00:00:53]Yet, despite all this progress, many people continue to suffer her deeply.

[00:01:05]We see conflict amongst nations, divisions among communities, fear among neighbors, loneliness amongst individuals, and emotional suffering quietly carried within millions of hearts.

[00:01:24]Many people long for peace, yet struggle for to find peace within themselves.

[00:01:32]This is why the teachings of the Buddha remain profoundly relevant today.

[00:01:38]The Buddha taught that peace does not begin in governments or institutions alone.

[00:01:45]Peace begins within the human mind.

[00:01:49]A restless mind creates sufferings.

[00:01:53]An angry mind creates divisions. A fearful mind creates harm, but a compassionate mind creates healing.

[00:02:05]A mindful heart creates understanding, and a peaceful individual can help transform families, communities, and even nations.

[00:02:17]In Buddhism, we are taught that hatred cannot end hatred.

[00:02:24]Only compassion can end hatred. Only understanding can overcome fear, and only wisdom can guide humanity away from suffering.

[00:02:36]This truth remains as important today as it was thousands of years ago.

[00:02:46]In our modern world, many people are searching for happiness in external things, status, wealth, recognition, or power.

[00:02:59]Yet, often even after achieving these things, the hearts remain unsettled.

[00:03:10]Why?

[00:03:12]Because lasting peace cannot be purchased.

[00:03:17]It cannot be forced.

[00:03:20]It must be cultivated carefully through mindfulness, compassion, patience, and loving kindness.

[00:03:30]Peace is not passive.

[00:03:34]Peace is a practice.

[00:03:38]Peace is how we speak to one another.

[00:03:42]Peace is how leaders use their influence.

[00:03:47]Peace is how communities care for the vulnerable.

[00:03:52]Peace is how we treat all beings and nature itself.

[00:03:59]A peaceful world cannot be created by hearts filled with anger, greed, or hatred.

[00:04:09]For this reason, inner transformation is not separate from global transformation.

[00:04:16]They are deeply connected.

[00:04:19]When we heal ourselves, we begin to heal the world around us.

[00:04:26]Peace must become action. Peace must walk among the people step by step, person by person, nation by nation.

[00:04:43]Peace is built gradually through conscious actions. No less than peace can emerge from hatred or violence.

[00:04:54]True peace is built through understanding, patience, dialogue, and compassion.

[00:05:01]Today, our world also faces another challenge, disconnection.

[00:05:10]Although humanity is more digitally digitally connected than ever before, many people feel emotionally isolated.

[00:05:22]We have witnessed this many times at our temple in Fort Worth, Texas, and as well as on our waffle piece.

[00:05:33]Young people, especially, are growing up in a world filled with noise, pressure, competition, and constant distraction.

[00:05:47]Many are searching for meaning.

[00:05:49]Many are silent struggling with anxiety, loneliness, and hopelessness.

[00:05:58]This is why compassion and mindfulness are no longer optional values for humanity.

[00:06:09]They are essential.

[00:06:12]If we teach children how only how to compete, but not how to care for one another, we risk creating a productive yet suffering world.

[00:06:27]We must teach future generations not only intelligence, but mindfulness.

[00:06:35]Not only ambitions, but kindness.

[00:06:40]Not only achievement, but humanity.

[00:06:45]This responsibility belongs not only to governments or religious institutions.

[00:06:53]It belongs to all of us.

[00:06:56]Every parent, every teacher, every leader, every community, every nation.

[00:07:09]The Buddha's teachings remind us that every human beings possesses the capacity for compassion.

[00:07:21]Regardless of nationality, religions, race, language, or social status, all people wish to live free from suffering.

[00:07:33]All people wish to feel safe, valued, and loved.

[00:07:39]For this reason, interfaith understanding and mutual respect are deeply important in our world today.

[00:07:49]Different traditions may use different words, symbols, and practice.

[00:07:59]Yet many spiritual path ultimately encourage compassion, peace, humanity, service, and respect for life.

[00:08:09]We must learn not only to tolerate one another, but to genuinely genuinely listen to one another.

[00:08:18]Our future depends upon our ability to recognize our shared humanity.

[00:08:26]The world does not need more hatred.

[00:08:30]The world does not need more greed.

[00:08:35]The world does not need more violence.

[00:08:39]The world needs compassion.

[00:08:43]The world needs wisdom.

[00:08:46]The world needs healing.

[00:08:49]The world needs peace.

[00:08:53]As Buddhist, we are also reminded to extend compassion beyond humanity itself.

[00:09:01]We must protect nature.

[00:09:06]We must care for the animals.

[00:09:09]We must recognize the deep interconnection of all life.

[00:09:15]From a Buddhist perspective, all sentient beings share the experience of fear, pain, and the desire to live.

[00:09:28]Animals, like humans, seek safety, comfort, and freedom from suffering.

[00:09:38]Yet, in many parts of the world today, countless animals endure suffering through neglect, exploitation, and unnecessary harm.

[00:09:52]An industrial system of food production, experimentation, and entertainment often treat animals as objects rather than living beings.

[00:10:06]When we reflect deeply, we begin to see that compassion cannot be selective.

[00:10:15]If compassion is genuine, it is naturally extend beyond human boundaries.

[00:10:23]To cultivate kindness towards animals is not separate from cultivating kindness towards humans.

[00:10:33]It is part of the same moral and spiritual development.

[00:10:39]When we harm other beings unnecessarily, unnecessarily, we also lose our own sensitivity.

[00:10:49]When we protect life, we refine our awareness and strengthen our capacity for empathy.

[00:11:00]The Buddha's teachings of non-harming invites us to expand our circle of care as widely as possible.

[00:11:11]To understand that To understand that all life is interconnected is true wisdom.

[00:11:19]Caring for animals is therefore not a secondary concern.

[00:11:25]It is part of cultivating a peaceful world.

[00:11:31]A society that respect lives in all its form is a society that moves closer to true harmony.

[00:11:42]At the same time, our responsibility extends to the environment that sustains all beings.

[00:11:50]The Earth is not separate from us.

[00:11:54]It is the condition to our survival.

[00:11:59]When nature is degraded, all beings suffer.

[00:12:06]When ecosystem collapse, human society also become unstable.

[00:12:15]When humanity lives without mindfulness towards the environment, suffering eventually follows for all beings.

[00:12:27]Please know that caring for the Earth is also an act of great compassion.

[00:12:34]Today, here at the United Nations, I believe there is still reason for hope.

[00:12:43]Hope exists whenever human beings choose kindness over hatred.

[00:12:53]Hope exists whenever nation choose dialogue over conflict.

[00:13:00]Hope exists whenever communities come together in mutual respect.

[00:13:08]And hope exists whenever humanity remembers that peace begins within.

[00:13:17]On this sacred day of Vesak, may we reflect not only upon the enlightenment of the Buddha, but also upon our own responsibility to bring greater compassion into the world.

[00:13:39]And so, during the peace walk in the United States and the Sri Lanka, the message that I always share is always about peace and mindfulness.

[00:13:56]After all these, if we cannot cultivate on mindfulness, if we cannot practice mindfulness in this busy world, we are way too busy chasing the outside world, chasing the materialities and so on.

[00:14:17]For that reason, we have forgotten ourself.

[00:14:23]And we always react when things happen.

[00:14:27]When anything happen to us, we always react with hatred, with angers.

[00:14:34]That is why we suffer.

[00:14:40]And in order for us to end this suffer, there's no other ways beside practicing mindfulness to manage our emotion.

[00:14:53]Once we be able to manage our emotion, sufferings will should be softened.

[00:15:05]If we can just take 1 hour per day to practice the breathing in and out within our nostril, aware of each breath going in and out, and be mindful with all thoughts, all words and actions throughout the day.

[00:15:29]Our days will be so much meaningful and beautiful.

[00:15:34]Let's say we are working every single day in the office at least 8 hours per day of working.

[00:15:43]We can also practice mindfulness while we work.

[00:15:49]Let's say 1 hour passed by of working.

[00:15:52]You can just take 1 minute.

[00:15:56]Close [snorts] your eyes and relax and cultivate on that breathing. Be mindful with each breath going in and out. Just 1 minute and then go back to work. And then every hour passed by, just take 1 minute to do that.

[00:16:13]And do one thing at a time instead of multitasking ourself.

[00:16:19]If we can do that every day and plus our mind is like a monkey that I always share that um if we have nothing to for the mind to do, it will pick up all the trash to chew it over and over.

[00:16:36]Trash are those angry things, unhappy unhappy, suffer, so on.

[00:16:45]Those I call trash because they are not usable. They are not beneficial for us.

[00:16:53]When our mind is empty, it's automatically picking up all those trash to think it over and over. That is when we are overwhelmed with thoughts and then we suffer.

[00:17:07]For that reasons, I encourage all of us and all the people in this world to practice mindfulness.

[00:17:18]Mindfulness isn't for Buddhists, it's for all all beings, all human beings to practice.

[00:17:27]Because it's within our breath.

[00:17:31]So, every day in the morning when we wake up, if we let ourselves using the cell phone, doing something else without our practicing the mindfulness, then our day will be just back to normal, back to the old days again.

[00:17:54]But if when we wake up in the morning, we make our bed, and then we write out the message, the statement, say, "Today is going to be my peaceful day."

[00:18:09]A very simple statement, but it's very powerful that it reminds us throughout the day.

[00:18:17]"Today is going to be a my peaceful day." Just get a piece of paper and a pen out and write that down.

[00:18:24]After you write that down, use our eyes to read it over and over. When our eyes and our mind is pairing with each other, that is when we practice mindfulness.

[00:18:39]And then after reading that with our eyes, now we read it out loud with our mouth to tell the universe that today is going to be my peaceful day, so that no one in this world can mess it up.

[00:18:54]No one can mess it up except ourselves.

[00:18:58]If we choose our day to be peaceful, regardless of what coming towards us, if we still be able to manage our emotion, our day will still be peaceful.

[00:19:13]Let's just say all the human being in this nation, in this universe, in this world repeat this message every single morning.

[00:19:27]What is going What's going to happen if all of us spread that peace message to the universe?

[00:19:35]It's because we've been spreading hate.

[00:19:38]We've been spreading anger, hatred, delusion, greedy, and so much to the universe. That is why we receive back with all kind of disasters.

[00:19:52]Disaster is not ended yet. It's still increasing every single day if we are not mindful and we still spreading hate and delusion and anger to the universe.

[00:20:08]For that reason, if we all can just practice this one simple statement every single morning today is going to be my peaceful day.

[00:20:20]If we can just say that out loud to the universe and I truly believe that universe will receive that energy and shower back down with love and kindness and and peace.

[00:20:38]That is when this world will be bloom with peace and flourish throughout this universe.

[00:20:47]So, I wish that um during this Vesak day this message, the message of mindfulness that the Buddha taught us for very long time now is the time for all of us to reflect that take that into action.

[00:21:09]To save our life.

[00:21:11]To save our families.

[00:21:14]Our neighbors, community, our nation, and our world.

[00:21:19]Peace can only spread once we are mindful, once we are at peace.

[00:21:28]We cannot expect the world to be at peace when we are filled with angers and delusions.

[00:21:37]So, let us all practice this statement every day to make our day peaceful and to make our nation, our world be at peace. Namo Buddhaya. Thank you.

[00:21:50]Namo Buddhaya, Namo Dhammaya, Namo Sanghaya.

[00:21:54]Dear friends in Dhamma, we are truly living in the blessed era of the Buddha's teachings. More than 2,600 years ago, the Buddha revealed to the world the importance of mental discipline, mindfulness, and inner purity.

[00:22:08]Even today, those timeless teachings continue to guide countless lives toward peace and wisdom.

[00:22:15]As a humble monk walking on the path shown by the Buddha, my sincere hope each day is to bring small drops of Dhamma into your life.

[00:22:24]Teachings that can calm the mind, strengthen the heart, and illuminate the path we walk together.

[00:22:30]Today's Dhamma message is this. Do not allow others to pollute your mind.

[00:22:35]In our daily lives, we meet many different people and situations. Some bring kindness and joy, while others bring anger, disappointment, criticism, or pain.

[00:22:46]But the Buddha taught us that allowing these external conditions to disturb and darken our minds only creates suffering within ourselves.

[00:22:55]The Blessed One declared, "Akhataro Tathagata."

[00:22:59]The Tathagatas only show the way. The Buddha can guide us. The Dharma can illuminate the path. The Sangha can encourage us. But the responsibility of walking the path belongs to each one of us. We should not destroy our inner peace because of a spouse, children, relatives, neighbors, or anyone else.

[00:23:20]Every person carries their own karma, their own thoughts, and their own journey.

[00:23:25]We came into this world alone, and ultimately, we must walk the path of liberation through our own understanding and effort.

[00:23:35]Therefore, protect the purity of your mind. Do not let hatred enter because of another person's anger.

[00:23:44]Do not let jealousy arise because of another person's success.

[00:23:48]Do not allow your peace to be stolen by temporary situations.

[00:23:53]A calm and pure mind is one of the greatest blessings in life.

[00:23:58]May all of you cultivate mindfulness, patience, loving-kindness, and wisdom.

[00:24:04]May your hearts remain peaceful amidst the changing world.

[00:24:08]And may the light of Dharma guide you toward true happiness and liberation.

[00:24:13]Sadhu. Sadhu. Sadhu.