! Peace of mind

I often retort with "you are using peace and mind in the same sentence" whenever anyone tells me that they seek to have "peace of mind". Oftentimes when they say this, I chuckle, go silent and give them a simple test, which till date only one person has passed (yes, I am keeping records).First off, what is it we refer to as the mind? I don't care what the dictionary calls it, because it's one of those words we tend to understand without knowing how to explain.I will make it easy for you to understand, and I will explain it, albeit in a mystical way, stripping off all the unnecessary parts.We are basically a warehouse of memories and impressions (every single living thing is). The more evolved and complex a living thing is, the more memory it has. This memory is not just about what you can physically remember, because you won't even fathom how complex of a machine you are.These memories are collected via your five senses:TouchSightSmellHearingTasteEvery memory is perceived through either of these channels.This is an example to simplify this. As a martial artist or a practitioner of any sport, you will observe that there are stages where it seems you are the god of the arena, momentarily not thinking but still getting things done. You will also notice that even as a sportsperson, it is very challenging moving to another sport, because each individual sport works on different memory (cells, muscles, tissues, etc.). This also applies to every aspect of our lives. I mean every single aspect.All this jargon is to say that you are basically a warehouse of memories, perceptions, thoughts and impressions.So, your body is the root of your problems. Hold up, chill, calm down. Do not bite me yet. Yes, your body is the root of your problems because you are a warehouse of memory. Do you know how old your DNA is? You are carrying the memories of several generations of people that you may and will never meet in your life, yet your DNA can be traced back to whichever generation researchers choose to trace it to.This is just to tell you how much biological memory you are carrying. Are we going to speak of psychological memory? Is this one not evident by now?If it is not, here is one. Humans are born with only two fears.Fear of fallingFear of loud noisesNow ask yourself how many different fears you have right now. You, yes you. How many are there now, and who manufactured them? God? The devil?All of this is simply to tell you that it is never a battle between you and the devil. It has always been about you and your mind (your collective warehouse of memories, impressions and perceptions).Now, here is the kicker. What is the sole purpose of every single life on this earth (at least)? Expression. Every life seeks to live, to express itself, to grow to its best and highest possibility.If that is the case, it means that at every point, I mean every single one, these items (thoughts, impressions, perceptions, etc.) in your warehouse (the mind) all seek expression. They want to live. They want to be expressed. Obviously, depending on certain circumstances, some memories and impressions are much more powerful and persistent than others.At the end of the day, you are the one who is essentially choosing which memory (item) to make more room for in your mind (warehouse).This is the only reason why peace and mind do not really make much sense in the grand scheme of things. Because if you really think about it, a certain level of peace is required for you to carry out almost every task in your life, including reading this. So peace is a fundamental human virtue. You can even say that it is the foundational virtue.This is why there are several schools of enlightenment and mysticism. Each teaches the same thing using different languages, words, terms and practices, but each essentially says and does the same thing.In summary, I can go on and on, but it will just be me making this piece a little longer than it should be.If you wish to get what it is we collectively call "peace of mind", you can start by keeping your body still. Use your body to train your mind. By stilling your body, you are stilling your mind.You can try sitting still for five minutes. Tell me how you did.