In his book ‘My Spiritual Journey’, the Dalai Lama notes that the negative feelings that arise from “enemies” are the real element of tension we must confront and not the challenging people themselves.
He says that if we truly want to progress, we must regard our enemies as our best teachers. You also may be familiar with Abraham Lincoln’s line, “Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?” It seems that differences between us become the barrier to friendships and unity all too often, but lots of people take big steps to overcome that and in doing so, lead by example. Recently two notable instances have occurred.
In a campaign where the hashtag ‘#ArabsAndJewsRefuseToBeEnemies’ emerged, Jews and Arabs came together to share messages of peace and stories of how their differences had not prevented them becoming friends and families. In another move towards unity beyond differences, a new religious centre has opened in Berlin to bring Christians, Jews and Muslims together in prayer and to learn from one another.
