Finding Peace in a Divided World

By Karen Frazier, author of The Crystal Alchemist

Let’s face it. Remaining peaceful and connecting to joy in today’s world can be a challenge. Whether you live in the United States, the United Kingdom, or elsewhere, it seems that everyone is polarized into deeply entrenched camps. Differences in religion, politics, economic status, and social values driven by a media emphasis on these deep divides can make the world feel like an unfriendly place. With so much discontent swirling around you in the world, how do you carve out a place for peace and joy, and why do you want to?

The more the world seems to descend into discord, the more important it is for there to be people who hold the space for a different type of energy. I’m a firm believer that the energy you put out into the universe attracts more of the same. If one chooses to join an angry and entrenched camp that marginalizes, fears, or diminishes those who believe differently, then that anger and fear is what one attracts, contributing even more darkness to the universe.

If, however, one chooses love, joy, and peace despite all the negativity surrounding them, then that is the energy he or she will attract, and that is the energy put out into the universe. One choice contributes to ongoing darkness, while the other brings light. And here’s the thing: when you’re standing in the darkest of places, even the tiniest light makes a huge difference.

It’s an act of courage to choose to be a light in the darkness. And even one person choosing to hold space for love is a powerful force against negativity. Are you that person? How do you become that person?

It is natural to feel an array of emotions when something bad happens. Anger, sadness, frustration, and grief are all natural responses to difficult situations. And I’d never suggest you try to block those feelings as they arise—the only way past any emotion is through it. Therefore, it’s important to always allow yourself to feel whatever emotion arises, even if it’s a negative one. However, once you’ve allowed yourself to experience it fully, then it’s time to release the negativity so it doesn’t become stuck in your body and psyche—and harden into bitterness, fury, or even hate.

So, first allow the full flower of the emotion. Then, as soon as you are able, release it and move back into your heart center to find compassion and love instead. There are many ways to tap into your heart energy to find compassion and forgiveness. Meditation, guided meditation, visualization, affirmation, and various forms of energy healing can all help you to release your ties to anger and negativity, and allow you to find a space of love instead.

One of my favorite exercises is a simple heart-focused meditation. You will need a small rose quartz crystal for this visualization.

1. Close your eyes and breathe deeply in through your nose and out through your mouth. Take deep breaths into your belly, and feel yourself fully relax into your breath.

2. When you feel settled and relaxed, hold a piece of rose quartz in your hand and place both hands with the rose quartz over your heart. 

3. Visualize pink, loving light radiating from the rose quartz and moving into your heart space. Become aware of your heartbeat.

4. With every beat of your heart, feel the loving, pink energy spread throughout your body, moving through your blood vessels and suffusing you with a pink, loving glow.

5. Once the pink, loving light has pumped through every vein, see it expanding out from your bloodstream and into your entire body, and then expanding out beyond your body and into the universe with each beat of your heart.

6. Now, bring whatever is causing you negative emotion into that pink light, pulling it in through your skin and into your heart space beneath your hands.

7. See the negative feeling as a dark shadow in your heart space, and allow the pink light to suffuse it until it grows fainter and fainter as it is absorbed into the pink light.

8. Once the darkness has totally dissolved, return your focus to your breathing. Breathe deeply, feeling the love you have surrounded yourself with.

9. When you are ready, open your eyes.

You can perform this simple meditation for five minutes or an hour. You can perform it quickly whenever you feel negativity seeping in, make it a daily practice, or both. Use it as a tool to help return yourself to a place of light whenever you feel the darkness creeping in. In that way, you can hold space for light no matter how turbulent the world around you becomes.

Karen Frazier is a metaphysical practitioner, intuitive energy healer, Reiki master teacher, and author of several books. She writes a monthly metaphysics and energy healing column for Paranormal Underground magazine, and writes articles on topics such as tarot, feng shui, and astrology for www.lovetoknow.com. Frazier is trained in multiple energy healing modalities; holds advanced degrees in metaphysics, including a master’s and doctorate in the metaphysical sciences; and is writing a dissertation on how sound can affect healing. She teaches classes on Reiki, crystals, sound healing, energy anatomy, feng shui, and more in Portland, OR. Her books include Crystals for Healing, Reiki Healing for Beginners, and Higher Vibes Toolbox.