How to Win a Nobel Peace Prize Every Day

How to Win a Nobel Peace Prize Every Day
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Most of us think that we could never be like the Dalai Lama or come even close to winning a Nobel Peace Prize. Well, let's be honest -- we're probably not going to become the spiritual leader of Tibet or win that illustrious prize, BUT who says we can't be the embodiment of the Dalai Lama or embodiment of what the Nobel Peace Prize represents.

"I very much appreciate that kind of recognition about my beliefs, in fact, I always believed in love, compassion and a sense of universal respect. Every human being has that potential. My case is nothing special. I am a simple Buddhist monk -- no more, no less.'' The Dalai Lama said when he heard the news that he was selected for the Nobel Peace Prize in October of 1989.

So, every human being has the potential for humility, compassion and the profound ability to affect another human being in a positive way. We CAN actually be like the Dalai Lama!

The Dalai Lama won the Nobel Peace Prize because of his spiritual values of compassion and reverence for all living beings. He has respect for the Chinese even though they invaded his country in 1959, killed thousands of his people and forced him into exile.

Instead of condemning the Chinese he had compassion for them and instead of fighting against them he chose to forgive them. He did this for the good of his people. The Dalai Lama's main goal was to preserve peace as well as the cultural heritage of the Tibetan people. In other words, he put the welfare of his country and people first.

This year's Nobel Peace winners also put the welfare of their people first. The winners of the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize were the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet. The quartet is made up of four organizations: The Tunisian General Labor Union; The Tunisian Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts; the Tunisian Human Rights League; and the Tunisian Order of Lawyers. The Quartet was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for transitioning the country of Tunisia to democracy.

This award comes five years after an unemployed street vendor set himself on fire, which caused a wave of protests and demonstrations (violent and non-violent) called the "Arab Spring." The protests started in Tunisia then spread to Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Syria, Saudi Arabia and the rest of the countries in the Arab League.

The residents of those countries were rebelling against human rights violations, political corruption, the poor economy, unemployment, poverty and the authoritarian dictatorship that ruled or still rules their perspective countries.

The Tunisian quartet negotiated and implemented a plan to guide Tunisia away from the brink of civil war towards a peaceful and democratic society. Their plan called for the entire cabinet to resign and a non-partisan prime minister to take over. The new government would guarantee fundamental rights (gender, political and religious) for the whole population of Tunisia.

We live in an ethically selfish as well as politically selfish world, which makes what the quartet did all the more great. They cared more about the needs of everyone in Tunisia before their own self-concern. Their goal was to ensure the rights, interests and freedoms of the people of Tunisia.

The success of Tunisia's transition to democracy has been a beacon of hope for the world as we watch the unfortunate killing and fighting for power in neighboring Arab countries. Tunisia still has a ways to go, but it's a giant step in the right direction.

We can all take a giant step in the right direction if we are selfless and think of the common good rather than ourselves, our agendas and our needs.

Our main enemy on this planet is not with other people; it's within ourselves. It's our ego. We're constantly battling others because we are afraid of not getting what we want or losing what we have. The ego is that little dictator in us that wants to have all the power.

It's our egos that are responsible for all the war, famine as well as many other tragedies that occur on this planet. The goal of Spirituality, in my opinion, is about eradicating the ego and getting out of self. We do this by being of service to our fellow human beings and thinking constantly of others.

I submit to you that every single one of us, no matter what station we are in life, can win a Nobel Peace Prize every day. We win the award by putting others first. It is just that simple. Imagine what would happen if we all did that -- the world would be in a state of constant peace.

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