Marshall Smith, one of the founders of Delphi University School of Spiritual Studies, discusses the topic of war in this post as a Guest Blogger for his former students ‘The Shift Doctors’ (Tracy Latz, M.D.,Mh.D. & Marion Ross, Ph.D.,Mh.D.). Find out more about who Marshall was and his ‘Spiritual Anatomy‘ books at www.patriciahayesart.com and more about Delphi University School of Spiritual Studies at www.delphiu.com
Marshall Smith was a former Vice President and Corporate Officer of the Kimberly-Clark Corporation. Patricia Hayes (Marshall’s wife) founded the Patricia Hayes School of Inner Sense Development in 1964 and has educated thousands of students worldwide in the areas of Intuitive and Spiritual Development, Transpersonal Psychology, Metaphysics, and Alternative and 
Complementary Medical Therapies. Under the guidance and direction of ‘Spirit’, in 1974 she and Marshall founded Delphi University.
Seeds of War by Marshall Smith
When war appears as an inevitable event, voices become loud and emphatic defining the perceived wrong and the need for its correction. The forces of restraint and reason are pushed to the background by loud voices that have determined there is no other way. These voices appeal to people’s patriotic nature and religious zeal, convincing others what is true and of the need to correct the wrong. Not to do so is to be against God and country. Suggested pathways of peaceful resolution are made to appear as simple respites for the fearful.
What is war? Where does it come from? Perhaps war is the ultimate climax of unresolved grievances after all possible resolutions have failed. Many times it is simply an expression of one’s own desire for power. And, there are those who have determined for some strange reason that God must be assisted in defending beliefs that vary little from their own.
So where is the seed of war? What is the root cause of it?
Is it under lock and key somewhere, known but to a few? The great and well known military mind Clausewitz stated that war results when politics fail. This statement seems to be a significant bit of wisdom, but solving little on the cause of war. It backwardly suggests a solution for avoiding wars by having our politics right. Man’s consciousness is perhaps far too primitive in his present state of evolution to be able to understand such simplicity. It is somewhat akin to voices of those who have the public ear, such as the great John Lennon who sang of peace with great conviction and compassion. His desire for peace was obvious but presented little guidance as to how to achieve it.
If we are to achieve peace devoid of war we must begin where war first begins. We generally look at war as an isolated event rather than a progressive step in man’s spiritual enlightenment. We also seem to identify war as something happening at another place to someone else. In one scenario, the opposing armies bring their tools of war to some geographical location to test which can kill the most. In a second scenario there are no declared combatants, but random stealth and indiscriminate killing in the name of God. When the killing is finally over, most of those who died are forgotten, their memorial stones blackened with mold lying hidden in the weeds.
Where do we start on this quest for a better way, an enlightened approach?
It starts with me, with you. We cannot blame it on government, for its members and representatives are but reflections of ourselves. We must clearly understand where war begins to know why it continues to happen. War is but the physical manifestation of war within us. When we are successful in eliminating it in ourselves, there will no wars to manifest.
Common to all things, war begins with a thought in one individual. This thought holds within it an emotional ingredient that produces a particular need in the holder of that thought. This emotional content drives the person to express that thought in some way. It could be that this person was raised in an abusive family with stern and overbearing parents. From this family setting one of the children developed a feeling of insecurity and powerlessness. This child had a continuing experience of trying to find the means to express this thought and feeling of powerlessness and insecurity. He found that by emulating his father he would experience a release of these negative feelings. He thus became a pattern son; like father, like son. One such as this could abuse many and, if holding a measure of leadership ability, could attract many like himself to any political cause he might organize and lead. It could be a group in continuous rebellion against anyone in a position of authority. Small yes, but still a pattern of continuous war.
Any one of us could say, “I do not seek power. I am happy in my home and in my work so where is my war?” One’s personal “war” is simply a reaction to someone you do not like and who you seek to minimize with innuendos when that person is discussed in your peer group. You are warring against this particular person. If your words happened to be heard by that person your war could possibly manifest into physical violence. This is your war. Have you ever been part of a group in an office setting listening to what is being discussed? What was the discussion generally about? Most commonly it is about some negative aspect of another in the office. This is warfare, small but nevertheless a war. Perhaps if we would center our discussion about the positive attributes of others in the office, the effects would cause a sense of peacefulness and harmony.
Consider your own family. Have you been a teenager that thought you hated your parents? This has been called a “war” at home. Yes, parents sometimes contribute to this situation by their unwise actions and words. But both child and parent are responsible for their actions and words. A respectful consideration of each, parent and child, would negate most of the family warfare. These are but examples of the wars that are incessantly occurring in our relationships with each other. These contribute to larger wars. Thus, wars first start and manifest within ourselves, progressing then to the family, then to our schools and workplaces, then to our country, and ultimately to the world.
The family unit is where we learn the means of peace and sometimes, the means of war. Here we learn how to be considerate of others, how to honor others in their beliefs, how to develop kindness and understanding. Here we also learn the three great cornerstones of happy and joyful living: loyalty, honor and honesty. Above all, this is where we learn what love and hope are all about. Within love and hope there is no place for war to occur. It is as Lao Tzu said: “I have no fear of the tiger, for the tiger can find no place on me to place his teeth”.
We the people of the world must stop throwing stones at those we deem as the warmongers. We must know that to stop wars we must stop the wars within ourselves. When we can no longer find wars within, there will be none to be manifested on earth. Then we will experience the old Christmas carol that sings of, “Peace on Earth and goodwill to men”. To sum it up, this is the way of Christ consciousness, the way of life the Christ demonstrated to us in his life on earth.
Let us begin, and begin as many times as needed to get it right. There is no other way. If we learn the Way, we will seek and realize the Truth, and by living the Truth it will take us to the Life, a Life with a true and lasting peace, devoid of war.
Peace be with you,
Marshall Smith with The Shift Doctors (Tracy Latz, M.D. & Marion Ross, Ph.D.)
-Find out more about Marshall’s teachings in this Shift Your Life TV YouTube interview and his ‘Spiritual Anatomy‘ books at www.patriciahayesart.com and more about Delphi University Ancient Mystery School at www.delphiu.com
-Check out The Shift Doctors’ books and meditations at Amazon link by clicking here . See their articles on health, personal transformation, self-growth, and travel at ShiftYourLife.com
**The Shift Doctors (Tracy Latz, M.D. & Marion Ross, Ph.D.) are available for keynote talks, classes, events or for seminars (1/2 day or up to 5 days) on personal transformation, team-building, motivation, anger management, intuitive development, intuitive art, or collaboration for private groups, conferences, corporations or corporate events. Contact them at info@shiftyourlife.com or find out more about them at www.shiftyourlife.com .