“Wars begin in the minds of men, and in those minds, love and compassion would have built the defenses of peace.”

“Far from making peace, wars invariably serve as classrooms and laboratories where men and techniques and states of mind are prepared for the next war.”

Wendell Berry (1934) author

“War is an invention of the human mind. The human mind can invent peace with justice.”

Norman Cousins (1915–1990) American journalist

“Those on the side of the Mahdi (pbuh) would always talk about stopping the bloodshed, about love, compassion, freedom, peace, science, arts and aesthetics.”

Harun Yahya (1956) Turkish author

“The gun is a consequence of our minds. If we were in love with peace, and had no will to destroy each other, there would be no gun.”

Justina Robson book Natural History

“When we are mindful, deeply in touch with the present moment, our understanding of what is going on deepens, and we begin to be filled with acceptance, joy, peace and love.”

Thich Nhat Hanh (1926) Religious leader and peace activist

“The essence of motherhood is not restricted to women who have given birth; it is a principle inherent in both women and men. It is an attitude of the mind. It is love — and that love is the very breath of life. No one would say, ‘I will breathe only when I am with my family and friends; I won’t breathe in front of my enemies.’ Similarly, for those in whom motherhood has awakened, love and compassion towards everyone is as much part of their being as breathing.”

Mata Amritanandamayi (1953) Hindu spiritual leader and guru

“Peace is not the absence of war, it is a virtue, a state of mind, a disposition of benevolence, confidence, justice.”

Baruch Spinoza (1632–1677) Dutch philosopher

“A nation that silences or intimidates original minds is left only with unoriginal minds and cannot hope to hold its own in the competition of peace or of war.”

Henry Steele Commager (1902–1998) American historian

“Those who love peace must learn to organize as effectively as those who love war.”

Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929–1968) American clergyman, activist, and leader in the American Civil Rights Movement