Dragon Mountain Press

Peace Vigil by Anton Somlai was featured in Racine's daily newspaper, The Journal Times, on Feb. 28. Reporter Lee Roberts interviewed Anton about Peace Vigil and included excerpts from Dragon Mountain Press' new title.

The reporter writes:

“Peace Vigil” is designed to work on three levels, the first of which is understanding, explained Somlai, who is a Zen Buddhist Master Teacher and co-founder of Racine’s Original Root Zen Center.

“We all understand peace, but sometimes we look at it as an object that’s out there somewhere,” he said. “We may think that if other people would behave the way we want them to, all would be peaceful. Or, if the economy was better, we’d all have peace. But that is the external approach.”

Instead, we need to search for peace within ourselves, says Somlai, and developing such awareness is the second level that the book deals with.

“That’s when peace becomes the subject, rather than an object,” he said. “Where does the peace reside within you?”

Equally important is the final level of the “Peace Vigil,” which is the activity offered for each day. These can range from something as simple as taking a walk around your neighborhood and being present in that journey to exploring the concept of humility within yourself over a period of time.

“You can have all the understanding in the world, but without action it is worth nothing,” Somlai said.

The author, who is also a professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin, said he hopes the book will engage readers on all three levels and that it will be something people will come back to again and again, finding something different each time they do. The activities involved are not cost intensive for the reader, he said, but they do involve some effort and time.

“I don’t know if we can have peace without that,” Somlai said.

 You can read the full article here.