A well known song of the season says, “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me.” We often feel so moved by those lines, and by that sentiment. Doing it, of course, is the hard part. That’s where the wisdom of the twelfth lojong slogan comes in.

When we drive all blames into one, we basically say, “Let the peacemaking begin with me.” Let the kindness, compassion, and grace begin with my actions. And I begin by taking the blame, and focusing on how to make things right.

I heard a teacher say once we’d get a lot more done if we didn’t worry so much about who got the credit. I think the same is true about who gets the blame. Imagine how productive we’d be if we just focused on action instead of endless finger-pointing?!

Traleg Kyabgon has strong words, particularly for Americans, about this. He writes, “Stop thinking that every time (you) have a painful experience it is someone else’s fault… What Westerners need is to relinquish their overfocus on their own personal desires and problems, because they have a tendency to dwell on their own stuff far too much.”

Oof.

He’s not wrong. We’re back again at our tendency toward selfishness. Often, we’re unwilling to take blame because we’re too protective of our egos, our image, our righteous record. That hot potato we pass so quickly? That’s ego defensiveness 101. We don’t want to change! We reject any form of introspection that may feel uncomfortable!

The irony of it all is that there’s enough blame to go around for all of us. Maybe that’s why it feels so meaningful when a large group of people sings the words: Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me. Deep down, we know peacemaking takes a village.

What peacemaking can begin with you today?