Peace Pilgrim: Her Life and Work in Her Own Words [Paperback]

Peace Pilgrim (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1992

Peace Pilgrim walked and spoke continuously across America from 1953 until her death in 1981. "Walking until given shelter and fasting until given food," she carried a simple yet powerfully enduring message of peace. A few of her friends later gathered her writings and talks into this first-person account of her experiences and beliefs. Peace Pilgrim has become a spiritual classic, with over half a million copies in print in nine languages. Includes news clippings, questions and answers, photographs, index.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A unique book by a unique woman. Highly recommended." -- Library Journal, 1983

"A wonderful lady, a wonderful book! It should be read by anybody who loves peace and the simple life." -- Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

"Here is an American saint who transcended all national, religious, or sectarian bonds. Her life was her teaching." -- Dan Millman (Way of the Peaceful Warrior)

About the Author

The woman known only as Peace Pilgrim walked on faith across America for 28 years as a penniless pilgrim, spreading a simple and universal message for achieving inner and worldwide peace. Born in New Jersey in the early 1900s, she assumed the name "Ppeace Pilgrim" in 1953 and began a walking and witnessing odyssey of over 25,000 miles, including every U.S. state, Mexico and Canada.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Ocean Tree Books (March 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0943734290
• ISBN-13: 978-0943734293
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #50,069 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #31 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Current Events > War & Peace

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Her Life and Work are Compelling Right Now, July 3, 2004

By 

Niki Collins-queen, Author "author" (Forsyth, Georgia USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Peace Pilgrim: Her Life and Work in Her Own Words (Paperback)

Peace Pilgrim walked alone and penniless "as a prayer" more than 25,000 miles across America to inspire others to pray and work for peace. Her message was simple-"This is the way of peace: Overcome evil with good, falsehood with truth, and hatred with love." Her 28-year pilgrimage started in 1953. She would not tell you her real name this silver-haired lady with penetrating blue eyes "Peace Pilgrim" is the only name she wished to carry. And she would not tell you the years that she had spent in this world although a friend said she was probably around 80 when she died in a car accident in Indiana in 1981 on her way to a speaking engagement. After walking 25,000 miles, which took her until 1964, she stopped counting the miles. Although she mostly slept under the stars without a sleeping bag she never had another headache or pain or cold once she started her pilgrimage. Carrying in her tunic pockets her only worldly possessions: a comb, a folding toothbrush, a ball point pen, her current correspondence she vowed, "I shall remain a wanderer until mankind has learned the way of peace, walking until given shelter and fasting until given food." She talked with people on dusty roads and city streets, in churches, colleges, to civic groups, on TV and radio discussing peace within and without.
Her pilgrimage covered the entire peace picture: peace among nations, groups, individuals, and inner peace-because that is where peace begins. She believed that world peace would come when enough people attain inner peace.

Since many of us are in deep despair about the human cost of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan the life and teachings of Peace Pilgrim are particularly compelling right now. The press continues to report the grim tally of American soldiers killed in action in Iraq-922 killed and 5,457 wounded. But there are figures neither the Pentagon nor the press talks about-the more than 11,000 American soldiers that came home disabled injured and sick in what the Pentagon considers non-combat circumstances. Nor do we know the number of Iraqi and Afghanistan soldiers and civilians deaths and wounded.

Peace said, "All present wars must cease-we need to find a way to lay down our arms together. We need to set up a mechanism to avoid physical violence in the world." We people of the world need to learn to put the welfare of the whole family above the welfare of any group. The means determines the end-only a good means can really attain a good end. Real peace is more than the absence of war: it is the absence of the cause of the war. Have as your objective the resolving of conflict not the gaining of advantage and live to give instead of get.
Peace said the cause of all difficulties is immaturity. If we were mature, war would not be possible and peace would be assured. In our immaturity we do not know the laws of the universe, and we think evil can be overcome by more evil. One symptom of our immaturity is greed, making it difficult for us to learn the simple lesson of sharing. Then there are symptoms of symptoms like access to pure food, water and air. You don't have to be very good at arithmetic to figure out that if the nations of the world would stop manufacturing implements of destruction, the conditions for a good life could be provided for all people. Immaturity leads to a negative mind for example, a military mind set usually has only military answers. The animal nature thinks in terms of using `the jungle law of tooth and claw' to eliminate all opposition. But this law solves no problems for humans; it can only postpone the solution, and in the long run it worsens things. All war is bad and self-defeating.
Peace suggests America established a Peace Department in our government. It would research peaceful ways to resolve conflicts, war prevention measures and economic adjustments to peace since America's economy seems to work more smoothly in a war or war preparation period. It would ask other nations to establish similar departments and come and work with us for peace. Communications among Peace Departments would be a step towards peace in our world. She said the military forces could clean up the air, the oceans and rivers or take on drainage projects to prevent disastrous floods and other such benefits for humankind.
Many people from other countries told Peace that they considered America the biggest menace to peace in the world because it is the only nation that used the nuclear bomb to kill people and there is no evidence that America will not do it again. Other countries do not always see our kind heart when they look across the sea.
Peace recommends a four-part Community Action Group in every town. The first meeting would teach and focus on inner peace, the second on harmony among individuals, the third on harmony among groups and the fourth on harmony among nations. The sequence would be repeated.
Concerning war Peace consoles "Remember that the darkest hour is just before the dawn." She explains, "There is within the hearts of people a deep desire for peace on earth. It is the job of the peacemaker to inspire out-of-harmony people from apathy, ignorance and fear." Knowing that all things contrary to God's laws are transient we must continue to pray, speak, and act for peace in whatever way we can; to inspire others we must continue to think of peace and know that peace is possible. As Peace said in her book, "One little person, giving all of her time to peace, makes news. Many people, giving some of their time can make history."

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A simple, powerful guide to finding inner peace, September 1, 1998

By 

Brad Woodward ([e-mail]) (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Peace Pilgrim: Her Life and Work in Her Own Words (Paperback)

From 1953 until 1981 Peace Pilgrim walked thousands of miles for peace among nations, groups and individuals, as well as for inner peace. She walked penniless, giving up even her name and her past identity, to live her faith. Consequently, this compilation of her teachings, to me, has enormous credibility, and the authentic ring of inner truth. This is the simplest and purest guide to inner peace I've ever encountered. It should appeal to people of all faiths, but especially to those of no faith -- seekers of spiritual truth who, for whatever reason, are not attracted to any particular "organized" religion. In essence, her message is a pure distillation of those core spiritual beliefs shared by virtually all religions. Peace Pilgrim belonged to no denomination. The kernel of spiritual truth is too often obscured by dogma, she believed. Yet this remarkable woman was welcomed and embraced as a speaker and teacher in churches of many faiths. Such was the universality of her message. Peace Pilgrim's simple guidance: live a life of service, leave behind a self-centered and materialistic life based on ego and possessions, love and show compassion for every person, live by the Golden Rule, banish negative thinking, look within for your own divine purpose. The purity and simplicity of her message is astoundingly. I've already seen a transformation in my own life from taking this book to heart. Working actively to eliminate negative thinking, I find myself remarkably serene in the face of daily provocations and irritations. Peace Pilgrim has taught me that allowing others to get under my skin has absolutely no impact on the "offenders," and hurts only me. Amazingly, I find myself viewing with compassion those I would have previously despised. This is, indeed, one powerful book.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Peace Pilgrim's words are powerful but so basic & simple, July 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Peace Pilgrim: Her Life and Work in Her Own Words (Paperback)

This wonderful women lived as we all have and do live. She did as we all are doing: working, making money, making a living, raising a family, and enjoying all the fruits of our efforts. But somehow there's a spark of something missing, something undefinable eludes us, something that percolates up in a thought when one takes just a moment of complete silence. During that silence why are you not smiling and your heart is not singing? As it should be with this wonderful life. Peace Pilgrim gives definition and focus to how she found meaning to that spark and to her life. Her words help sort out the clutter that living builds up in one's mind. Her pilgrimage, courage and commitment is an inspiration of thoughts and words. She does not encourage us to take a pilgramage like herself, but she offers very basic steps towards inner peace in the little pamphlet that accompanies the book. She outlined the steps clearly to make it easy for anyone to find their inner peace as she did when she set out on her pilgrimage at the age of 45. The little pamphlet can be obtained free from the Friends of Peace Pilgrim if you do not have one that comes with the her book.