Love and peace of mind do protect us. They allow us to overcome

Hear the healing words of Bernie Siegel, physician of both body and spirit, who said: “Love and peace of mind do protect us. They allow us to overcome the problems that life hands us. They teach us to survive... to live now... to have the courage to confront each day.” These are not the idle musings of a dreamer, but the revelations of a healer who has walked through the valley of suffering beside the sick and the dying. In these words, Siegel reminds us that strength is not born of hardness, but of gentleness—that love and peace of mind are the true armor of the human soul.

Bernie Siegel was a surgeon who, through his long years of treating patients, came to see that the will to live often springs not from medicine alone, but from the heart’s condition. Those who faced illness with love—for life, for others, even for themselves—were often the ones who endured and healed. Those who found peace of mind amid pain were able to confront each day not as victims, but as victors of the spirit. His wisdom was forged not in theory, but in the quiet bravery of those who refused to be conquered by despair. Thus, his words carry the weight of truth earned in the crucible of compassion.

To say that love and peace protect us is not to promise a life without sorrow or struggle. Rather, it is to say that within every heart lies a sanctuary, where storms may rage outside but cannot enter. The warrior who fights with anger tires quickly; the one who fights with love endures. For love connects us to what is eternal and unbreakable, while peace of mind steadies the trembling hand and calms the restless heart. When these two dwell within us, no hardship can wholly defeat us, for we stand rooted in the soil of meaning.

Consider the story of Viktor Frankl, who endured the horrors of a concentration camp and emerged not with hatred, but with hope. Stripped of freedom, family, and comfort, he discovered that one thing could never be taken from him: his power to choose his own attitude. He found that even amidst unimaginable suffering, the human spirit can endure when it holds to love and inner peace. “He who has a why to live,” Frankl wrote, “can bear almost any how.” This is the living embodiment of Siegel’s truth—love and peace of mind do not shield us from suffering, but they give us the strength to transcend it.

The ancients knew this as well. The Stoics taught that peace is not found in the absence of struggle, but in the mastery of oneself. The Buddha spoke of inner stillness as the path beyond suffering. And the Christ taught that love, even for one’s enemies, is the highest power that heals all wounds. From every age and culture, the wise have spoken in one voice: that the world cannot harm the soul that remains anchored in love and peace. For these are not emotions—they are disciplines, chosen daily, forged through patience and forgiveness.

When Siegel says that love and peace teach us to live now, he speaks of awakening from the illusions of fear and regret. The fearful mind dwells in tomorrow’s uncertainty, while the resentful heart is trapped in yesterday’s wounds. But the peaceful heart lives in the present moment—the only place where life truly exists. Love does not wait for perfect conditions; it acts, it gives, it blesses now. Peace does not come from controlling the world; it comes from surrendering to what is and finding calm within it.

Therefore, O listener, let these words take root in your heart. When life burdens you with sorrow or uncertainty, do not seek escape in anger or despair. Instead, choose love, even for the smallest things—a kind word, a moment of gratitude, a simple act of care. And seek peace of mind, not by fleeing from the world, but by resting in the quiet strength within you. Each day will bring trials, but with love as your shield and peace as your guide, you will walk through them unharmed in spirit.

For in the end, it is not power or wealth that sustains us, but the quiet fire of the heart. Love and peace of mind are the true physicians of the soul—they heal what medicine cannot, they restore what fear destroys, and they give courage to rise again when all seems lost. Hold them close, and you will not merely survive—you will live, fully and fearlessly, each and every day.