One of the old aims of martial arts was peace of mind. Did martial arts, aid you in peace of mind?

It is a nice outlet of something i really enjoy and it helped me to remove the superficial ego. Its hard to put into words. It took me becoming a fighter initially in the ring but now i don't feel any need to prove myself against anyone. I seek peaceful resolutions if possible because the more i learned, the more i realized just how little i actually know. All the training in the world will not save you from someone who is chicken sh*t and decides to shoot you or mouthing off to the typical brave group who will tear you apart like a pack of wolves if you retaliate. When you remove the ego, you begin to see just how many unnecessary things can be easily avoided with the right mind set. I feel no need to respond to every little thing because of how futile it really is most of the time. Nothing is really gained from it in the end. I no longer care. I have embraced the fact if someone is stupid enough to try to hit me they will quickly discover that was a bad decision, or that i cannot change some of lifes inevitable misfortunes in the fact it might be my day to die. I just carry on happy and in peace with my day as you should do the same. The journey is different for us all.

No, not really - not peace of mind.

I bought car insurance, and it won't help me when I'm in an accident, but it will help me financially. So that is peace of mind. But martial arts is not insurance, so, there is not that kind of peace of mind.

I also eat - like everyone else does. That means, hunger goes away for awhile - leaving a feeling that I'll live for another day. But martial arts doesn't ward off hunger or bad guys, so, there is nothing like that kind of peace of mind, either.

I also work out at a gym. That means, I'm trying to keep myself fit - and that gives me hope that I'll live longer. But martial arts isn't about fitness, and so, it's not the same feeling as when I work out.

But in the places I train, usually there is no politics I care to worry about which allows me to focus 100% on training. This is consistent, and so, when the rest of my life throws curveballs at me, it's nice to be in a place I can rely on to not throw me another curve ball. As creatures of habit - and I'm one of them - there are times I just want a consistent activity.

So while the training offers a mental comfort zone, there is no peace of mind for me, per se. I do meditate with forms (kata/poomsae) and in breaking, but, those aren't the only things I do, and anyway, they don't give me any peace of mind; rather, they allow me alternative ways to think about my training.

I don't think you understood what "peace of mind" really means. A mind that is in conflict is an undisciplined mind that is at the mercy of any whims and emotions. To be at peace with itself, the mind must be focused and that requires discipline. That does not mean being emotionless, but rather having a mind where emotions do not control your actions. That comes in very handy when you are faced with scary situations such as a life or death situation.

I think so. Any workout program will have benefits to it like helping to relax you along with raising your level of fitness and health benefits really. The thing about martial arts is that some of the training involves mental aspects more than some other types of working out.

I have alluded to this aspect before in some of my answers in this forum and how they can turn things like aggression on and off like you would turn a water faucet. Well trained, experienced fighters also learn this which is why you often see them fairly relaxed before a fight. They instead direct almost all their time, energy, and attention into training rather than wasting it about worrying or stupid displays of emotion and aggression. Then when the time comes they turn that on like a faucet and tend to business. Besides what else is there really when you think about it? Is worrying about something and the energy wasted before it happens going to change things or is that energy better spent in your training and preparation leading up to that time?

Well, it gave me definitely helped with my confidence. So I suppose it aided in peace of mind that way a little.

The biggest factor for inner peace for me actually was finding zen and balancing it with my religion. Both served to cut my overly emotional attachment to the world and yet connect back to it with the eyes of compassion.

It's been a while since I been more actively practicing both zen and my religion, but I'm still benefiting from the practice from years before.

I practice iaido and yes I believe that this helps me to break away from life for a while, the same can be said about running or pumping iron in the gym.

There is no such thing.