Indian mission leads inaugural World Meditation Day at UN

Meditation transcends all religions and borders and is also a powerful instrument of diplomacy in the current global landscape marked by escalating conflicts and deep-seated mistrust, top spiritual and UN leaders said on the first World Meditation Day commemorated here. The Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations organised a special event ‘Meditation for Global Peace and Harmony’ to mark the first World Meditation Day at the global body’s headquarters on Friday.

“Today meditation is not a luxury, as it was thought, but it is a necessity,” spiritual leader Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said in his keynote address at the packed event attended by UN Ambassadors, officials, staff, civil society members as well as members of the Indian-American diaspora. “Meditation is something you can do anywhere, everywhere, by everyone. In this sense, international Meditation Day plays a very important role and opens the door to those who have some reservations,” he said.

He added that for many people, the moment they hear the word meditation, they may feel that the practice either has to be from some religion or it is not taught in their religion.

He underscored that meditation “transcends all religions, all geographical boundaries and age groups so it is very, very useful in many, many ways.”

President of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly Philemon Yang said in his remarks that meditation “transcends borders, faiths, traditions and time, offering each of us the opportunity to pause, to listen and to connect with our inner selves.”

Yang said the world today needs peace more than ever before. “The tensions in the world require that we embrace peace and anything that brings peace….Let us build on the practice we have shared to bring about a safer, more just and equitable future for everyone, everywhere,” he said.