THE ART OF LIVING - Switzerland
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, advocate of non-violence for the Olympics
(Article published in the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com) in April 2008, and translated from English to French.)
((The Indian spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar urged all participants in the Olympic Torch Relay to banish violence and to stop import the conflict in the Games.))
The head of the Fondation de l’Art de Vivre spoke yesterday in Hong Kong, where he will give a public lecture on his technique of meditation SUDARSHAN kriya.
"Violence of any kind should be banned. The dialogue in a non-violent is the way that I always advocate, "said the guru 51 years old, who founded his organization international educational and humanitarian 26 years ago to promote spiritual awareness.
"Street demonstrations simply create a sensation in spirit but they do not produce long-term solutions. This will only further one minute, "he said.
"Everyone is free to express his opinions. Sit down with the flame, jump with the flame, do you sing. "
"We live in a free world and the sport belongs to all nationalities, all cultures and all religions. "
The Beijing Olympic Games are a multi-event and multi-religious, "he said. "Events like this are the place of peaceful coexistence and celebration rather than conflict. I wish all the players a more festive atmosphere, an atmosphere of celebration. "
The spiritual leader founded the International Association for Human Values in 1997 and was nominated in 2005 for the Nobel Prize.
Olympic athletes tend to be somewhat tense because they suffer a "huge pressure to play for their country," said the guru. The course of Art de Vivre them would be good, with SUDARSHAN kriya, which involves rhythmic breathing leading to meditation, said Shankar.
Last year the association proposed a resolution to the General Assembly of the United Nations to adopt a statement of values written by Mr. Shankar which includes non-violence, compassion, a green, the service to society, enthusiasm, integrity, honesty and sincerity.
The spiritual leader said he does not know where is the resolution, but he is sure it has been discussed within the world body. He said that at the request of the association, the World Health Organization has recognized the spirituality as a condition for good health.
The association is working to solve conflicts in Kosovo, Yugoslavia, Cote d’Ivoire in West Africa, and Sri Lanka in addressing the two parties. She recently organized a conference in Oslo, capital of Norway, which brought together for the first time the Tamil Tigers leaders and officials of the Sri Lankan government.
A lack of wisdom is embracing the cause of terrorism in the world today, "he said. "I see the secularization of religion [as part of the solution]. This means that people who practice a particular religion should also integrate in their sense of the people of all other religions.
"Socializing the company so that all companies have a social responsibility. And politics is so infested with corruption. Politicians should follow the example of Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King and people like them who have in them a deep sense of spirituality, "he said.
April 2008, South China Morning Post www.scmp.com
