Listen. Listen to your heart beating, not only for itself, but for every corner of the body. Peace is the pulse that gives life to humanity. The brain fires impulses, guidance for survival void of selfish ideals. True unity calls for thought, connection, and vision. Feel your lungs rise and fall like the tides, teaching us that peace is the shared breath of humanity, invisible yet omnipresent, wrapping us like a balm of hope. Our eyes, brown, blue, black, grey—the same light penetrates. Why should we differentiate? Let us view peace through diversity, resilience, and tolerance.
It is time for our train of thought to change course. In our striving for peace, let us first get rid of all forms of prejudice and discrimination. A rose will bloom beautifully in whatever garden it is grown, a star will shine brightly from the East and the West, light is good in whatever lamp it is burning! For there to be peace, let us learn to extend a helping hand to all people in need, ‘Be as a lamp unto them that walk in darkness, a joy to the sorrowful, a sea for the thirsty, a haven for the distressed, an upholder and defender of the victim of oppression.’
The key to developing this world-embracing approach is the independent investigation of the truth. Let us find truth in what we see with our own eyes, hear with our own ears and understand after our own reflection. Then we will see people as myriads of flowers of one garden, the waves of one ocean, and the branches of one tree, for truth is in all and truth is one!
World peace is founded upon a shared vision and is fuelled by the endeavours of both men and women. Women and men are like the wings of the bird of humanity; only when they both are equally empowered and developed will the bird soar to noble heights. ‘Be an ornament to the countenance of truth, an ensign of the host of justice, a dew to the soil of the human heart.’
Peace is propelled by a balance between science and religion—the integration of ethical qualities with scientific methods—for an individual overly focused on science is consumed by materialism and a person turning only towards religion becomes superstitious. Thankfully, we are making the swift shift! For the first time in history, it is possible for everyone to view the entire planet, with all its diversified peoples, in one perspective. World peace is not only possible but inevitable. It is—the next stage in the evolution of this planet—in the words of one great thinker, ‘the planetization of mankind’.
I believe that youth can move the world. Youth have energy, creativity, and tenacity. We must be the protagonists of change and spearhead small and big actions in this rapidly evolving world. Youth, with their effervescent enthusiasm, can be the promoters of social justice and world peace, yet they should position themselves at the heart of an ‘everybody movement’. True leadership, true unity, and true peace come from sparking the flame of trust and perseverance in others, so that we can be eyes to the blind, and a guiding light unto those that are erring. The world is changing; let’s unite so that this transformation is a life-giving metamorphosis.
From a young spokesperson on behalf of The Office of the External Affairs of the Bahá’ís of Mauritius
