Dr. A.T. Ariyaratne and Dr. Mrs. Charika Marasinghe have been invited to speak at the seventh Awakened World Conference organized by the Association for Global New Thought. The theme of the conference will be “Walk of Sacred Action – A Living Pilgrimage†and it will be held in La Quinta, Palm Springs, U.S.A.
Dr. A.T.’s speech will be titled “Tsunami: An Opportunity for Spiritual Reawakening†and the gist of it will be the Four Noble Truths of the Buddhist philosophy. The Sarvodaya Founder-President will speak on the truths that were discovered by the Lord Buddha: the first truth that there is suffering, the second that there is a cause for this suffering, the third that this cause can be removed, and the fourth, that there is a path leading to the removal of suffering. He will show how Sarvodaya reacted to Tsunami recovery efforts with these truths in mind by launching on the Sarvodaya Plan for National Reawakening, “Tsunami to Deshodaya.â€
Sarvodaya believes that the Tsunami has been an opportunity for spiritual reawakening of the country. The organization attempted to understand this unprecedented disaster in terms of the five cosmic laws taught by the Lord Buddha. The laws encourage the protection and sustenance of the human life support system and their prevention from being subjected to manmade or natural catastrophes.
Dr. A.T. will also conduct a speech on the theme, “A Pilgrim on a Living Pilgrimage,†a description of his personal journey for fifty years to build up what is perhaps the world’s largest people’s participatory movement. He will elaborate on how each step he took, whether it was a success or failure, ultimately enriched him spiritually. This pilgrimage was filled with insurmountable challenges that required an abundance of loving kindness, compassionate action, pleasant language, equanimity, and noble effort. Dr. A.T. single-handedly led tens of thousands of pilgrims who believed and joined him in this pilgrimage and over the past fifty years, these pilgrims have collected a vast ocean of spiritual energy and accomplished sacred action.
Meanwhile, Dr. Mrs. Charika Marasinghe will speak on the subject “From Tsunami Tidal Waves to Spiritual Healing Waves.†She will explain how Sarvodaya’s psycho-spiritual healing program is gradually transforming the feelings of fear, anxiety, stress, and confusion in the hearts and minds of Tsunami survivors into tranquil, peaceful, and contended thoughts. She will detail some stories that draw from real life, where survivors are trying to connect with the immense spiritual resources of the country to draw energy that can heal their pain and reawaken their lives with renewed faith and hope. Dr. Marasinghe will also highlight the initiatives adopted by Sarvodaya to transform the collective consciousness of Tsunami survivors and enable them to develop right understanding and self-reliance based on strong spiritual energies and values.
Dr. Marasinghe will elaborate on the spiritual journey of Vishva Niketan and explain how the center provides contentment to groups of people as varied as village folk, urban and rural youth, prison inmates, prison officers, corporate managers, school children, and expectant mothers and their spouses. She will also explain how Vishva Niketan’s spiritual message of healing the mind, society and, environment has entered the hearts of these people and thereby changed their lives and the lives around them.
The conference will be held from October 3rd to 7th, 2005.