Oneness-World Peace-Blossoms: (d) Meditation at UN 25,Statements recipients of U Thant Peace Award

Statements and tributes from the international community on the occasion of the
twenty-fifth anniversary of

Sri Chinmoy: The Peace Meditation at The United Nations.

This is Part (d) Statements by recipients the U Thant Peace Award

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“It is with a feeling of deep respect for your life of selfless devotion and with appreciation of your good deeds that I want to extend my felicitations to you on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of your peace mission in the United Nations.

“Your deeds are invaluable, for they cannot be measured by any economic or political parameters; they are noble and cure the human soul.”

Mikhail Gorbachev

President of the Soviet Union

and Nobel Peace Laureate

Excerpt from a letter dated 27 March 1995

Shown during the U Thant Peace Award ceremony on 16 October 1994

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“I am so pleased with all the good work you are doing for world peace and for people in so many countries. May we continue to work together and to share together, all for the Glory of God and for the good of man.”

Mother Teresa

Founder, Missionaries oj harity

and Nobel Peace Laureate

Shown receiving the U Thant Peace Award on 1 October 1994

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“ Governments follow where people set the course. Certainly the Governments of Britain and France did not end colonialism . It was done by people like Mahatma Gandhi and by others who pioneered. And I myself feel that you are here very much in that same spirit and that same vein. That in particular is why I am appreciative of receiving this U Thant Peace Award from such treasured hands [Sri Chinmoy] and from such a treasured group.”

James P. Grant

Executive Director of UNICEF

Shown receiving the U Thant Peace Award on 20 September 1994

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“It has been a divine experience for us to be present here. We have been transported from the world of chaos to the world of peace and bliss. I feel very blessed for having had this opportunity today to receive the blessing and the grace of revered Sri Chinmoy. May we be the instruments to serve humanity, to serve the poor, to serve the suffering, so that, if not today, if not tomorrow, then one day we will have a world where there will be less suffering, where there will be peace and joy. And that comes through divine Grace; and divine Grace functions through great souls like Sri Chinmoy.”

C. Subramaniam

President, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan

Supreme statesman of India

Shown receiving the U Thant Peace Award on 12 September 1993

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“ I want everyone to know how deeply grateful I have been for the exulting experience that you have provided me tonight. There was tremendous spiritual serenity … and you have uplifted me towards great spiritual heights.”

Siddhartha Shankar Ray

Ambassador of India to the United States

Shown receiving the U Thant Peace Award on 8 August 1993

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“It is our duty as individuals who have higher aspirations to lead the way by achieving a spiritual awareness. We are blessed with the splendid example of Sri Chinmoy. His life is a symbol of holiness. He is an ambassador of peace whom every people can claim as their own. His very presence brings to us in the United Nations new possibilities, new ideas and new hopes.”

Jorge E. Illueca

President of the Thirty-eighth Session of the United Nations General Assembly

and President of Panama

Shown receiving the U Thant Peace Award on 3 December 1983

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“your mission is the power of the spirit. No matter the changes in society, no matter the changes in the international scenario, no matter all the things which make yesterday not like today and today nothing like tomorrow, yet there is something which is permanent. And this is the power of the spirit, the power of the inner self. I think that Sri Chinmoy and all of you here are trying to bring about a sense of permanence in humanity, the humanity which, in spite of all the apparent changes, can only realise itself due to the inner power, the power of the spirit.”

Guido de Marco

President of the Forty-fifth Session oj the United Nations General Assembly

and Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Mil1ister of Malta

Shown during the U Thant Peace Award ceremony 28 September 1991

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“Privileged are those who have an encounter with that message of peace, love and universal brotherhood, which has come to us through the sages of the past, through the saints of India and, in our own time, through a man like Mahatma Gandhi. Sri Chinmoy carries the same spark within himself, and that is a spark which is one with the Radiance of the Almighty. A guru like Sri Chinmoy lights up that little spark in us so that we may be one with the effulgence, with the radiance, with the light that guides us all ever and ever, for generations and generations.”

Lakhan Mehrotra

Secretary oj the Indian Ministry of External Affairs

Shown receiving the U Thant Peace Award on 22 September 1991

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“Since I first set my gaze on Sri Chinmoy, since that first moment of encounter, he has always remained prevalent in my heart and soul. He has been a source of inspiration, especially during the trials of life. There are moments when one needs to be able to feel one has a friend somewhere who is sharing the same kind of responsibilities as one is oneself. That deeper friendship is much more than friendship. It is a real sharing at the soul-level between those of us who are dedicated to conveying spiritual teaching to our fellow beings. It is so very deep that it is difficult to describe.”

Pir Vilayat Khan

Head of the Sufi Order in the West

Shown receiving the U Thant Peace Award on 15 April 1991

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“The U Thant Peace Award not only gives us new inspiration, dedication and energy to serve in the best manner millions of human beings in poor countries, but also constitutes a high commemoration of the spirit of the late Secretary-General U Thant, a world leader who was a champion of peace and development. I thank you from my heart once again for the great honour, and send you my very best wishes and respect”

Bradford Morse

Administrator

United Nations Development Programme

From a statement on behalf of UNDP

dated 21 March 1985

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“It is the greatest honour which has been granted through me to UNDP today, with this award named after our late Secretary-General U Thant. We consider this award as a symbol of the service rendered on the part of the United Nations for humanity. We are very privileged, honoured and indebted to you today for what you have granted us.”

Uner Kirdar

Director of Division of External Relations

and Governing Council Secretariat

United Nations Development Programme

Shown receiving the U Thant Peace Award on behalf of UNDP on 19 March 1985

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“I am especially blessed by this recognition [the U Thant Peace Award], for it is given by a great man of peace Sri Chinmoy-in the name of another great man of peace-U Thant. It was the commitment to the universal spirit that connects all people to the light and love of the Supreme that made U Thant a great man of peace. It is that same commitment that makes Sri Chinmoy a tireless worker for peace, understanding and tolerance in a dangerous world.”

Russell Barber

WNBC-TV religion editor, Emmy Award winner

and producer and host of The First Estate: Religion in Review

Shown receiving the U Thant Peace Award on 6 November 1986

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“Work for the spirit of man is a great asset to humanity, and I want to praise Sri Chinmoy for what he is doing. His work is far more important than all the conferences in the United Nations. It is far more important than all the declarations of the United Nations, for it glorifies man and the higher ideas and larger ideals that are so necessary today.

Zenon Rossides

Ambassador of Cyprus to the United Nations

First recipient of the U Thant Peace Award

on 7 October 1982

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From: “Oneness-World Peace-Blossoms: Sri Chinmoy: The Peace Meditation at the United Nations 25th Anniversary” , printed in 1995.

(a) Contents and Alphabetical Name Index

(b) Statements by the Secretaries-General.. …………. 1
(c) Messages from the Vatican .……………………… 1 3

(d) Statements by recipients the U Thant Peace Award …. 1 7
(e) Statements by Government leaders ……………… 33
(f) Statements by Presidents of the General Assembly, Ambassadors, Officials and other participants ….

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