(Transcription of my address to world leaders at the Trilateral Global Summit on 20th June 2019.)

 

Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests, brothers and sisters. First of all I would like to congratulate and express my gratitude to our organizers, Robin Marsh, Secretary General of the Universal Peace Federation, and Abdul Basit Syed, chairman of World Humanitarian Drive, for bringing us all together to participate in this vision for a better future.

 

What is this vision? It is vision of a world in which commerce, culture, and spirituality, collaborate for the upliftment of every individual.

 

I have no experience or professional training in finance and investment as you do, so kindly excuse me. Nevertheless, I am here to point out that commerce and culture cannot bring about enduring peace and prosperity without spirituality.

 

Why? Allow me to express this in the broadest terms; to look at the big picture and offer a meta-analysis.

A civilization that is spiritually weak becomes morally weak. And a morally weak civilization gradually disintegrates into chaos and war due to hubris, corruption, a lack of trust in civil institutions, and intolerance. A number of academic studies have demonstrated conclusively that there is a direct correlation between morality (dharma) and social prosperity (artha). The stability and order within civilization are directly proportional to its moral standard. Throughout history, whenever a civilization became hedonistic, materialistic and immoral, it inevitably collapsed and disappeared into oblivion.

 

Of course, in real time, everyone thinks that his civilization will be the exception. However, studies show that there have been no exceptions to this iron rule.

 

Spirituality is, for many, such a vague term. So let me clarify it by contrast with materialism.

 

Materialism is the perspective that everything is simply composed of inert, insentient matter, governed by blind mechanistic laws of nature. As such, life has no teleology, or intrinsic purpose, beyond the instinctive pursuit of fleeting pleasures, wealth and power.

 

Conversely, the spiritual perspective holds that life is a meaningful journey. The vehicle is education. This journey passes through the city of peace, then happiness (for without peace, what is the possibility of happiness?), and finally reaches the destination of perfect love for God.

 

The material perspective is one of self-absorption, focused on one’s ego, whereas, the spiritual perspective entails a moment-by-moment awareness of the presence of God in everything and everyone.

Now some of you may be skeptical, and that is understandable. There’s a common perception nowadays that spirituality is somehow superstitious, irrational, or not scientific. But this is a grave error.

 

Far from disproving the world’s wisdom traditions, developments in science continue to confirm them. I’ll give just one example. In modern times happiness is often equated with pleasure, whereas traditional religions promote self-restraint and moderation as the path to happiness. Who is right? Is it just a matter of opinion?

 

Studies in neurology show that one’s sense of happiness correlates with the flow of neurotransmitters in the reward system of the brain. Although it is true that sensory stimulation, such as nicotine or alcohol, temporarily increase the flow of neurotransmitters within the reward system, gradually receptors in the post-synaptic neuron quickly begin to shut down. In other words, the more you try to enjoy pleasure through physical stimulation, the more you reduce your base level of happiness and even your neurological capacity to experience happiness. This leads to a cycle of withdrawal symptoms, dependence, addiction and depression.

 

This is but one illustration of how the traditional wisdom of the world’s religions was neither superstition nor relative opinion, but scientific fact all along. These findings have massive implications in the fields of social policy, education, and law, etc.

 

A NEW ERA OF SCIENTIFIC SPIRITUALITY:

 

What is next for humankind? What is the trajectory of modern civilization? We stand at a point in time that offers unprecedented opportunities for progress, but also unprecedented challenges. The spectre of radicalization currently casts its shadow over the world, which, left unchecked, forebodes extremely dire consequences. But at the same time, the advancement of communication provides us with unprecedented opportunities for dialogue between specialists in the wisdom traditions of the world to analyze, compare their theories and experiences, and establish a rigorously scientific UNIVERSAL SPIRITUAL ETHOS.

 

I want to point out that this is not a new project, but the culmination of thousands of years work by some of the brightest minds to have blessed this world. One of the greatest scholars of Islam, Averroes (1126 - 1198), sought to establish certain universal principles expounded in the Koran on a rational scientific footing by drawing upon the classical logic of Aristotle. Similarly, the prominent Jewish scholar, Maimonides (1135 - 1204), looked toward the Aristotelian worldview for a scientific explanation of the spiritual principles found within the Jewish tradition. In Christianity, Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225 – 1274) also based his natural theology upon Aristotle’s philosophy of nature.

 

The classical philosophy of Realism finds its roots even earlier than Aristotle (384–322 BC). In ancient India, Gautam Rshi (500 BC) elaborately formulated classical Realism in his Nyaya Sutras. He in turn was profoundly influenced by the Vedas of Srila Vyasadeva (>1000 BC).

 

Historically, we find a great deal of common ground between the major wisdom traditions in their appreciation for the Realism of classical antiquity.

They all stand in direct opposition to the Godless Nominalism of modernity.

 

Unfortunately, inter-religious conflicts have discredited theism in the eyes of the common people, with the result that materialism has run rampant in society. Therefore, it is imperative that the faithful of various traditions stand shoulder-to-shoulder and present a united front to the world to oppose the advancing tragedy of Godlessness.

 

What would a universal spiritual ethos look like? There are certain principles that all faithful persons hold dear:

 

1) The immateriality of consciousness (the soul).

2) Existence of God.

3) The afterlife.

4) Divine justice. We ultimately face responsibility for our actions.

5) Moderation

6) The traditional family as the basic unit of society.

7) Moral development.

8) Humility.

9) Compassion.

10) Daily rituals of service and prayer to maintain and increase one’s inner sanctity.

 

In regard to this last point, all major religions, such as Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism, and Buddhism, extoll the benefits of prayer utilizing a rosary. The repetition of the names or attributes of God is universally recognized as the most effective method of inducing a profound state of contemplation, inner-peace and spiritual wellbeing.

 

There are academic studies demonstrating that such meditation gradually restructures the neural networks of the brain, radically improving concentration, impulse control, and one’s sense of contentment. More investment is needed to understand this field and implement the results in education and public policy.

Our organization, “Chaitanya Academy - for the study of consciousness” focuses on education, training and research into the nature of consciousness, and unpacking the practical implications of that research for all of us, both at the individual scale and the civilizational scale.

 

I’m sure you will all agree that modern mainstream media is complicit in the downfall of humanity. Popular culture is progressively appealing to and amplifying the lowest side of human nature by valorizing the trivial and frivolous. The media consistently glamorize promiscuity and hedonism, which, in turn, extinguish whatever faint glimmer of God consciousness people may have. Books of demonstrably sloppy scholarship by authors of the recent New Atheist Movement, such as The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins, received over twenty times more publicity than the well-written volumes successfully refuting them. So it is clear which side mainstream media is on in the culture wars.

 

So what can you do? I recommend investing in alternative spiritual education and mass media with a wholesome message to promote the classical Realist worldview of truth, beauty and goodness.

 

We are all spiritual beings who are born into the world with nothing and we also leave this world with nothing. In the meantime, whatever resources we accumulate by destiny are best utilized for the welfare of humanity. The ultimate purpose of human life is to attain pure unconditional love for God, Sri Krsna. When resources are invested to help humanity fulfill this purpose, then that is truly INVESTING IN HUMANITY. Thank you for your patient attention.

 

Photo 1: Receiving "International Ambassador for Peace" Award in the House of Lords, Parliament London. [Left to right Robin Marsh, Secretary General of the Universal Peace Federation, Hon. MP Keith Best QC, Prem Prayojan, Jaya Sri (my mother)]

Photo 2: Her Serene Highness Princess Angelika of Poland congratulates Prem Prayojan on receiving "International Ambassador for Peace" Award in the House of Lords, Parliament London.

Photo 3: Hon. MP Chris Philp congratulates Prem Prayojan on receiving "International Ambassador for Peace" Award in the House of Lords, Parliament London.

 

 

 

 

 

THE HOLLOWNESS OF WORLDLY ACHIEVEMENTS:

 

 

One part of the Trilateral Global Summit in London included a conference and banquet in the Parlour of the Mayor of Croydon. For the sake of networking, the seating arrangements were designed to bring together dignitaries from several of the 24 represented nations at each table, rather than one nation per table.

 

I was directed to take my seat between a cheerful East Asian executive and the chair of the United Nations World Arts and Culture Council. The executive congratulated me on the speech I had given earlier that day on "Investing in Humanity" and candidly began to share his own experiences.

 

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"When I completed my doctorate at Princeton University," he said, "I felt so happy. But that happiness lasted only for a few days, then I felt empty. Later, I become a professor of international finance at Harvard University. I thought it was a great achievement for two days, but then again I felt emptiness. I was not at peace.

 

"After some time, I became the CEO of the World Bank. I was so happy for two days. But then, nothing. I realized that I was striving for things that have no enduring value. Of all the speakers here, you are the only one telling the truth about life.

 

"My wife is a medical doctor in a private hospital I have built. I often go there to visit the ward of the critically ill patients. I have seen very wealthy and successful people who were always busy in so many activities, but in the end they say that they are just empty. No thoughts come in their mind except the fear of death.

 

"This is the real problem. How to find peace and understand our spirit. I want to learn from you about the soul and God. I think this is the real path to peace and happiness. It is my experience that worldly achievements are hollow."

 

It was a pleasure to pass the evening explaining to such a sincere and receptive soul that the only worthwhile and lasting achievement in life is the attainment of perfect love for Sri Krsna, the transcendental personality of Godhead. Everything else is folly and vanity.

 

(Photo: (background left to right) Vasant Rajkumar (National President of Police, Nepal), Patricia Medina (U.N. Nuclear Proliferation expert), Dr. Sheikh Ramzy (Oxford Islamic Centre) (foreground) Ali Alderazi (MP Bahrain), Fassi Fihri MP (Minister of Education, Morocco), Angelina Teny MP (Minister of Energy and Mining, South Sudan).