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Lasting Solution for Modern-Day Conflicts Keynote Address of Her Holiness Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi at the closing Plenary Session of The Parliament of the World’s Religions. July 13, 2004, Barcelona, Spain

Amma bows down to everyone here, who are embodiments of pure love and the Supreme Consciousness. The effort and self-sacrifice of those who are capable of organizing such an enormous event are beyond words. Amma simply bows down in front of such selflessness.

Our Treasure, Our Power

Our God-given abilities are a treasure, meant for ourselves as well as for the entire world. This wealth should not be misused, creating a burden for us and for the world. The greatest tragedy in life is not death; the greatest tragedy takes place when our talents and capabilities are under utilized and allowed to rust while we are living. When we use the wealth obtained from nature, it diminishes; but when we use the wealth of our inner capabilities, it increases.

But, are we using our abilities properly?  What has always been the aim of humanity? Where has human society always yearned to reach? Has it not always been everyone’s goal to obtain as much happiness and contentment as possible in both our personal lives and in society? But where do we stand today? Most of us move from one mistake to another, which only makes our problems worse.

Every country has tried increasing its power in politics, the military, weaponry, economics, science and technology. Is there anything we have yet to test and explore? We are all so focused on those areas. Having tried these methods for so long, have we achieved any real peace or contentment? No. Time has proven that these methods alone cannot secure us contentment. Only if spiritual power—with which we have never before experimented—grows alongside all those different areas, can we attain the peace and contentment we are seeking.

Restore the Inner Connectivity

In reality, there is only one difference between people in wealthy countries and poor countries: while people in wealthy countries are crying in air-conditioned rooms and palatial mansions, the people of poor countries are crying on the dirt floors of their huts.

In any case, one thing is clear: people, who once hoped to smile and be happy, are now shedding tears in many parts of the world. Sorrow and suffering are becoming the hallmark of many countries. It is senseless to blame all these on religion alone. A major cause of these problems is the interpretation people have given to religion and spirituality.

In short, today we search externally for the causes and solutions to all the problems of the world. In our haste, we forget the greatest truth of all—that the source of all problems is to be found within the human mind. We forget that the world will become good only if the mind of the individual becomes good. So, along with an understanding of the outer world, it is essential that we also come to know the inner world.

There was once a function to inaugurate a new supercomputer. After the inauguration, the participants were told that they could ask the supercomputer any question and it would come up with the answer in seconds. Everyone did their best to ask the computer the most complicated questions relating to science, history, geography, and so on. As soon as each question was posed, the answer would pop up on the screen. Then, a child stood up and asked the supercomputer a simple question: “Hello, Supercomputer. How are you today?” The screen remained blank for a long time and there was no response! The computer could come up with answers to questions about everything except itself.

Most of us live in a state similar to that of the computer. Along with our understanding of the outside world, we should also develop our knowledge about our inner world.

When our telephone is out of order, we call the telephone company to repair it; when our cable TV fails to receive programs clearly, the cable company helps us; and when our Internet connection is not working, the Internet company fixes it. In a similar way, spirituality is the means to restore our inner connection with the Divine. The science of spirituality puts the ‘remote control’ of our mind back into our hands.