Sri Chinmoy’s Work at the United Nations: Spirituality and the Power of Silence Kusumita P. Pedersen Introduction Many may think of the United Nations mainly as the secular arena of political strife, but the World Organization has a spiritual dimension which, although it is often not visible to the general public, is intrinsic to its purposes. This essay describes the work of the philosopher, poet, humanitarian, and peace‐server Sri Chinmoy (1931‐2007) at the United Nations, a work that was devoted to bringing to the fore, fostering and articulating this spiritual dimension. Sri Chinmoy saw the United Nations not merely as a political institution but as “the Heart‐Home of the World‐Body” and the focal point of an emerging “world‐oneness.” For the United Nations to develop to maturity and to fulfill its divinely intended mission, he believed, its inner reality must be recognized and must function in concert with its outer reality. The responsibility to develop this approach belongs to the whole human community, but especially to those working directly for the UN and in association with it through non‐governmental organizations (NGOs) or in other ways. This essay explores the significance of Sri Chinmoy’s work in the perspective of a larger question: how do spirituality and meditation play a role in the overall context of the United Nations? Invited by Secretary‐General U Thant, Sri Chinmoy led regular meditations for peace at UN headquarters for thirty‐seven years, beginning six years after he came to New York from his native India. He also conducted an array of other programs sponsored by Sri Chinmoy: The Peace Meditation at the United Nations, which was founded in 1970 to support the mission of the United Nations and promote the values expressed in its Charter. The Peace Meditation consists of United Nations staff members, delegates, journalists accredited to the UN, and representatives of NGOs; it is thus both internal to the United Nations structure and also open to participation from outside it. Sri Chinmoy’s work beyond the United Nations through the Sri Chinmoy Centre, an international NGO, since its inception in 1966 has advocated peace based on spiritual values, rooted in meditation and expressed in music, art, poetry, sports, community service, and celebration of the achievements of people from all cultures and backgrounds. A worldwide network of three hundred Sri Chinmoy Centres and their collaborating groups carries on the innovative programs founded by him, with no charge to participants. These include humanitarian aid in over one hundred and twenty‐five countries, at times in partnership with UN agencies, and the World Harmony Run, a global torch relay for friendship between peoples involving hundreds of thousands of participants in more than one hundred countries, with its opening and closing ceremonies at UN headquarters and the UN Office in Geneva. A single, indivisible vision of peace and human transformation informs all of these activities, whether organized by the Peace Meditation at the United Nations or undertaken elsewhere under NGO auspices. In the fall of 2007 in a spacious conference chamber at the United Nations Secretariat, representatives of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Indigenous religions, Islam and Judaism stood together without speaking a single word to open Sri Chinmoy’s memorial service. This interfaith invocation was perceptibly longer than the usual “moment of silence” and recalled the non‐sectarian meditations he had led twice every week year after year. One of the most compelling features of those meetings was their silence. The deep stillness might include a musical interlude, but there would be almost no speaking. Sri Chinmoy gave many lectures at the United Nations and engaged in informal discussions responding to questions, while the Peace Meditation has held a wide variety of programs, but all this is distinct from the meditation itself. The power of silence in meditation was and continues to be the foundation of all the work initiated by Sri Chinmoy. Its premise is that spirituality—an inner life connecting us to a larger or deeper reality—is a capacity possessed by every person. All people, regardless of religious and cultural background or institutional location, can and should apply this capacity in their efforts towards the goal of peace...