International Day of Peace
Promoting Equality and Peace with Love and Conscience
Jointly Creating a Sustainable Future
Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze
Zhang-men-ren of Tai Ji Men
President of the Federation of World Peace and Love
Vice President of the Association of World Citizens,
NGO in Consultative Status with ECOSOC and Associated with the UN DPI
September 21, 2021
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests, Dr. Ada JUNI Okika, Dear Friends, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good day!
I would like to thank the organizer, Africana Women Working Group at the UN, for inviting me. The United Nations General Assembly unanimously declared September 21 as a day of nonviolence and ceasefire in 2001, calling on all nations and peoples to end hostilities on this day, practice 24 hours of nonviolence and ceasefire, and promote the idea of peace through education and activities on a variety of peace-related topics. It is intended to not only honor the International Day of Peace, but also strengthen and raise awareness of peace among global citizens. Twenty years later, the UN Secretary General underlines in his message for the 100-day countdown to International Day of Peace 2021, “The world cannot go back to what it was. As we count down to the International Day of Peace, I call on people everywhere to be part of a transformation for peace, by standing up against hatred and discrimination, by caring for the planet, and by showing the global solidarity that is so vital at this time.”
Human rights are inherently natural, the law is inherently equal, and men and women are inherently cooperative, just like Tai Ji, where yin and yang embrace and mutually reinforce each other. Yin alone cannot give birth, and yang alone cannot grow. Natural reproduction allows each generation to succeed the previous, ensuring the sustainable future of the living creatures on earth. The world was originally beautiful, pure, and harmonious, and it was hopeful with everything flourishing. However, from the moment they are born, humans are confronted with the five poisons hidden in their hearts: greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance, and skepticism. The selfish pursuit of power, fame, and wealth has led to jealousy, suspicion, comparison, bullying, and even discrimination and hatred among people. Since ancient times, countless lives have been sacrificed to fight for human rights, bringing endless suffering. If people realize that we are one world and that the source of happiness is one, more conflicts and tragedies can be avoided. We all came from the same origin. We are all God's children. We are all brothers and sisters, and we are all one family. Conscience is innate and guides us onto the bright path. Only when conscience is activated can global citizens respect and care for one another and realize a peaceful world as with conscience comes a peaceful world and with happiness comes a joyful family. Conscience is the key to global peace and sustainability.
Peace is essential for maintaining positive energy, and love is a strong foundation for creating peace. Now is a critical time especially as the world is recovering from the devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic. Only by providing mutual support, assistance, love, and care, and uniting with love and conscience will we timely change the crisis into a good opportunity and create a win-win situation to enhance our collective well-being and to usher in true peace. This year's theme for the United Nations International Day of Peace is: "Recovering better for an equitable and sustainable world." We should all learn from history, learn from the wisdom of our predecessors, live in peace with each other, and think together about how to help make the world a healthier and safer place, a world of love, fairness, tolerance, and multicultural harmony.
Throughout the history of peacemaking, women have played a vital and increasingly influential role in promoting social and global dialogue, multilateral cooperation, and the well-being of the world's citizens. They are peacemakers and leaders, like the Mother Earth, who embraces and nurtures all things. They are loving, caring, resilient and bold, whether they are frontline health care workers, heads of state, leaders of businesses or organizations or leaders of conscience in various capacities during the pandemic. Their empathetic, communicative and proactive approach to balance is making a significant impact in our time, creating different leadership styles and new values. They are able to directly demonstrate and convey the power of love and warmth, and to be a bridge between strength and flexibility, creating harmony and peace in their daily lives and workplaces.
The International Day of Peace reminds us that we all have a long way to go in maintaining international peace and security, as well as promoting democracy and freedom, and that we must all work together to ensure the survival of the world's more than seven billion people. This International Day emphasizes the importance of using peace actions to safeguard the sustainable future of democratic and free societies, and it encourages the promotion of a culture of love, peace, and conscience to protect human rights and achieve global security, stability, and peace.
The essence of a culture of conscience is the prevention of war and the resolution of any form of conflict and confrontation by non-violent means, and even the further creation of peace. Martin Luther King, Jr., a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, advocated nonviolence in the fight for African Americans' basic rights. The father of the Indian nation, Mahatma Gandhi, successfully led India to independence, and his nonviolent ideology impacted the global movement for peaceful reforms. Wangari Maathai, a renowned Kenyan environmentalist, Africa's first woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize and a United Nations Messenger of Peace, has dedicated her life to promoting ecological conservation and sustainable global development, embodying her belief in "using resources to plant seeds of peace." The three co-winners of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, peace activist and columnist Leymah Gbowee of Liberia, and women's rights activist Tawakkul Karman of Yemen, have made significant contributions to human rights, democracy, and peace through their non-violent struggle for women's security and the right to participate fully in peacebuilding efforts. The key to peace lies in promoting the purest form of human love and practicing it with perseverance. Actions based on love and conscience will be the strongest force for peaceful reform and the best way to maintain long-term peace in the world.
There is no peace without love. Peace needs love, and love needs to be balanced. Balanced yin and yang are to be achieved with the middle way. Yin and yang mutually reinforce each other, and their respective qualities are combined to form a perfect Tai Ji that transforms all things and the world. Let us learn from each other, complement each other's strengths, and cooperate fully on the basis of love and respect, so that we can fully realize humanity's shared good values and accelerate the construction of a culture of conscience, thereby creating a peaceful world.
The fruit of conscience is true love. The fruit of true love is altruism, and the fruit of altruism is peace. We believe that sowing seeds of love and peace deep inside our hearts will facilitate the awakening of conscience and allow us to grow amid the warm exchanges of hearts. Conscience is like a compass, guiding people onto the right path and unleashing their boundless potential. Conscience enables people to become compassionate and courageous and empowers them to use wisdom to resolve conflict. When people act in accordance with their conscience, they benefit both themselves and others. By handling people and things with conscience, we will know how to tolerate and forgive each other, love and care for others, shorten the distance between people and between nations, and promote an all-round stable and peaceful society.
I am the Zhang-men-ren (grandmaster) of Tai Ji Men, and I have inherited the essence and regimen of the Daoist philosophy and have been dedicated to improving global citizens’ physical, mental, and spiritual health. During the SARS outbreak in 2002 and during the COVID-19 pandemic, which started in the end of 2019, we produced disease prevention guidelines: three don’ts, five do’s, and six tips as well as a trilogy of videos on epidemic prevention, which we have presented to heads of state and the world, hoping that everyone will stay safe, healthy, and happy and that the pandemic will end soon. The pandemic is in fact a warning to the world: Who can be without flaws if they are not saints? There is no greater benefit than being able to correct one's errors. In the face of nature's backlash, only through sincere self-reflection, repentance, and atonement, and by doing more good deeds with conscience to make up for our mistakes, can we have a chance to turn the corner.
Every human being yearns for love, peace, and goodness, and we can only achieve a win-win situation if we work together for mutual benefit and reciprocity. We shall continue our conscience-driven efforts, and we welcome everyone to join the conscience ranks in order to benefit the world through acts of love and conscience. Let conscience guide us in creating a sustainable society of peace, unity, and love through collective action, and together we will move toward a true era of conscience in which love, peace, and human dignity prevail. The more seeds of conscience we sow today, the more trees of love and peace will grow, and the more people truly practice conscience, the stronger the trees of love and peace will become. By uniting the actions of all peace advocates, regardless of nationality, race, gender, class, or other status, we will work together to promote the culture of peace with love and conscience and move towards a safe, equal, peaceful, and sustainable world!
In closing, I would like to thank the organizer again for the invitation and wish everyone all the best. Let us continue to create peace, happiness, and harmony together!