"Everywhere in the world there are wars, problems, conflicts… If you aspire to peace, you will never be able to find it outside of you. You must find peace within yourself, otherwise there can never be a peaceful world.
Chögyal Namkhai Norbu
The Conference is part of the Let’s Make Peace project, conceived in partnership between Merigar and ASIA and financed by Italian Buddhist Union.
The project aims to contribute, through various activities aimed at children, teachers and civil society in general, to the creation of a culture of peace and dialogue. In particular, it aims to make children and adults aware of the importance of human values such as empathy, love, compassion, altruism, respect for others, in order to create a peaceful society that puts an end to conflicts and the resulting suffering. By making peace within oneself, one learns not to project the enemy outside and establishes relationships based on respect, listening and empathy.
With the activities for schools envisaged in this project, we want to enhance the so-called “soft skills” of children, accompanying them to become aware of the unhealthy emotions they feel and to develop a kind attitude towards themselves.
At the conclusion of these activities, the project provides for the aforementioned conference, open to civil society, as an opportunity to reflect on the themes of the project.
Thus, this 2-day conference aims to be an opportunity for exchange and sharing of contemplative ways and paths of “inner disarmament”, with the aim of inspiring the participants on their own journey of awareness. In addition to theoretical presentations by philosophers and exponents of some of the main religions (Buddhism, Bön, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism), the conference also foresees moments dedicated to guided experimentation for the public of the different methods of approaching peace with themselves.
ASIA – Association for International Solidarity in Asia – is an Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) founded in 1988 by Prof. Chögyal Namkhai Norbu.
We work for the conservation of the identity and historical and cultural heritage of the peoples of the Asian continent, with particular attention to the Himalayan area. We promote sustainable development processes that focus on local communities with their own human, cultural and environmental resources.
We are present in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Mongolia and Italy, where we work in the name of Interculture and to promote active citizenship that is increasingly aware and respectful of the environment.