We must be well aware of what is happening in the world. There is a revolt against the established order because what is called the established order is nothing remarkable. What has the older generation built, for which—please bear in mind—each one of us is responsible? Each of us is accountable for every war, whether in the East or the West. Each of us is also responsible for the confusion, misery, and ugliness prevailing in the world.

When we emphasise the individual, it is not in opposition to society. One who is truly serious is neither merely an individual nor solely concerned with society but exists beyond the realm of individuality and the structure of society—an entirely different kind of human being. The individual is society, and society is the individual—they are indivisible.

First of all, the Earth on which we live is our Earth. It does not belong to the British, the French, the Germans, the Russians, the Indians, or the Chinese—it is our shared home. That is a fact. Yet, thought has divided it racially, geographically, culturally, and economically. These divisions are wreaking havoc in the world. There is no denying that. This is a rational, objective, and sane observation. We all live on this Earth—our Earth—yet we have divided it in the name of security and various forms of patriotic, illusory ideas that ultimately lead to war.

We have also said that all human consciousness is similar. Whatever part of the world we live in, we all go through a great deal of suffering and pain, great anxiety, uncertainty and fear, with occasional, or perhaps frequent, pleasure. This is the common ground on which all human beings stand. This is an irrefutable fact. We may try to dodge it or try to say it is not a fact, I am an individual, and so on, but when you look at it objectively, non-personally, not as British, French and so on, in examination you will find that your consciousness is like the consciousness of all human beings. You may be tall, you may be fair, you may have long hair, you may be black or white or pink or whatever it is, but inwardly, psychologically, we are all having a terrible time. We all have a great sense of desperate loneliness. We may have children, a husband or wife and all the rest of it, but when We are alone, We have the feeling that we have no relationship with anything, totally isolated. We are saying this is the common ground on which all humanity stands.

Whatever happens in the field of consciousness, we are responsible for it. That is, if I am violent, I am adding violence to that consciousness common to all of us. If I am not violent, I am not adding to it; I am bringing a totally new factor to that consciousness.

The world, as it is now, is full of violence. Only very, very few people escape from it. Suppose I realise I am totally responsible, then what is my action? Competitiveness between nations is destroying the world the more powerful and the less powerful; the less powerful trying to become more powerful. Realising that I am the rest of mankind and I am totally responsible, shall I be competitive? Please answer these questions. When I feel responsible for this, naturally I cease to be competitive. The religious, economic and social world is based on hierarchical principles. Obviously, I shall have no hierarchical outlook. When one says, ‘I know,’ and the other says, ‘I don’t know,’ the one who knows is taking a superior position and has status. If we want status, go after it, but we are contributing to the confusion of the world.

We are not separate from the crisis; whatever happens to an individual, a nation or a group of people is happening to each one of us. Since we are not so intimately connected, we ought to be fully aware and deliberately conscious of our thoughts and feelings. If we are modelled, if we take sides, if events persuade us and we are not aware of the causes of the events, we shall be merely carried away by them. Events are occurring with extraordinary rapidity, locally and worldwide, and their impact is so very strong and fierce, it behoves us to be extraordinarily clear in our thoughts, and fundamental in our feelings, because the stronger the event, the greater the mess, intensity, turmoil and chaos within us. Events close by naturally upset and disturb many. Mere intellectual froth is of no significance in moments of great importance. The danger is to translate great events intellectually and superficially and thereby pass them by. Whereas, if we are able to very closely and very clearly follow the causes of psychological disturbance and maintain emotional attention without the interference of the intellect, perhaps we shall be able to bring significance to the issues.

When belief is stronger than affection and love, you are the very cause of destruction. To understand any crisis, like the present one which is localised m, we ought to approach it diligently, with intensity, with clarity, with the intention to go very fully into it and see all its significance and depths. We are responsible for everything that is happening in the world at present. These are not unrelated incidents but are related. The real cause of this untimely death lies in you. The real cause is you. Because you are communalistic, you encourage the spirit of division through property, caste, ideology, through having different religions, sects and leaders.

War is justified because we think it is going to bring us peace. We feel a threat to ourselves, we identify with property, belief, ideology, and so on, which breeds inevitable destruction. We try to isolate ourselves from others in many different ways. This isolation is the real cause of what is happening in the world. So, we are responsible. This has world significance. We have accepted evil as a means to good. We justify. War is justified because we think it is going to bring us peace not only war between two people but the whole intention behind war. We justify war, and the trend of the world is in that direction as if there is going to be peace at the end.

There are plenty of sensations, sexual, intellectual or environmental, but actual affection for somebody, to love somebody with our whole being, does not exist for the obvious reason that we have cultivated the intellect. We are marvellous at passing examinations, spinning out theories, speculating on the market, and minting money, which are all indications of the foundations of the intellect. When the intellect becomes supreme, we are bound to have disaster. The heart is empty, and we fill it with words and the fabrications of the intellect. That is what one notices to an extraordinary extent in the world at present. Are we not full of theories, either of the left or the right, on how to solve the problems of the world? But our hearts are empty. And surely the problem is very simple when we actually look at it, very sincerely: as long as we are identified with property, name, caste, governments, communities, ideologies or beliefs, we are bound to create destruction and misery in the world.

As we are responsible for this murder and past and future murders, whether of one person or millions, we have to change. We have to become transformed, not by beginning at a distance but by beginning very close, by observing the ways of our thinking, feeling and acting every day. That is the only way to bring about transformation, that is if we are interested and serious-minded. But if we are emotionally excited by events, if we have been drugged by the political harangues of so many years, naturally we will have little response. But whether we like it or not, we are responsible for the miseries outside, because in ourselves we are miserable, confused, anxious, and without love.

Whether every opposite is the continuation of its own opposite. When two strong parties are each determined to have position and power, naturally it is going to destroy the man, who is caught in between. That is what is happening in the country and our own family. When we dominate our wife or husband, when we are possessive when we cling to power in a small circle. In fact, we are contributing to world chaos. When belief in nationalism dominates us, when any country becomes of supreme importance, which is happening in every nation, then it is a catastrophe of great destruction or a third world war inevitable.

When we will change our relationship, society will change. Circumstances can be controlled by us because we have created the circumstances. Society is the product of relationships, of yours and mine together. If we change in our relationship, society changes. But merely to rely on legislation and compulsion for the transformation of society while remaining inwardly corrupt and seeking power, position and domination, is to destroy the outer, however carefully and scientifically built. That which is inward is always overcoming the outward.

It is not difficult to transform ourselves. Just need to put our minds and hearts into it. But we are too sluggish. We leave it to the other. Thus, again, the inevitability or cessation of war depends upon us. When you seek inward security, you create insecurity. By the very desire to be psychologically secure, we create destruction. It is obvious it has been repeated in history over and over again. Outward security is essential for food, clothing and shelter. We want to be psychologically secure; so we use food, clothing, shelter, and ideas, as a means of psychological security which therefore brings destruction. Wars are inevitable as long as individual human beings are in conflict with each other, which is an indication that they are in conflict within themselves. We want transformation through legislation, through outward revolution, through systems, but yet we are inwardly untransformed. Inwardly we are disturbed and confused. Without bringing order, peace and happiness inwardly, we cannot have peace and happiness outwardly in the world.

Finally, we should engage ourselves to defend the shrinking space of dialogue across boundaries, despite the deep divisions entrenched by war and conflicts. We should continue convening different actors from academia, civil society, political institutions, faith-based organisations, and multilateral systems to uphold and promote together the shared values that protect our humanity from further bloody conflicts, and foster justice and dignity for all. We should also consider increasing our contribution to the development of resources and spaces for inclusive peace and responsible citizenship education, and post-war healing and reconciliation process, leading in the long-term to replace hatred and fear by mutual trust and common engagement. So let us change ourselves to sustain the peace and save the world.

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The writer is the Company Secretary of City Bank PLC.