03

Former President of Ecuador

It is my first time in Kolkata. I have been to different cities of India and I can smell spirituality in every step and in every place that I have visited in this country. Two days ago, I visited Mother Teresa’s home and I was deeply touched by her vision. Yesterday, I visited the residence and museum of Rabindranath Tagore who is one of my favourite poets. I want to start with the reason that brought me far away from South America, from a beautiful country named Ecuador, which is a mix of diverse regions that mixes coastal profile with high mountains and houses the Amazon forests and the mysterious and incredible Galapagos Islands.

Having received the kind invitation from Dr. Kanoria, the mentor and leader of this forum and the President of the World Confluence of Humanity, Power and Spirituality, and from Rahul Verma, President of Social Impact Initiatives, I came to participate in this high level summit in which thoughts of the four cardinal points come together. I want to convey my thanks to my great friend Princess Maria Amore who introduced me to Dr. Kanoria. My country has great natural reserves of extraordinary biodiversity, which is inherited by hardworking creative and peaceful people as has been demonstrated through history.

I deeply believe that the spiritual dimension is needed to comprehend the human dimension. Each group of human beings, each civilisation that has populated the earth had created codes, rules of behaviour, and laws that make
co-existence possible. Traces of culture have been established, which have left and will leave a legacy that will be meaningful to others. The need to believe, thinking of a life further from life and the eagerness of immortality go hand in hand with spirituality. There are two fundamental moments when people can be exposed to spirituality and can acquire immeasurable strength.

First, when we ask ourselves about the origin of everything- things that surrounds us and things that exist beyond and raise questions that even advanced science cannot answer. The second moment comes with the cataclysm caused by human actions when this wonderful earth which is unique and blue as seen from space, is harmed. We often abuse nature and overuse the renewable resources.  

Here is when spirituality seems to give the answers that allow us to understand that humans are functioning with a common destiny. We are inhabitants of the same planet and the consequences of our actions can have the devastating force of destruction. But in that, there is also a capacity of understanding that spirituality has given us the strength to overcome these obstacles and help in finding a peace and create a prospect for a better future. It is important to look for a common ground- a consensus- that makes us more tolerant and respectful towards others who are different from us.