Section 1

Kurt Waldheim

O Kurt Waldheim ... your mind-heart's concern-flames constantly feed this world of fearful cry and tearful sigh, to see a peaceful earth and blessingful sky.

The Pilot Supreme

To the truth-seeker, peace-lover, oneness-dreamer, perfection-builder, satisfaction-harbinger and the supreme Pilot in the Secretary-General, Kurt Waldheim, we offer our soulful gratitude-heart.

When the seeker in me concentrates on the illumination-mind, meditates on the oneness-heart and contemplates on the satisfaction-soul of the SecretaryGeneral, he gets three most earth-liberating and Heaven-fulfilling messages. These messages primarily deal with divine necessity and human responsibility in connection with the cry of the United Nations worldbody and the smile of the United Nations world-soul.

The message of the illumination-mind of the Secretary-General runs thus: When a human being goes deep within and wants to make friends with necessity, necessity immediately wants to become his friend. Necessity and he become close friends. They have one ideal and one goal; that ideal is satisfaction and that goal is perfection.

Then the human being goes without and as soon as he comes out, responsibility wants to make friends with him. He does not want responsibility to be his friend, but responsibility compels him to become its friend. Unwillingly, with great reluctance, he condescends to become responsibility's friend.Responsibility's ideal and responsibility's goal he does not sincerely like, but he is compelled to love responsibility's ideal and goal just because he has agreed to accept responsibility as his friend. Responsibility's ideal is to work for others and to be satisfied in others' satisfaction. Responsibility's goal is to work for others' perfection and to find one's own perfection in their perfection.

In the human world, necessity inspires a human being, educates him and prepares him. In the human world, responsibility frustrates him, tortures him and weakens him. In the divine world there is no such thing as compelled responsibility or self-styled responsibility. There is no responsibility whatsoever. There is only one necessity and that necessity is at once illumining and fulfilling. Again, there is a third world, which is God's own Self-transcendence world. In God's own Self-transcendence world there is neither responsibility nor necessity. In God's world there is only one thing: Satisfaction-Reality.

Countless wants each individual has; but there can be only one necessity if that individual is sincere to himself, sincere to the world and sincere to God, and that necessity is God's Smile. Countless obligations each individual has; but there is and there can be only one true responsibility, and that responsibility lies in one's sincere effort to fulfil the real need of the world and not its wants or demands.

Necessity is self-enquiry for God-discovery. Responsibility is world-education for world-perfection.

Necessity is a one-way street. Here the doer and the action go together. Here the dream of the individual seeker and the reality of the individual seeker live together in perfect harmony, complementing and fulfilling each otherResponsibility is a two-way street. Here the giver is an individual and the receiver is another individual. When the receiver receives, at times he may be grateful and at times he may not be grateful at all. When the giver gives, at times he may be soulful and at times he may be anything but soulful. The giver either willingly or unwillingly gives and the receiver either gratefully or ungratefully receives. But the giver and the receiver always meet together at a particular point or a particular place as two separate realities. So in responsibility there is always a division: two entities, two realities-giver and receiver. But in necessity there is only the song of oneness. Here two become one, three become one, four become one; for all of them have one soul and one goal.

The message of the Secretary-General's oneness-heart runs thus: The demanding world tells us that it is the responsibility of the United Nations to bring about world peace since the world organisation bears the name "United Nations." The demanding world always claims that in order to prove its worth, the United Nations must bring about world peace. This is the truth that the demanding world offers us. But the loving world has something else to tell. The loving world tells us that it is the necessity of the world at large, of the entire world, to have peace, to have love and to have harmony. The United Nations is a member of the world family The world houses the United Nations. The United Nations, as a member of the world family, is most sincerely waling to try to bring peace to all the other members of the family. It is the world-necessity that the United Nations has accepted as its own necessity-not as its responsibility but as its true necessity. So the loving world feels that a most prominent, qualified member of its family has accepted the world-necessity as its own necessity and is trying its utmost to bring about world peace according to the world's willingness.

In a family there are parents and children. The United Nations can be called a strong young man in the family. The parents or, let us say, the oldest members of the family, the old nations-these the United Nations can keep on its shoulders perfectly safe. And the new nations, its younger brothers and sisters-these the United Nations can keep beside itself. The parents are satisfied when their strong young boy places them on his shoulders and takes them to the destination, and the little members of the family are also satisfied when they can go alongside their strong brother and reach the destination with him. And what is their destination? World-progress is their destination; world-satisfaction is their destination. So the old nations and the young nations can easily be carried to their destination with love, sympathy and inner capacity, provided they claim the United Nations as a real, true, genuine member of their family. For the capacity of the United Nations is nothing short of its world-embracing and world-illumining vision.

The message of the Secretary-General's satisfaction-soul runs thus: Compromise is not and cannot be the real answer to the world's problems. The breath of compromise is very short-lived. It is like a fleeting second. What is needed, what is of paramount importance, is oneness, not compromise.

What is compromise? If you don't speak ill of me, I shall not speak ill of you. If you keep silent, then I shall also keep silent; or if you do this, I shall do this and if you don't do that, then I won't do that. This is compromise.

But in oneness we notice something else. In oneness we see that two individuals have become absolutely, inseparably one for their oneness-satisfaction, even though they are performing two different tasks. One can remain silent and the other can talk. One speaks what he has to say and the other listens devotedly and soulfully; then they change their respective roles. In oneness we also see the role of multiplicity. With one hand I can do something to please my mind and with the other hand I can do something to please my body. I can please my eyes and, at the same time, I can please my ears. I can look at you and appreciate your beauty and, at the same time, I can hear what you have to say. The soul of the United Nations teaches us the most sublime truth that two individuals or all individuals can do something according to their own capacity, their own willingness and their own receptivity and still please all the members of their spiritual family.

It is like an orchestra. There are many players and each player is playing a different instrument. But each player is needed. On the piano, each key is needed. We cannot say that one is enough, for then there will be no music. All the keys are necessary. Similarly, all the members of the United Nations are necessary. They will produce different notes, but they have to go together if there is to be a musical symphony. In this way there can be real oneness in variety; in this way the world can achieve peace in multiplicity.

Again, each nation need not play the same note all the time. Silence and sound: this is what God eternally is. When it is necessary for some nation to see the face of reality-silence, that nation has to remain silent. When a particular nation feels it is necessary to see the face of reality-sound, it will enter into the life of action. Action and inaction, sound and silence-both must go together. On one level these two things are diametrically opposite, but in the deepest reality-existence they are one. Dream-world and reality-world, sound-world and silence-world, complement each other and fulfil each other.

The United Nations is playing a most important role in seeking to establish world harmony, world peace, world oneness, world divinity, world perfection and Codsatisfaction. The outer world says that the United Nations is not strong enough, but the inner world has something else to say. The inner world says that the real capacity of the United Nations is its willingness and its inner cry. The United Nations is crying for world peace; and this very act of crying is its real capacity. It has no other capacity. The way of oneness that cries to lead us to the ultimate destination: this is the United Nations. The cry itself is its capacity and this capacity is of supreme importance.

True, this capacity cannot or does not meet with satisfaction-reality all at once. I have the capacity to run, let us say, but I am not at the destination. I have just left the starting point; my goal is still ahead. Capacity does not mean immediate success or immediate victory. Capacity is a continuous movement that eventually leads us to our destined goal. Right now the United Nations, which is the supreme human and divine necessity-God's Necessity on earth to bring about world peace-is a cry, a movement, a forward march, a forward adventure. A runner is running. Just because the runner has not reached the goal, this does not mean that the runner will fail. There is an appointed hour and at that appointed hour, which is God's choice Hour, the inner dream-the real dream-of the United Nations will be transformed into reality. This is the inner necessity of the soul of the United Nations and also its God-ordained responsibility. Self-imposed responsibility, self-styled responsibility, does not last more than a few minutes, a few hours, a few days, a few months, a few years. But God-ordained responsibility is like Eternity's own necessity.

What the United Nations has for the world is a dream. In the outer world it is running slowly, steadily and unerringly. But in the inner world it is running fast, faster, fastest. In the outer world, no matter how slowly it runs, it is bound to reach its destination, for it is running steadily and unerringly. And no matter how fast it runs in the inner world, it will not lose its balance. The outer goal it will one day reach, and at the same time the world will notice it. It may take a very short time or it may take a very long time; it all depends on world-receptivity. But in the inner world it will reach its destination very soon, because the inner progress of the United Nations is most satisfactory. In the inner world the dream of the United Nations, like a deer, has the fastest speed.

The necessity that the United Nations has accepted as its own will ultimately be fulfilled in both the inner world and the outer world, for this necessity is nothing short of God-ordained responsibility. This is every day being engraved in the hearts of the world-loving nations at the United Nations and in the hearts of the world-seekers who want only truth-reality to be manifested in individual souls and individual nations and in collective souls and collective nations. Peace, which is real satisfaction, will loom large one day, for it is the only choice which the individual and the collective body have; it is the only choice that God wants, that humanity wants and that the real existence in us wants. All want the same thing: satisfaction-peace and peace-satisfaction; oneness in multiplicity and multiplicity in oneness. There is no conflict; there are only different branches, millions of flowers, leaves and fruits on the everlasting Life-Tree.

Patriotism And World-Vision

When the seeker in me sees the striking physical frame of the Secretary-General, the Secretary-General's eyes are at once divine silence-energy, silence-nourishment and divine sound-revelation, sound-expansion. When the seeker in me feels the dynamic inner frame or vital of the Secretary-General, the Secretary-General's soulful bird, with two hopeful wings, flies to cover the length and breadth of the world What for? To sow the immortal seed of the United Nations for world-union, world-salvation and world-perfection.

The human in our Secretary-General is from Austria. The divine in him is not only for Austria but for the entire world-thirst, world-hunger and world-cry.

Kurt Waldheim's life offers dramatic proof that national patriotism and world citizenship are not necessarily at odds. To be a world citizen does not mean that one has to renounce one's own country, for each country has something special to offer to the family of nations. One country may be lacking in one particular aspect of life but may excel in another aspect. Thus, the fragrance of each nation-flower can inspire and illumine its brother and sister nations.

When his own beloved country is accused, the great patriot in Kurt Waldheim comes to the fore and not only defends his country but throws considerable light on the confusing and confused world-mind: "From time to time, Austria's foreign policy is accused of lacking glamour. We cannot reject such a criticism strongly enough. It would indeed be a grave mistake for a neutral country to try to attract world attention through dramatic declarations or actions. It might mean a temporary appearance of the country's name in the headlines of world news, but the political consequences would be disastrous. Many such declarations by well-known politicians have in the past aroused much publicity and created a host of misunderstandings that contributed to international unrest. The foreign offices of the countries concerned then had the difficult task of repairing the damage by correcting, redressing or explaining the statement that had been made. A foreign policy of sensationalism is contrary to the interests of a neutral country. Reason, cool-headedness and continuity are infinitely more necessary than dramatisation."

During Kurt Waldheim's term of office as Permanent Representative of Austria to the United Nations, undoubtedly there was a special significance to his being divinely honoured as Chairman of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, and later, supremely honoured as President of the First United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. The peace-lover in our present SecretaryGeneral voices forth: "The progress achieved has also provided the international community with an eloquent testimony of a historical process: that given the political will, an area of potential rivalry and conflict in international politics can be turned into a fruitful co-operative endeavour for the benefit of mankind."

Commenting on how the pioneers of outer space have enlightened the world's vision of peace, Kurt Waldheim affirms: "Man's sense of world community has been sharpened by the dramatic vision of the earth as revealed to us by the pioneers of space. From this perspective the differences which have divided men in the past tend to recede before the reality of common sense."

In April, 1971, Kurt Waldheim was one of two candidates for the Federal Presidency of Austria. But after being appointed Secretary-General of the United Nations, the heart-home of the world-body, this son of Austria proved himself to be first and foremost a lover of mankind. Him to quote: " ... There is no conflict between citizenship of one's own country and a wider concern for mankind as a whole. The interdependence of mankind is not a rhetorical cliche-it represents a profound reality."

Again he says:

"In my opinion, there should be no fundamental conflict between national self-interest and the goals of the international community and of mankind as a whole. ... That is the real function of the United Nations: to be available to the countries of the world, not as a utopian substitute for traditional international relations, but as a mechanism, an instrument, by means of which national policies can be shaped and harmonised to take into account the legitimate hopes and aspirations of all countries."

With regard to his beloved country, Kurt Waldheim has become one with the wisdom of Socrates, the great wise man of the past who taught us: "I am not an Athenian, nor am I a Greek. I am a citizen of the world."

The United Nations message of love and brotherhood can easily be understood and spread by all of humanity if each person can claim the message of Socrates as his own and feel that he belongs to the larger world-family. In this respect, the Secretary-General sees eye to eye with his predecessor, U Thant, whose lofty vision affirms:

"A new quality of planetary imagination is demanded from all of us as the price of human survival. I am not decrying that form of nationalism that prompts the individual citizen to appreciate and praise the achievements and values that his native land has contributed to the well-being and happiness of the whole human race. Nor am I calling for international homogenization, for I rejoice in cultural and national uniqueness. But I am making a plea-a plea based on these ten years of looking at the human condition from my unique vantage point-for a dual allegiance. This implies an open acceptance of belonging-as in fact we all do-to the human race as well as to our local community or nation. I even believe that the mark of the truly educated and imaginative person facing the twenty-first century is that he feels himself to be a planetary citizen."

No longer can any country dare to live the life of isolation as the vision of a oneness-world grows ever brighter on the horizon. Kurt Waldheim saw this clearly in the case of his own beloved country: "Living contact with the world outside has become more necessary than ever if the correct decisions are to be made at the right moment. Austria's membership in the United Nations makes this kind of contact possible and therefore is of great help to Austria's foreign policy. In this way Austria has managed to shake off the isolation into which she had been thrust by the tragic events of 1938 and their consequences, and to regain her rightful position on the world scene in view of her noble past and present achievements."

Kurt Waldheim's world-vision encompasses all nations, both large and small. Although the pragmatist in him sees clearly the influential role of the big powers in world affairs, he is firmly convinced that only with the help of the smaller brother and sister nations can a new great alliance be established among all the countries in the United Nations. Him to quote:

"The destiny of the United Nations will ultimately depend on a satisfactory solution of the problem of relations between the industrialized countries and the far more numerous developing countries. It will also depend very much on whether the United Nations can be made truly representative, truly 'universal'."

To unite all countries and all men: this is the ultimate goal of the United Nations. To see all human hearts and minds striving for one highest cause: what else is true spirituality if not this? Spirituality is the union of all human aspirations for a better and more illumining life in a world of harmony and oneness

O Kurt Waldheim, ... your life of duty-tree and beauty-flower awakens the sleeping world and its oneness-power.

The Necessity-Height Of The United Nations

"I know that the world cannot do without the United Nations." This soulful and fruitful declaration of the Secretary-General inspires and illumines our searching minds and aspiring hearts. Again he affirms: "I firmly believe that, for all its shortcomings and frustrations, the United Nations is an indispensable institution."

The Secretary-General sees the United Nations as essentially a great and unique human experiment. As such, it is open to all the human shortcomings and weaknesses. But it is because it is a human organization, served by individual human beings from every continent, that its strength and relevance derives."

Change of nature, either in human life or in any phase of life itself, has proved to be a most difficult task. When the ascending aspiration-flames from below and the descending Compassion-Sun from above meet together, the seemingly impossible task of nature's change, either in an individual's life or in a country's life, can both surprisingly and satisfactorily take place. Nature's change has always been slow, steady, but unerring.

With regard to the nature's transformation of a State, what the United Nations can unmistakably and will convincingly do is most illuminingly expressed by its Supreme Pilot, Kurt Waldheim: "When States become members of the United Nations, they do not suddenly and miraculously change their nature.... But if the United Nations was not meant to initiate a fundamental transformation of the nature of world politics, the Organisation does provide the framework and the machinery for channelling national actions into more constructive directions...."

Each dedicated action of the United Nations is not only an experiment of man but an experience of God in the world and for the world. Truth to tell, the United Nations aspiration for brotherhood and peace is divinely indispensable in the eternal march of world-evolution. What could be greater than the hope that the heart and soul of this world family offer mankind? The all-seeing hope and vision of the United Nations will lead humanity to the highest Peace, Light and Bliss for the manifestation of the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth.

To quote the late Secretary-General U Thant, who was one with his successor Kurt Waldheim in his realisation of the indispensability of this world institution: "Humanity has reached the point of no return. Acceptance of the community of interest has become a requirement of human survival on this planet. It can no longer be dismissed as an idealistic concept, unrelated to realities. The traditional sovereign state is no longer a viable guarantee of a nation's security or economic prosperity, nor even a guarantee of national survival. More and more men of science and scholarship, as well as business leaders and public administrators, have come to grasp this underlying fact of interdependence today. "

To our Secretary-General, the divine reason and purpose of the world organisation are supremely self-evident. "The world does not need a new political cataclysm to provoke such an alliance. Poverty, hunger, the lack of proper education, health and shelter, and the new problems of the environment and of our endangered seas, waters and atmosphere are big enough problems to justify the co-operation of all forces in the United Nations."

Countless are our problems when we live in the unlit and doubting mind. But there is only one problem- absolutely one and not two-when we live in the awakened life and the oneness-loving heart, and that problem is the problem of the survival and prosperity of all men. How do we divinely survive and supremely prosper? Here is the irrevocable proclamation offered to the world by our Secretary-General:

"As we now consider the choices before us, we must realize we are not faced with many separate problems, but with different aspects of a single over-all problem: the survival and prosperity of all men and women and their harmonious development, physical as well as spiritual, in peace, with each other and with nature. This is the solution we must seek. It is within our power to find it."

The United Nations offers to seekers and lovers of the world a divine hope and promise, as the truth-seeker and harmony-seeker in Kurt Waldheim so clearly sees: "The instrument is here, created under the impact of the horrors of the Second World War. It is universal in scope and almost universal in membership. All that is needed is for the leaders of today to use it, support it and meet on the solid basis of its charter."

The Message Of Practical Idealism

Through the United Nations the Creator is offering His illumining Love and Service to His creation. As head and heart of the world-family, the Secretary-General must be constantly and consciously aware of the inner oneness-cry and outer dedication-smile of the United Nations. And the world-server in the Secretary-General must constantly offer inner love and outer service to humanity.

Speaking of the challenges of the secretary-generalship, Kurt Waldheim says:

"The secretary-generalship is at the same time one of the most fascinating and one of the most frustrating jobs in the world, encompassing, as it does, the height of human aspiration and the depth of human frailty. No one is so exposed to that bitter contrast as the Secretary-General, and it requires a constant effort of will on his part to continue day after day and night after night to face up to the problems of the world and of the United Nations in the full knowledge that, while he cannot hope to solve them, it is absolutely vital that the effort continue."

As supreme Pilot of the United Nations boat, the Secretary-General must needs constantly inspire and encourage his fellow men. To those fellow travellers who have become too tired along the way to continue the journey to the oneness-world, the Secretary-General Waldheim has a special message: "Only the vision of a better world, a world of peace, justice and progress for all, can sustain us in the daily struggle to meet the dangers, the challenges and the great problems of our time. I am more convinced than ever that our greatest danger will come if we lose that vision and relapse into defeatism and cynicism."

False hopes often lead to this kind of defeatism and cynicism. The Secretary-General's deep insight tells us: "All too often in the minds of the public the United Nations is mistaken for a world government with legislative and executive powers, and is expected to solve directly every problem on earth, from peace and security to economic development, the environment and the drug problem. This is not the case and it must be made clear to the public that the United Nations is based on the cooperation of sovereign member states."

The world needs the faith that evolves slowly and steadily from the Creator to the creation and then back to the Source. To those brothers and sisters who have become disillusioned or who have lost faith in the United Nations' efforts towards world peace, the Secretary-General offers his encouragement:

"Perhaps, there were those whose expectations were too high. But although we may have fewer illusions today, there is no need to be disillusioned. We must not throw away all the advances of the past 28 years. We must face the future with realism, but with a renewed dedication to the task of the maintenance of peace, and the provision of a better life for all the peoples of the world."

This stoic server of mankind inspires the highest determination and will power in each individual and each nation to manifest the inner divine opportunities of the United Nations. The divine qualities and potentialities of this world organisation are not wishful imagination but solid inner realities crying to come to the fore. The Secretary-General's one-pointed faith in this divine reality speaks thus: "If progress is slow, that, in the nature of things, is hardly surprising. But if the will is there, and the talent and the dedication, we should not be dismayed by the difficulties. If we believe that by human actions wisely directed the world can be made a better place, then the United Nations presents unrivalled opportunities. I hope that we shall seize them."

All the nations are like divine pilgrims proceeding slowly, steadily and unerringly towards the same goal. The divine pilgrim in the Secretary General is "convinced that we are embarked on the right road to objectives of vital importance for the future."

To those who may feel that undertaking this journey on the path to peace and progress is like building castles in the sky, the practical idealist in Kurt Waldheim affirms:

"It is sometimes thought that idealism is unrealistic. In the United Nations, I believe that idealism and practical, far-sighted common sense lead in the same direction. They lead us over a difficult and steep path towards the great objectives of peace, justice, human dignity and equity to which mankind has aspired for centuries. In the United Nations we dare to believe that we can make real progress up this steep path, if we work together with courage and persistence."

The oneness-soul of our United Nations Pilot supreme knows the true truth that this world-body sings the song not only of possibility but also of inevitability. The inner vision and outer reality of the United Nations and the dreams that abide in the hearts of all lovers and servers of mankind are destined to found the Kingdom of Heaven on this very earth. At that time the aspiring soul of the United Nations will sing the song of oneness-world.

O Kurt Waldheim, I always see you as God's lightning-speed. Today you are here, tomorrow there and the day after tomorrow elsewhere. Your penetrating vision not only enters into the world problems, but also solves the problems of the world most miraculously.

World Ignorance And Universal Light

To our sorrow, most human beings are satisfied with a life of darkness, limitation and bondage. They aspire not to see a higher existence-reality and to live a more fulfilling life. Yet these very individuals find fault with the United Nations day in and day out, in season and out of season. But they must remember that as they themselves are not perfect, neither are the human beings who are offering their service-light to the United Nations. Again, it is the human in us that sees imperfections in others. The divine in us sees only the perfection of the Creator in His creation.

The wisdom-light of the Pilot supreme of the United Nations knows the necessity of world understanding for and world support of the U.N.'s vision and reality. The capacities and potentialities, as well as the limitations of the world organisation, must be brought into the full view of individuals and their nations.

But to the eyeless critics of the world organisation, the Secretary-General says: "Critics of the United Nations often demand, 'What do we get out of it?' The answer is a great deal, but I would prefer that you should ask the questions, 'What can we put into it?' and 'What can we do to make the world Organisation more effective as a guarantor of peace and human advancement?'"

It is an unfortunate mistake to try to judge the United Nations by what the United Nations has or has not achieved. What is of paramount importance is whether we claim the United Nations as our very own. Indeed, if we can feel that we are part and parcel of this woddbody, and if we can increase our own aspiration and dedication in abundant measure, then we can one day illumine the mind and heart of the entire world.

Clearly the Secretary-General sees the urgency and necessity of illumining the world-mind and world-heart: "Governments may be more inclined to support and to use the United Nations and to implement its recommendations if there is strong public opinion in favour of the Organisation. The people themselves therefore have a crucial say in world affairs. Support and realistic appraisal by the public could be the razor's edge between war and peace."

Ignorance is man's worst enemy, yet surprisingly man has formed a long-standing friendship with ignorance. The peerless Pilot of the United Nations speaks out against world-ignorance: "Of all the evils which have beset mankind in its recent history, that of ignorance is perhaps the worst. For out of ignorance there comes intolerance; out of intolerance there comes hostility; and out of hostility there comes conflict. In our interdependent world it is dangerous to be ignorant of other nations, other faiths, other ideologies, other interests, other ambitions, other hopes. From knowledge of these you will learn how it may be possible for the world-your world-to practise tolerance and live together in peace."

The Light of the Supreme can alone disperse our age-old darkness. Here our best friend, according to Waldheim, is the universal light offered by education:

"Every school and every university has the duty to ensure that young people are trained to comprehend the new realities, and to realize that, of all the curses of the past, ignorance has been the most terrible of all. With knowledge comes tolerance; and tolerance is the essential basis not only for detente, but for the much wider peace and security which we are seeking for ourselves and for future generations."

Never must we surrender to ignorance, fear, doubt, anxieties and worries. Each obstacle we face is a divine opportunity to muster and strengthen our inner resources. We must know that if the United Nations reflects the human qualities of mankind, so also it reflects the divine potentialities of man. Our Secretary-General sees the divine as far outshining the human in this comity of nations:

"At root, the United Nations represents a striving after great human goals which are common to all peoples... The United Nations certainly reflects many human deficiencies, and it is as capable of error and misjudgernent as any other human institution. But I also know that it reflects the great human qualities, of which integrity, perseverance, patience, and compassion are, I believe, the most important."

As fate would have it, ignorance quite often doubts God's Compassion-Light that operates in and through the service-light of the United Nations, in spite of the Himalayan efforts of world-lovers to serve humanity. Here the Secretary-General voices the emotions that often fill the hearts of world-servers: "There are occasions, looking at the world as it is, and conscious of what it should be, when a compassionate person is dominated by emotions of despair. The problems are so vast, so intractable, so profound! How can we hope to resolve them, to fulfil the noble ideals of the Charter and the Universal Declaration?"

Yet man must always reach for the transcendental Peace and Harmony. "While admitting failures and disappointments," continues Mr. Waldheim, "we must never lose sight of the ideal. If we abandon that ideal-a world living in harmony, in which true equality exists-we will all lose something in ourselves, we will have abandoned our faith, and we will have betrayed our trust. For we are Trustees for all humanity."

Success And Progress

Success belongs to the outer world. Progress belongs to the inner world. Success engenders vital gratification. Progress augments psychic satisfaction. Success claims to be the matchless friend of human life, whereas progress is our divine and eternal friend. Success is what we, in the march of time, become and progress is what we sempiternally are. The human in us dies for success and ultimately dies in success. When we live in the world of success, the human reality, which is goodness-our God-life in God-Vision's Reality-surrenders itself to the lower reality, which is greatness, world-acclaim and the dance of individuality's supremacy. The divine in us longs for progress, which is the song of gradual self-transcendence in the one for the many and in the many for the one. The soul of the United Nations dreams only of progress in the aspiration-life and dedication-life of each individual and each country.

The oft-quoted adage, "Nothing succeeds like success," has been interpreted with an amazingly broad vision by the Secretary-General: "There has been some slight progress here and there: certain situations which had been frozen by the cold war are beginning to show some signs of thaw as a result of the over-all detente. We must keep trying. As you say in business: 'Nothing succeeds like success.' Well, we need progress and success in order to achieve other successes and to create a new climate in the world."'

The Soul of the United Nations has granted her beloved son, our Secretary-General, beckoning hands to invite the ignorance-world to make global progress in the life of universal brotherhood and in the heart of perfection's height. His inner courage often inspires him to speak out and offer his guidance and help to the member States, when his conscience dictates that the United Nations, under its Charter, should offer its assistance. "Governments may decide not to make use of these offers, but they will realize in the end that the United Nations, despite its limitations, which we must correct, is still the most advanced instrument ever devised by humanity for its collective security."

The realist in Kurt Waldheim acknowledges that the efforts of the United Nations have not always proved successful: "The desire for instant success and a disproportionate disillusionment when it is not achieved, is a conspicuous feature of our time. I believe, however-at the risk of being accused of optimism-that we should not resign ourselves to despair so easily. The fact that we know more about our condition than any previous generation in history is an enormous advantage if it is put to good use. It should certainly not be allowed to lead us to defeatism. But to make use of our self-knowledge we must also accept the necessity of change, of new imperatives and of new patterns of activity."

Nonetheless, the United Nations has succeeded most significantly and progressed most fruitfully. As the Secretary-General points out: ... It it is only fair to say that it has been of incalculable value to international political progress over the last few decades: It has kept the dialogue between East and West going; it has shown a great many new Afro-Asian states the way into the community of nations; and last but not least, it represents the world's conscience on the basis of the Charter. It has thus become an irreplaceable moral force in the constellation of forces in international politics. In spite of the new crises that confront it and are threatening to drag it down to one of the lowest points in its history, the member States do seem to be moving towards the realization of what Dag Hammarskjold once so strikingly formulated: 'We should recognize the United Nations for what it is-an admittedly imperfect but indispensable instrument for the nations, designed to ensure a more just and secure world order through peaceful evolution.'"

Again, he declares: "Steady, detailed effort is hard to dramatize, and it seldom makes headlines, but who can doubt that the transformations and crises of the past thirty years would have been infinitely more painful and far less subject to peaceful resolution without the United Nations?"'

The United Nations has progressed to the point where it has much to give in every aspect of human endeavour. Humanity must needs follow its illumining and continuous guidance. Humanity must needs have faith in the United Nations' dedication and service. To quote Secretary-General Waldheim: "Slowly and painfully mankind has created machinery for international co-operation in almost every area of human activity, from the prevention of disease to the settlement of international disputes, which never existed before in the history of our planet. Tragically that machinery is not always used, but it has, time and time again, demonstrated its unique value when it has been employed. And, increasingly it is being used- not out of idealism, but because it works. In this, we may record a definite advance."

We may ask why the world often does not recognise the true progress and success of the United Nations Here we can view the United Nations as a mother who is expected to do everything for her child, the world. Unfortunately, the child very often forgets to offer gratitude to the mother for the mother's countless inner and outer gifts. But if the child does something for the mother that may be most unimportant, then that very thing receives undue attention. True, the United Nations receives all kinds of help from the world, but the world is not fully aware of the ideals and service that the United Nations is consciously and constantly offering. The Secretary-General throws considerable light on this deplorable situation:

"Many of the activities of the United Nations are so much taken for granted that they are scarcely reported any more. This is probably not a bad development, but it should not cause us to lose sight of the value of the multiple activities of our Organisation or the dangerous vacuum in international life that world be created if, for any reason, they were to cease.

"We now take for granted that virtually all the Governments of the world can meet in the United Nations to discuss almost any subject under the sun. We take for granted that, when a conflict threatens, the Security Council will meet and sometimes, by that simple fact alone, will provide a breathing space and an opportunity for reflection, reassessment and clarification. We take for granted that in the United Nations there can be meetings and communication between representatives of contending parties who can meet virtually nowhere else in the world. We take peace-keeping and good offices for granted. We assume that the humanitarian agencies of the United Nations will be there in emergency or dire need to take care of the afflicted or the refugees. We have become completely used to the unprecedented idea that the nations of the world, almost as a matter of course can discuss as far-reaching a concept as the new international economic order."

The time will come when the inner eye of the world will unmistakably show blind humanity the greatness and goodness of the United Nations. The blind world will then receive illumination-vision from the United Nations; the unsatisfied world will receive satisfaction-peace, and the aspiring world will receive the answer to its heart's soulful cry. At that time, the world will sing the gratitude-song for what the United Nations is offering to it. Again, the gratitude-song must echo in the hearts of each member of the United Nations for what the world is doing for the Organisation. In the gratitude-song of the United Nations and in the gratitude-song of the world will be heard the soulful song of oneness-expansion.

When the seeker in me sees the striking physical frame of the Secretary-General, the Secretary-General's eyes are at once divine silence-energy, silence-nourishment and divine sound-revelation, sound-expansion.

World-Service

As the United Nations is indispensable to the world community, so also is each individual nation a necessary part of this world organisation. We can view each nation as a unique branch of the world-tree. Each branch is needed to complete the fulness-beauty of the all-spreading tree, and each branch offers special protection and a special oneness-fruit to aspiring mankind. Similarly, each individual world seeker and world server is needed in the United Nations striving for universal peace and progress. In the words of our Secretary-General: "We are men and women from many lands, representing a rich variety of cultures. And we have been brought together to work in a great common cause: the survival and progress of mankind. The concept of unity in diversity ... underlies our various pursuits at the United Nations."'

The dedication-life of each individual in the United Nations boat is of utmost importance. As the supreme Pilots of the United Nations serve the world, we can also do the same, according to our capacity. Our capacities-however limited-and our prayerful inner devotion to humanity are our solid support that we can offer inwardly and outwardly to the United Nations-boat and its supreme Pilots. According to Secretary-General Waldheim: "I am deeply convinced that all of us who work for the United Nations must maintain our sense of dedication and idealism. We are, after all, privileged to serve an Organisation whose Charter embodies the highest aims of humanity. I know very well that it is easy to talk about dedication and idealism but much harder to maintain them in all the wearisome difficulties of everyday life. However, from my own experience in the past five years, I am convinced that the vast majority of the members of the Secretariat are moved primarily by their devotion to the principles of the Charter and are proud of the opportunity they have been given to serve in the United Nations, whatever their sphere or level of activity."

Supreme perfection is not the necessity of only one individual or even of all the individuals working in the United Nations. This perfection is the true necessity of all human beings on earth. The dedication of all human beings must go hand in hand with that of all who work for the United Nations. All of us must love and serve our larger world-family. Here the role of the international civil servant is of paramount importance. To quote the Secretary-General:

"If the United Nations reflects much that is tragic, it also reflects much that is good and encouraging in the human spirit. And perhaps the most remarkable of all has been the development of the ideal of international service into a practical reality. There were many at Dumbarton Oaks and San Francisco who were sceptical about the practicality of the concept of men and women from all nations voluntarily serving an international cause, but we have seen in the lives of people ... that it can be, and has been, achieved. We see it today in the selfless dedication of people all over the world working for the United Nations in social and humanitarian relief programmes. We see it in the peace-keeping forces who risk their lives in the quest for peace. We see it in those who work in the United Nations refugee camps, in our health, education, and agricultural programmes, and in the provision of food to those most desperately in need through the World Food Programme."

The international civil servant must needs always dive deep within to strengthen his dedication and increase his oneness with his universal brothers and sisters. To see how the United Nations is serving the world, we must know how we ourselves are serving the world and the United Nations. Let us identify with the United Nations ideals and strive ever to manifest these ideals, to transform the United Nations vision-light into a reality of concern and dedication. There is never a moment to lose in this race against ignorance, and each one of us must needs guard against the dangers of complacency. Says the Secretary-General: "The fact is that our Organisation has come into middle age and is no longer a young prodigy-or a young problem. This is in one way comforting and in another way dangerous. It is comforting that the United Nations is a firmly established and recognized world institution. It is dangerous if the Organisation becomes complacent, set in its ways, unresponsive to new ideas or irrelevant to contemporary issues. We must constantly be on guard to preserve the institution from such tendencies."

Never before has the practical Wisdom-Light of God been so accessible to us as it is today in the United Nations. Inwardly and outwardly we are being illumined by the United Nations, although we may not be fully aware of it. Similarly, those human beings who are striving to offer the Wisdom-Light of God through the United Nations may not be completely conscious of their God-ordained task, and they may see all too clearly their own limitations and the world's imperfections. They may feel frustrated that the unaspiring world is not opening up its heart to the wisdom of the United Nations. But the soul of each individual and of each country in the United Nations knows that it has made the right choice.

The Secretary-General envisions the work ahead for the United Nations:

"The coming years promise us greater challenges, more complex problems and doubtless some very difficult times. They also promise us very great opportunities for developing the machinery of international co-operation in many areas, into some of which the international community has scarcely ventured before. I am sure that the Secretariat will be inspired rather than discouraged by these challenges and will continue and develop its service to the international community in accordance with the great traditions which it has already established."

When we offer our devotion to the United Nations, we can do so on the physical, mental, psychic and spiritual levels. Each type of devoted service is of paramount importance, and each international civil servant offers a special dedication to the inner and outer United Nations. Truth to tell, each human being holds the key to the progress and success of the United Nations. Indeed, each of us, and the service that each of us renders on all planes, is the key to the fulfillment of the glorious role and goal of the United Nations in mankind and for mankind

The New Ethics: The U.N. Charter And The Universal Declaration Of Human Rights

The Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are the true manifestations of humanity's spiritual values and inner oneness. In these lofty principles we find a divine code of ethics for our time and times to come. To quote our Secretary-General:

"The United Nations has proposed to all Governments and to all peoples standards of respect for individuals and for groups, derived from the best in the spiritual heritage of mankind as well as from the realities of our rapidly developing societies."

When the Secretary-General met with the head of his own church, Pope Paul VI, in July of 1977, the Pope eloquently spoke about the spirituality of the United Nations: "Above all, we want the United Nations to be par excellence, the expression and the bulwark of those human rights. which it so solemnly proclaimed almost thirty years ago. A heightened consciousness is needed to make these rights the touchstone of a really humane civilization and truly to achieve, without excluding any race or any people, the solidarity which is essential between brothers all created in God's image."

As part of his message of condolence upon hearing about the sudden death of the Holy Father in August 1978, the Secretary-General declared: "In the United Nations we specially recall Pope Paul's historic visit to our Headquarters in New York and his powerful but simple message, 'Never again war'. This visit not only set a unique precedent; it also foreshadowed a much closer contact between the leadership of one of the great churches and congregations of the world and the leadership of the world organization. It forged a new link between the spiritual and the temporal world which has time and again proved its value."

There is only one religion and one truth: Man. All peoples can unite to raise an inner temple where all nations can worship the highest ideals and principles of man. And within this temple of man shall shine the benevolent Smile of God. According to the Pilot of the United Nations-boat: "The United Nations contains many different faiths, ideologies, and beliefs. It embraces all the doctrines and attitudes of mankind, and it was the genius of the founders to create a Charter to whose principles all nations could freely and willingly subscribe."

The Secretary-General's fervent request runs thus: "The United Nations needs the help and the support of all the leaders and of all the great religions of the world, if it is to succeed in solving the very complex problems of peace."

The divine ideals of the United Nations will eventually save and free mankind from ignorance, turning man's vision of peace into true reality. To the Secretary-General, the Charter is supremely instrumental in manifesting the United Nations ideas and ideals:

"The greatest strength of the United Nations is the enduring power of the great and necessary ideas expressed in its Charter-ideas great enough to encompass the complexities, rivalries and differences of all the nations in the co-operative pursuit of certain common aims."

Now what is needed is co-operation and faithfulness to these ideals by all members of the world family. According to our Secretary-General: "The United Nations Charter opens with the words 'We the peoples of the United Nations'. Thus, every man and woman has a profound personal stake in the future of the United Nations. If we work together in a spirit of friendship and understanding, we will have little to fear. Let that be our personal commitment."

Again, he affirms: "We must always remember that the United Nations was built upon reason, and not emotion. It was built upon the realization that the true self-interest of sovereign nations lies in international co-operation. The fact of our physical and political interdependence, and the common dangers which all mankind faces, demand that we continue in our task, together, so that we may move closer to the goals of the Charter, and the hopes of mankind which gave them birth."

His predecessor, U Thant, shared Kurt Waldheim's soulful commitment to the U.N. Charter. To quote U Thant: "Tolerance is the principal foundation on which the United Nations Charter rests. Without the spirit of tolerance, one cannot understand, much less appreciate, the Charter. 'To practise tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours' is the actual language of the Charter, and one of the primary functions of the Secretary-General is not only to practise tolerance in his personal dealings, but also to extend this concept of tolerance to international relations. In other words, my conception of the Secretary-General's role is to build bridges between peoples, governments and states. This is why my main preoccupation during my tenure of office was not only to bring about a détente between differing nations, but also to eliminate the obstacles to such a détente."

Without a doubt, the U.N. Charter and the American Declaration of Independence are proceeding to the same destination-two trailblazers on the path to human freedom and world peace. True, one started the journey before the other, but the two are now marching together confidently and unerringly. Comparing the U.N. Charter with the Declaration of Independence, our Secretary-General says: "There are many parallels between the work of the founding fathers of this Republic in Philadelphia nearly two centuries ago, and the task of the founders of the United Nations nearly 30 years ago in San Francisco... Both have evolved far beyond the expectations of their founders. Both have continued to derive inspiration and direction from the declarations of principles and aims drawn up by their founders.

"The spirit which inspired Thomas Jefferson in Philadelphia in 1776 was also present at San Francisco in 1945 and in the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Paris in 1948. For above all, the belief that 'all men are created equal' is the same faith which made the founders of the United Nations declare their resolution to 'reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women, and of nations large and small'."

About the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Secretary-General Waldheim comments: "The Universal Declaration was the first occasion in history when the inalienable rights of all individuals were formally established. It was an expression, in simple and clear language, of the principles which should govern human relations. It represented faith in the value of the individual, and in the conviction that politics is about people."

Such a Declaration, believes Mr. Waldheim, can serve to form an inner and outer world conscience which will raise humanity's level of existence from the human to the divine in a practical way: "The link between human rights and international politics is fundamental. The concept of 'the international conscience' is a reality, and we often underestimate the effectiveness of agreed international standards of conduct."

Unfortunate it is that the manifestation of the ideals of the United Nations into concrete world action and achievement is still a far cry. But let us not forget that Rome was not built in a day; vision cannot turn into reality overnight. As our Secretary-General points out, the Declaration of Human Rights "created standards by which all must be judged. It represented, it is true, an ideal. It pointed towards a goal, and did not establish a fact. The authors knew that mankind would not be transformed overnight and that the achievement of their purpose would be a long, difficult, and often frustrating process."

With the guiding light that shines through the U N. Charter and the U N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the world is destined to attain harmony and peace, for inside the United Nations vision, reality looms large. The fulfilment of the United Nations ideals is an inevitability, but that hour will dawn only when humanity wholeheartedly and unreservedly accepts the message of the United Nations soul. The Secretary-General offers his encouragement to those who have committed themselves to the United Nations cause: "We can never relax in pursuit of the human rights goals of the Charter and of the Universal Declaration. Nothing could be more worthy of our continuing labours than a steady expansion of the realm in which the dignity and worth of the human person are firmly secured and fully honoured."

When the seeker in me feels the dynamic inner frame or vital of the Secretary-General, the SecretaryGeneral's soulful bird, with two hopeful wings, flies to cover the length and breadth of the world. What for? To sow the immortal seed of the United Nations for world-union, world-salvation and world perfection.

O Kurt Waldheim, ....

O Kurt Waldheim,... in you I always see a divinely inspired miracle-man. You see, you touch and you cure the suffering heart of humanity.

To The Truth-Seeker, Peace-Lover, Oneness-Dreamer,...

To the truth-seeker, peace-lover, oneness-dreamer, perfection-builder, satisfaction-harbinger and the supreme Pilot in the Secretary-General, Kurt Waldheim, we offer our soulful gratitude-heart.