Experience, has taught me that everyone is potentially a spiritual person, and is, therefore, in a position to turn his or her potential into actuality. Spirituality is a power–a power that man develops within himself with that spiritual power he is able to conquer everyone he comes into contact with. And when man is conquered, nothing else is left to be conquered. To illustrate this point, I would like to give some examples.

1. A hundred years ago, Swami Ram Tirath of India visited the U.S.A. At that time, an Indian Swami was an unfamiliar sight for Americans. When he reached the coast of America, he was simply clad, and had no luggage with him. Seeing him all alone, an American asked him in astonishment, “Where are you going? Do you have any friends in America?” The Swami replied: “Yes, I have one friend and that friend is here.” Saying this, he embraced the American. This spiritual response was so powerful that the American had no option other than to accept him as his friend, and he acted as his host as long as he stayed in America. He also became his disciple, spreading his message of love and peace, throughout the continent. Thus, we can see that the spirituality is a power, which does not require any weapons.

2. In the wake of the demolition of the Babri Mosque, in December 1992, communal riots erupted in different parts of India, particularly in Maharashtra. I organized a Shanti Yatra with Acharya Sushil Kumar and Swami Chidanand in 1993. We visited about 3-dozen places, on the way from Mumbai to Nagpur. We reached one town, which had been badly affected by the riots. It was a scene of charred, ruined buildings with smoke still coming out of them. Standing on a broken wall, I delivered a speech charged with emotion in a huge public meeting, I uttered these words: “Why are we here? We are here to extinguish the fire by our tears, the fire which the fire brigades have failed to extinguish.” These words were straight from the heart; as I spoke the tears rolled down my cheeks. The gathering too became highly emotional. This was the result of addressing the people in a spiritual language. It was like a miracle. I had dropped a spiritual bomb and the riots stopped altogether.

3. Dr. Ahmad Sultan, the great grandson of Tipu Sultan, was a supporter of our peace mission. Once he visited a town in Maharashtra, on the occasion of the annual Ganpati procession. The Muslims of the town were afraid of riots. They thought that the Ganpati procession would surely provoke Muslims and the result would be a bloody riot between the two communities. When Dr. Ahmad Sultan came to know of this situation prevailing in the town, he gave this advice to the Imam of the mosque and other Muslims. He said that it would not be possible to stop the procession or change its route, but that it would be quite possible to stop the communal riots. Then he advised them to obtain a dozen “phoolmalas” (garland of flowers) and keep them in the mosque. And when the procession passed by the mosque, the Imam would go out to welcome the leaders by offering them phoolmalas. The Imam of the mosque and other Muslims appreciated this advice and followed it. When the procession reached the mosque, they received it with the phoolmalas. This kind of reception was like dropping a spiritual bomb. Again, the result was miraculous. The whole atmosphere was changed. The processionists were so excited by this spiritual gesture that they abandoned their provocative slogans, and the mood of violence turned peaceful. Hindus and Muslims began shaking hands and embracing each other. The procession became a symbol of communal harmony, rather than of communal clash. This sea change was brought about by the power of spirituality. I have experienced this power repeatedly in my life. And every time, the result was miraculously positive.

As a matter of ancient tradition, India may be called a land of spirituality. Here, I would like to add a very relevant story. You know, Mother Teresa was born in Europe. She visited India and was so fascinated with this land of spirituality that she decided to settle here. She dedicated her entire life to social uplift. In recognition of her services, she was awarded the prestigious Nobel Prize. On this occasion, she was invited to the USA to address an American audience there. She began her address with these historic words: “I have come from a rich country to a poor country.” She was indeed referring to the spiritual wealth of this country. It is a fact that India has a long tradition of spirituality and moral values. This is the true spirit of India. We only need to revive ancient Indian traditions in our lives, for India to emerge as a spiritual superpower in the world.

Why is India a spiritual power? This is traceable to its long spiritual tradition. Where the western world was engaged in mere technical activities, in previous centuries; India, throughout those same centuries was engaged in spiritual activities. While the Western world was producing material experts, in the form of physical scientists, during the same period, India was producing spiritual scientists, in the form of Swamis and Sufis. It is this factor, which has been mainly responsible for the difference between India and the western world. According to my studies, India is a highly developed country, in the spiritual sense. It is in this sense that I say that India is potentially a super power, and as such we need to produce a spiritual renaissance in the 21st century. Herein lies the secret of attaining world leadership for India.

Here, I recall an event pertaining to Swami Vivekananda. One day, during a visit of his to America one hundred years ago, he was walking along a street in Chicago, and according to the Swami tradition, he was clad in just two pieces of untailored cloth. An American lady, seeing him in these clothes, found this very strange. She whispered to her husband: “I don’t think that person is a gentleman.” Swamiji overheard this. He went up to her and said, “Excuse me, madam, in your country a tailor makes a man a gentleman. But in the country from which I come, character makes a man a gentleman.”

It is Swamy who is known to have predicted that, after independence, India would emerge as a spiritual leader of the world. In spite of all the material progress that has been made, the world is in search of spirituality. Here, I would like to refer to a very telling incident. I once saw a white youth, simply clad, walking along an Indian street. He looked very happy and contented. I struck a conversation with him and learnt that he belonged to an affluent western country, namely Canada. I asked him why he had left his own developed country and come to India. He quietly replied: “There, I was comfortable physically; here, I am comfortable spiritually.”

Indeed, spirituality — a national gift to India — is the whole identity of our country. For centuries, the lofty Himalayas have served as an abode of spirituality. Its message flows eternally in the water of the Ganga and the Yamuna, while tall green trees provide spiritual solace, and beautiful birds warble the song of peace. This rare combination of spiritual greatness is to be found only in India. This is what makes it a spiritual superpower.