Mr David Rowe: Co-operation among all nations is an ancient dream. Assuming we are building on the past, how can we assess the outlook now?

Sri Chinmoy: The ancient dream of co-operation is not just a human dream that has nothing to do with reality. This ancient dream, to be precise, is not a dream at all but a faultless and divine vision — an unhorizoned vision that is slowly, steadily and unerringly shaping our individual and collective destiny as humanity marches towards its supreme goal of universal oneness and transcendental newness.

The world is constantly evolving towards a higher standard of life. It is not moving in a straight line, but rather in a spiral. Therefore, at times this progress is not immediately noticeable. To our human mind it may seem confusing and baffling. But on the strength of our inner oneness with the world situation and world evolution, we can see unmistakably the world’s slow and steady progress.

True, man-made destructive forces are everywhere. Here they may be found in small measure; somewhere else, in large measure. But the creator of these destructive forces need not remain always a creator of wrong forces; he can easily become a creator of good forces. A negative force is not negative by nature; it is only a force that we use in a negative way. A knife can be used either as a means of destruction or as a means of expanding our own oneness-reality. With a knife one can stab others; with the same knife one can cut fruits and share them with others.

The first step in turning a negative force into a positive force is to remain silent long enough to catch a glimpse either consciously or unconsciously of the divine, illumining and fulfilling light. The second step is to bring this light forward and create positive realities that will accelerate humanity’s progress towards perfection.

The ancient dream — nay, the ancient vision — of co-operation will always remain new and progressive, for creation itself is an ever-transcending reality. If we can open our heart’s door and our mind’s windows, we will be able to see from our body-room the illumining and fulfilling light all around us. Then only we shall discover continual progress in humanity’s march along Eternity’s road to Infinity’s Satisfaction-Goal.