The General Assembly¹

The General Assembly begins today. It is a most significant event. The General Assembly is a family gathering of a very special family. Unlike most families, this family knows what to say, what to do and what to become. It knows how to love, how to serve and how to fulfil. What to say? The members of this family say that they wish to live together forever. What to do? They try to understand one another; they try to share with one another their teeming ideas and glowing ideals. What to become? They try to become a cry; they try to become a hope; they try to become a promise; they try to become a smile — a cry that elevates them, a hope that feeds them, a promise that reveals them, a smile that immortalises them. How to love? They try to love with their illumining souls. How to serve? They try to serve with their searching minds and their striving vitals. How to fulfil? They try to fulfil by steering God’s Dream-boat towards the Golden Shore.

The General Assembly signifies interdependence. It represents a song of the community of nations, a song of group-souls. While singing this song, these souls will climb high, higher, highest until they one day reach the transcendental Vision of world union. While singing this song, these souls will march far, farther, farthest until they one day reach the transcendental Reality of universal Peace. There is also another reason why this time of year is most significant. Thirteen years ago tomorrow, one of the great pilots of the United Nations passed behind the curtain of Eternity: Dag Hammarskjöld died in a plane crash. But before his soul flew to the highest realm of consciousness, it left behind the quintessence of its love for humanity, its wish for peace within humanity and its feeling of oneness with humanity. Dag Hammarskjöld was a man of God and servant of humanity. The body and soul of the United Nations treasure the quintessence of his love of truth, light, peace and universal oneness.

Here we are all seekers. We, too, belong to a family, a spiritual family. We are all praying for world peace, world harmony and world union in a divine and supreme way. Today the General Assembly begins with new hope, new determination and new aspiration to discover something more illumining and more fulfilling. We, too, the seekers of infinite Truth and Light, can begin today with new hope, new determination and new aspiration as we try to become more spiritual, more sincere, more dedicated. In this way we can serve the Inner Pilot of the United Nations and the Inner Pilot of the entire world-family in a most illumining and fulfilling way.