Students of Mazara, Italy ask Prem Rawat questions on the last day of the Week of Peace, May 27, 2011

Q: The people of the Maghreb have a dream: freedom, peace, tranquility, and serenity. In my opinion, only a wise person with a good heart like you can help these people. Do your future plans include a visit to Libya or in some way offering help for these people? 

A: Your question is very heartfelt. I travel around the world wherever I am invited and feel that I can help. I would be very honored, some day, to be invited to Libya, and to talk to the citizens of Libya. That would be wonderful because, fundamentally, my message does not reach into the realms of religions or philosophies or cultures. It reaches for the heart of every human being. And that is the same everywhere. 

Q: What do you think prevents the presidents of the nations of the world from stopping wars and deciding that the priority is to let the young people realize their dreams of peace?

A: You know, one thing that separates us from monkeys and squirrels and cockroaches is the ability to reason. But if we don’t use it, then we have nothing to be proud of, at that point. 

I completely agree that war should not even be an option. Talk it out; settle your differences. To kill another person for your reason cannot be accepted—not in this day and age or ever. Who gets killed when wars happen? The innocent get killed, not the perpetrators. 

It is the children who suffer—the little children who will never know their father. They will grow up with hatred in their heart. Where there should be peace, where there should be enjoyment, where there should be love, they will have hatred towards the country that killed their father. How sad is that?

Like you, people everywhere want peace. Everywhere! Peace is not an idea or a dream that started yesterday. The idea of peace has been there as long as there have been human beings. I truly believe that there was an idea of peace even before documented history. This was important to people.

Unfortunately, as a young person in this world, you will carry the burden of this huge river that is starting to flow around the world, for making peace a reality. I really hope that your efforts perpetuate it and that, one day, the people of this world be able to experience peace in their lives.

Q: You have said: "It is easy to let the heart shine—as simple as water that can turn the desert into a garden, that can raise mountains, that can destroy and create." In that regard, I wanted to ask you the meaning of simplicity and dignity and what kind of relationship exists between them. 

A: To me, when something is, and is allowed to be, it shines for what it is worth. In our lives, in our complex behavior, we forget to be human beings. When was the last time we just felt like a human being? 

How many of you are wondering, “Is that, a bad feeling? A good feeling? Is that underrated? Overrated?” So, wait a minute. What does that feel like to just be a human being? Manufactured, not by Taiwan, China, the U.S., but by Divinity itself. A human being is the place where the miracle of miracles takes place. A breath comes into you and fills you with the gift of life. It goes, comes again. Goes, comes again. Goes, comes again. 

Feeling like a human being, is to feel blessed beyond belief. This happens when you become simple, because this is who you are. And this is when you fully understand your dignity. 

Q: In your opinion, how it could be possible to turn on the light of peace and dignity in the heart of humanity?

A: So, again an incredibly good question. How do we light this up? Where is the switch? Well, that’s the problem. It’s not one switch. It’s six billion switches, and each one needs to be turned on. There’s no other way. 

Six billion switches, one at a time. Can it be done? Yes. When people like you get interested in turning on switches, that is the best news for this world. I don’t stand here full of despair. I know the problems. I stand here full of hope. I stand here full of tremendous excitement! More and more people in this world are genuinely getting interested in peace.