Meeting and celebrating the Earth day anniversary with people beyond faiths, geographies, and boundaries were never so simple before the lockdown and social distancing.

This year, Parmarth Niketan and the Global Interfaith WASH Alliance brought together Faith Leaders, the United Nations and Leading Faith-Based Organisations from all over the world to unite with one vision of how humanity can move forward from this COVID 19 crisis into a period of healing and harmony with ourselves and Mother Nature.

The webinar was organised in partnership with UN Environment Programme, Water Supply & Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC), Religions for Peace International, Parliament of the World’s Religions, United Religions Initiative, and Faith for Earth, as well as Unify and Uplift Connect. It was a great opportunity to come together with wisdom and teachings and create a world for both the Earth and humanity to be healthy. 

The participants of the webinar deliberated on the theme “Planting Seeds for a New Normal” to explore as to how the seeds of love, unity, and oneness can be planted and nourishing during this time for the garden of the ‘new normal’. They explored the possibility to create a world where both the Earth and humanity can be healthy by co-creating a new way of living. 

Rabbi David Rosen from International Director of Interreligious Affairs of the American Jewish Committee, Jerusalem shared that religion has a responsibility and religious leaders and interfaith leaders have to emphasise the importance of our responsibility towards our earth and our environment.

“As a spiritual leader, we are called to make individuals aware that the earth is alive that she is a living being” shared Rev. Michael Bernard Beckwith, Founder and Spiritual Director of the Agape International Spiritual Center. He stressed that mother earth is awake and alive, and we have to come in harmony with the frequency through our spiritual practices.

Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji, President of Parmarth Niketan & Co-Founder of Global Interfaith WASH Alliance stared with the Sanskrit scripture “maataa-bhuumi-putro-ahn-prthivyaa” Earth is our mother and we are her children. He said, what happens to her, happens to us and we have come together to create a new tomorrow. Giving a reference of the interfaith initiative on Climate Change where they traveled to 1000 Madrasas, Gurukuls, Mandirs, Masjids, Railway stations, and public locations to inspire people and communities to conserve and save our sacred rivers, to plant/ gift trees and actively contribute to a swatch Bharat campaign. He said firstly, we need to encourage our followers and communities to plant trees on every birthday, every marriage, every anniversary because trees are the best gifts which only gives and gives. Secondly, there is a need to stop deforestation. Thirdly, he insisted to save water, and fourthly, he shared that we need to find happiness within us. 

Maulana Mahmood Madaniji, Secretary-General of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, Delhi in his sharing reminded us now is the time to stop, think, and reflect as what we have gained and what we have lost. He further shared that access of anything is unhealthy. He said this is the opportune time to clean the external and internal pollution and unless we clean the internal pollution of our mind and mindset, we cannot clear our external environment. 

World-renowned environmentalist and activist and founder of Navdanya , Dr. Vandana Shiva said our mother earth is sacred and this Covid19 pandemic is an ecological catastrophe. “We are one earth family, one planet, one humanity, healthy in our diversity, and our interconnectedness and sick when that is violated”, shared Dr. Vandana. She cautioned that the time has arrived when we cannot live in greed, personal greed as consumers or structural greed’s as corporations and billionaires to make so much money. We have to become earth citizens and acknowledging that the earth is for sacred species, including the tinny microbes in the soil. She said that no power should violate the shares of other human beings. She invited everyone to come together to act and reclaim our power as spiritual, social as ecological beings 

Fr. Paul Moonjely, Executive Director of Caritas India the in this lockdown earth is reclaiming is lost identity due to a reduction in human activity. Giving a reference to the book of Psalm, he said it tells us that our Lord speaks, listen, listen, and listen. He insisted that the most important message for us today is to listen to the lord, the creator, listen to our fellow human beings and listen to nature and all these pathways will bring us a lot of wisdom. 

Quoting the “Laudato si’, mi’ Signore”, the beautiful canticle which says praise to you my lord. He shared that Saint Francis of Assisi reminds us that our common home is beautiful mother earth who opens her arms to embrace us though she is burdened with people’s greed. He further stated that we are not shaken awake by the injustice across the world nor we listen to the cry of the poor or of our ailing planet and we carry on regardless thinking we could stay healthy in a world that is sick. In this COVID time, we have the opportunity to bring a new initiative of ‘Garden of Eden’ to promote small gardens of vegetables, flowers, in our home-based environment so that the children, the people are actively engaged giving back to nature. He also shared about the mission of carbon fast initiatives to reduce the carbon footprints. He urged people to promote a green faith, an eco-spirituality that embodies everything about nature, a deep love for our mother earth. He said that it is a wakeup call to regard and respect all forms of life and their interconnectedness and interdependence. The new normal that we propose should be centered around the people, planet, prosperity, partnership, and peace where Peace and harmony is the outcome. 

Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswatiji, Secretary-General of the Global Interfaith WASH Alliance summarised all these interactions and shared are the new inscription, teachings, and truth. She said the core message of all the deliberations is of oneness. As we dive into our spiritual traditions and our spiritual truths in this lockdown, we reflect and reconnect the seeds of commitment to equality and sustainability to all the SDG’s of taking care of everyone so that no one is left behind.  

The webinar was attended by Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji – Muniji, President of Parmarth Niketan & Co-Founder of Global Interfaith WASH Alliance, Rishikesh, India; Rabbi David Rosen, International Director of Interreligious Affairs of the American Jewish Committee , Jerusalem, Israel; Bhai Sahib Mohinder Singhji, Chairman of the Nishkam Group of Charitable Organisations , Burmingham, UK; Maulana Mahmood Madaniji, Secretary General of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind , Delhi, India; Rev. Michael Bernard Beckwith, Founder and Spiritual Director of the Agape International Spiritual Center, Los Angeles, USA; Dr. Vandana Shivaji, world-renowned environmentalist and activist, Founder of Navdanya , Dehradun, India; Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswatiji, Secretary-General of the Global Interfaith WASH Alliance , Rishikesh, India; Dr. Azza Karam, Secretary General of Religions for Peace, New York, USA; Rev. Victor Kazanjian, Executive Director of the United Religions Initiative , San Francisco, USA; Audrey Kitagawa, Chair of the Parliament of the World , New York, USA; Iyad Abumoghli, Director, Faith for the Earth, UN Environment Programme, Nairobi, Kenya; Rabbi Awraham Soetendorp, Founder of Jacob Soetendorp Institute for Human Values, Co-Founder Green Cross International, Co-Founder Global Interfaith WASH Alliance , Amsterdam, Netherlands; Father Paul Moonjely, Executive Director of Caritas India, Delhi, India and Matteus Van Der Velden, Manager, Asia Regional Unit of Water Supply & Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC), Geneva, Switzerland