BRAHMA KUMARIS WORLD SPIRITUAL UNIVERSITY
Spirituality – the Heart of Sustainable Development
Statement for theUnited Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development
August 26 – September 4, 2002, South Africa, Johannesburg
Spirituality and values have not occupied a prominent place in the development agenda ofrecent decades. However, with basic human needs remaining unfulfilled for so many
children, women and men, it must no longer escape our attention that the failure to provide
for other members of the human family around the world is directly connected tohumanity’s collective spiritual amnesia and the erosion of moral values.
If development concerns the relationship between people and people on the one hand andpeople and nature on the other, then sustainable development, that sustains people andrespects nature, requires that such relationships be based on and guided by fundamental
human values and a spiritual perspective of life.
The ideal of development as a continuing process of growth, creation, improvement andpositive change has yielded to a reality more frequently marked by destruction, division,deprivation and depletion. The difference between the cherished ideal and the cruel reality
finds its roots in a poverty of values and spirituality. That poverty, hunger and otherdeprivations persist in an age of global plenty is not an issue of logistics, technology or
financing so much as a question of values and morality. Setting a clear and defined courseof action that we all agree on with regard to the development agenda is important but wemust not forget that the world cannot be changed with words and plans alone: it can onlychange when our values, attitudes and actions change. The crisis of the nonimplementation of action plans is itself a crisis of values.
This is not to decry the important achievements that have been made in recent years inareas such as health, life expectancy and the reduction of poverty. Nevertheless, our world
remains under the dark cloud of an excessively materialistic paradigm one of theconsequences of which is that development is too often a narrow concept largely
understood only in economic terms. This narrow concept of development can find its rootsin a narrow concept of the self that neglects the larger reality of heart and soul, dims theinner light of the spirit and values and forgets the essential one-ness of the human family.
Lasting development within society will not happen without development of the individual.
We need to move from an overly materialistic approach to one that includes the broader
and deeper realities of human life and experience: the inner world of our thoughts andvalues and the innate spirituality on which our worth and dignity are based. We will not beable to get the outer world in order until we have first learned to get our inner world in	  1	  order and transcend short-term selfishness, consumerism, disregard for others and acorruption of values. We will not see the changes we look for in the world around us –such as the elimination of poverty, violence and injustice – until we first bring about thosechanges in ourselves.
Spirituality lends itself to a holistic perspective in which both spirit and matter, soul andbody, are real. Among its many rich fruits, spirituality offers us a methodology to deepen
our awareness of our inner being. From this awareness may follow steps to develop orchange the self in ways that are conducive to the kind of world society we want.
A spiritual understanding of the self indicates that human worth is not derived from matterand material possessions or measured in consuming, having and doing. We then see
poverty not just as relating to a material state; in fact the near-bankruptcy of values such as
honesty, love, respect, care and compassion is the greatest poverty afflicting the world
today as well as itself causing material poverty. Values and spirituality then are at the heart
not just of who we are but also of the political, social, economic and environmental issues
we are facing. It is also they, rather than words and numbers, that constitute thefoundations of the world we are seeking to build.
At a time of the dehumanising of the individual, it is spirituality that gives worth anddignity back to the individual, and with that, the capacity to discern what is needed andmake choices based on notions such as the sacredness of life,
respect for others and care for the natural world. Nature is not just a resource to beexploited, a potential source of economic growth, but a sustaining and sacred presence tobe treated with respect and care. In a world of social disintegration and individual loss of
meaning, spirituality offers us a sense of self and purpose and the ability to reconcile thetensions that challenge our being and living together as we strive for that which is good,meaningful and positive.
Helping us to recognise the common identity we share with fellow members of the humanfamily, spirituality’s concept of power is one of sovereignty over the self rather than ofcontrolling others. Distinguishable from religion, and possible doctrinal divergence,spirituality is concerned with the primary challenge of putting our inner house in order. It is
not antithetical to material progress but believes that such progress yields a bitter fruit andcarries within itself the seeds of its own demise if values such as responsibility, justice,honesty, sharing and respect are not its guiding polestar. It also provides the emerging
global ethic with the deep, sustaining foundation that it needs if it is to find its way into ourhearts and ways of living.
As development efforts shift their focus to include the human dimension, attention needs tobe paid to ascertaining what is it that sustains the human being. Social improvement isinextricably linked with economic growth and material sufficiency but our struggle fordevelopment cannot rely on technological revolution alone or be judged in economic terms
without also taking account of fundamental human values and the spiritual dimension of
the individual. There is a crying need for people’s rights to proper water, health care,education, food and a life-supporting environment to be met. But human beings do not liveby bread alone and development is to sustain people and life rather than being an end in
itself. It is also soon apparent that securing access to basic human needs itself depends on
the presence of values and that values that sustain people – such as respect, care, sharing,responsibility, honesty and love – are also values that sustain development.	  

2	  It is clear, therefore, that sustainable development, and development that sustains allpeople, depends at least as much on inner transformation and growth as on material
progress and prosperity. The role of education in this regard cannot be overestimated as it
is education that has the potential for changing the way we think and act, physicallyforming or realigning the connections within our brains, and changing the nature of thewhole person, body, mind and spirit. But to effect the move to a just, sustainable andpeaceful world society, it is not just more education that is required but education todevelop values, attitudes and ways of thinking that foster constructive human interaction
and behaviour. We need to ask ourselves what are the values and principles that underlie
our practices and that we would like to be the guiding force in our choices and decisions.
Transcending notions of materialism and material gratification as being the essence of life,
we may come to higher purposes of developing the inner self, inculcating moral values andexpressing our skills and talents in service of others.
Action with regard to such personal and spiritual capacity-building is required within every
sector and level of society as both formal education at school but also at home, in thecommunity and workplace. Such education, as a creative and transformational process, will
touch the heart as well as the mind and give shape to good governance and policies on
crucial areas such as the use of resources, healthcare, industrialization, economic activityand technology.
The Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University therefore believes that achieving thegoals of sustainable development requires that we place a high priority on learning andeducation that is not only functional, practical and relevant in content but which also has
spiritual and moral principles and values at its heart and the overall development of thewhole person and society as its aim. This is the truly indispensable basic foundation ofeducation.
For the past 65 years the Brahma Kumaris have been offering to people of all walks of lifearound the world a very simple, accessible and yet effective education in self-awareness,spiritual principles and values.
The University – together with UNESCO’s Basic and Primary Education Sections, and in
consultation with the Education Cluster of UNICEF – also supports Living Values: An
Educational Programme. The Programme provides materials and guidance to facilitate theintegration of values education into existing curricula and textbooks for children and young
adulthood, starting from early childhood. It covers twelve fundamental human values suchas respect, tolerance, freedom peace, responsibility, love and cooperation. Already in use atapproaching 5,000 schools and other sites around the world, results indicate that theProgramme’s five award-winning activity books, now being translated into about 30
languages, constitute an invaluable tool for personal development. The Programme is partof the global movement for a culture of peace in the framework of the United Nations
International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of theWorld and Programme coordinators would welcome working with others in this continuing
and crucial endeavour.
_____________________________________________________	  3	  Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University
The BKWSU is a non-governmental organization in general consultative status with the United Nations
Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and in consultative status with UNICEF.
The University was founded in India in 1937 and has branches in over 100 countries worldwide.
It has been affiliated to the United Nations Department of Public Information since 1980.

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