Peace Grid as it appears on the wall of the Oil Press Art Gallery in Old Jerusalem
“Israel vows to fight on in Lebanon,” says The Times.
While the Euro News informs us that “the French Foreign Minister has met his Iranian counterpart in Beirut. Philippe Douste-Blazy described Iran as a significant, respected player in the Middle East which is playing a stabilising role, putting him at odds with Washington.
“He said contacts with Tehran were important to help resolve the crisis in Lebanon. The Lebanese and Israeli UN representatives clashed at yesterday’s UN Security Council meeting, blaming each other for the carnage at Qana.”
Old Jerusalem(click on photo to enlarge)
And so the world watches helplessly the agonising spectacle of ordinary citizens in terrible agony and pain.
What can other people in the world do? Here is one option I came across on the web. There are people who know that at times faith works better than the efforts of the big leaders and the governments.
Keep your cynical and subjective side of your personality aside for a few minutes and read what the author has to say at this site. I am sure that if ever peace returns to Israel, Lebanon and elsewhere it would be owing to the efforts of such peace-loving people who pray/heal in silence. I can vouch for this because I have been a Reiki healer for the past three years.
Mohamed El-Amine mosque (Hariri’s mosque), Beirut, Lebanon
Swaraaj Chauhan describes his two-decade-long stint as a full-time journalist as eventful, purposeful, and full of joy and excitement. In 1993 he could foresee a different work culture appearing on the horizon, and decided to devote full time to teaching journalism (also, partly, with a desire to give back to the community from where he had enriched himself so much.)
Alongside, he worked for about a year in 1993 for the US State Department’s SPAN magazine, a nearly five-decade-old art and culture monthly magazine promoting US-India relations. It gave him an excellent opportunity to learn about things American, plus the pleasure of playing tennis in the lavish American embassy compound in the heart of New Delhi.
In !995 he joined WWF-India as a full-time media and environment education consultant and worked there for five years travelling a great deal, including to Husum in Germany as a part of the international team to formulate WWF’s Eco-tourism policy.
He taught journalism to honors students in a college affiliated to the University of Delhi, as also at the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication where he lectured on “Development Journalism” to mid-career journalists/Information officers from the SAARC, African, East European and Latin American countries, for eight years.
In 2004 the BBC World Service Trust (BBC WST) selected him as a Trainer/Mentor for India under a European Union project. In 2008/09 He completed another European Union-funded project for the BBC WST related to Disaster Management and media coverage in two eastern States in India — West Bengal and Orissa.
Last year, he spent a couple of months in Australia and enjoyed trekking, and also taught for a while at the University of South Australia.
Recently, he was appointed as a Member of the Board of Studies at Chitkara University in Chandigarh, a beautiful city in North India designed by the famous Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier. He also teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students there.
He loves trekking, especially in the hills, and never misses an opportunity to play a game of tennis. The Western and Indian classical music are always within his reach for instant relaxation.
And last, but not least, is his firm belief in the power of the positive thought to heal oneself and others.