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Pramukh Swami Maharaj's Centennial Celebrated at the United Nations, New York, NY, USA

7 Dec 2022

United Nations Headquarters in New York, NY

A BAPS volunteer assists with check-in outside UN Headquarters.

Volunteers escorted guests to the ECOSOC (Economic and Social Council) Chamber.

Each guest received a booklet highlighting the life and work of Pramukh Swami Maharaj, a special invitation for the centennial celebrations in Ahmedabad, India, and a special memento to take home.

On behalf of BAPS, Shri Kanubhai Patel, CEO of BAPS North America, honors Her Excellency Mrs. Ruchira Kamboj, the Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations, with a garland as a sign of gratitude.

The theme of the program, The World is One Family, aimed to honor Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s legacy on the special occasion of his centennial birth anniversary with Her Excellency Mrs. Ruchira Kamboj, the Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations, members of the Permanent Mission of India, Excellencies, Ambassadors and Representatives of countries across the world, and BAPS volunteers

Panelists and participants take part in ‘The World is One Family’ event at the United Nations to honor the legacy of HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj

Dr. Kashyap Patel, BAPS volunteer and cardiologist from Atlanta, GA, gives the welcome address

Panelists and participants take part in ‘The World is One Family’ event at the United Nations to honor the legacy of HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj

Her Excellency Mrs. Ruchira Kamboj delivered the keynote address and expressed her deepest honor to host this event on the centennial birthday of Pramukh Swami Maharaj. “In the truest sense, Swamiji’s life is a message to all humanity, it is a message of oneness, a message of goodness, a message of celebrating peace, harmony, and brotherhood.”

Sejal Patel, an Associate Director at McKinsey & Company, shared a first-hand account of one such instance from the 2017 Hurricane Harvey disaster that struck Texas

Professor Sejal Sanglani, BAPS volunteer and Professor of Pediatric Respitory Medicine at Imperial College in London shares stories from Covid-19 efforts

Ria Soni, BAPS volunteer and first-year medical student at NYU shares stories from Project Stree

A guest listens attentively with the aid of a translation device during the program.

Aarti Patel, BAPS volunteer and principal of John D Parker Junior School in Toronto shares how Pramukh Swami Maharaj inspired her

Delegates from various countries listen in to the program

The program was attended by Ambassadors and Representatives of countries across the world, community leaders, and BAPS volunteers

Delegates from various countries listen in to the program

Bawa Jain, Secretary-General for the World Council of Religious Leaders and Founder and President of The Centre for Responsible Leadership shares his stories with Pramukh Swami Maharaj

Underlining Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s enlightened spiritual state, Pujya Anandswarup Swami virtually offered the delegates an insight into Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s unwavering faith in the all-doership of God that enabled him to not only see good in all but to see God in all.

The program concluded with a recital of the Shanti Paath, a Hindu prayer for universal peace.

His Excellency Mohamed Abushahab, representing the Permanent Mission of the United Arab Emirates to the UN, had the opportunity to meet and interact with Swamis of BAPS