H.H. Amritanandamayi Devi arriving on opening day to provide keynote address.
The Global Peace Initiative of Women convened its second global summit of women spiritual leaders, this time in Jaipur, India on March 6-10. Several hundred women leaders from over 50 countries participated in Making Way for the Feminine for the Benefit of the World Community. The goal was to explore how the leadership of women, and particularly the feminine principles, can bring benefit to the world community, helping to create the platform for global transformation. The gathering was designed as a global reflection, opening with seven hours of prayer, sacred song and meditation. This created a sacred space in which dialogue could take place.As part of the journey to Jaipur, many of the participants, and particularly those from conflict areas, gathered at the Gandhi Smriti in New Delhi on the day before the Summit’s opening for reflection and prayer and to view the journey of Gandhi’s life. From there, the group moved on to the Summit in Jaipur.During the Summit, delegates from Iraq, Israel and Palestine, Afghanistan, Cambodia and Burma, Kenya, Burundi and South Africa shared experiences of their communities’ struggles as the spiritual leaders discussed ways to deepen the practice of Ahimsa (nonharm) and Satyagraha, how to break the cycle of violence and penetrate to the roots of conflict, and how to foster the spiritual process of healing and reconciliation. A major theme of the gathering was Oneness - how to know and be in this Oneness, the underlying unity of life. And indeed, a sense of Oneness prevailed.As we prepared for this Summit, we came to believe that to move forward as a world community, we must begin to move beyond formal interreligious discussions toward a place of knowing our unity, honoring our many wisdom traditions, experiencing rather than speaking about the interconnections that run through life. Making Way for the Feminine was an effort to create a new way of being together as a multi-religious world community, based on a more feminine vision of inclusion, sharing and receptivity. Thus we sought a new language and format - instead of plenary sessions and keynote addresses, we held group gatherings and shared stories. Instead of workshops and presentations, there were circle discussions and a setting of context. This was difficult at the beginning for some, but it allowed a new energy to flourish and gave space for a deeply spiritual interchange.We also sought to create a new East-West partnership, giving ample space to the participation of the Eastern spiritual traditions, which are underrepresented at most interreligious events. This created a new balance and greatly enriched the exchange.
The goal of Making Way for the Feminine was to explore how the feminine principles in both men and women - the values of compassion, inclusion, listening and sharing - can shift the thinking and behavior of people in ways that will allow for a more peaceful and sustainable world. The empowerment of the feminine may be one of the most critical shifts we need to engender, as this will impact every aspect of our society.In addition to exploring how the feminine principles can guide healing and reconciliation, the Summit explored a series of other themes including Oneness, ahimsa and satyagraha, education of the whole person, restoring the earth, creating an economy of care, visionary leadership and building peace through the media. Discussions centered on how feminine principles can bring about transformation in these key thematic areas.
H.H. Sri Mata Amritanandaymayi Devi officially opened the Summit, as she was greeted by Rev. Joan Brown Campbell and Benedictine Sister Joan Chittister, Chair and Co-Chair of GPIW, and Dena Merriam, founder and convener of GPIW. Other prominent Hindu women religious leaders who were guiding presences included H.H. Anandmurti Gurumaa and H.H. Dadi Janki. Among the Buddhist leaders were Venerable Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo from India, Ven. Dhammananda Bhikkuni and Mae Chee Sansanee from Thailand, Ven. Daw Succinti from Burma and monastics from DDMBA. Sister Helen Prejean from the US and Teny Pirri- Simonian from Lebanon/Geneva guided some of the circle discussions, as did Maryam Zarif from Iran, Sufi leaders Sheikha Cemalnur Sargut from Turkey, Ayeda Naqvi from Pakistan, Anat Vaughan-Lee and Barbara Sargent from the US, Rabbi Naamah Kelman from Israel, Laila Atshan from Palestine, Dr. Aster Patel and Dr. Aarti Khosla from India, and Dr. Nokuzola Mndende from South Africa. Large delegations from Australia and Italy participated in the Summit, thanks to the support and hard work of both GPIW Australia coordinator Mary-Faeth Chenery and GPIW Italy coordinator Rev. Doju Freire. Sheikha Cemalnur Sargut also brought a large delegation from Turkey. Making Way for the Feminine was not a gathering of only women spiritual leaders. Many key male religious leaders from around the world were also present, including H.H. Swami Dayananda Saraswati, convener of the Acharya Sabha, Swami Paramatmananda Saraswati, General Secretary of the Acharya Sabha, Sraddhalu Ranade from the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Rabbi Awraham Soetendorp from the Netherlands, Amir Al-Islam from the US, and the American Vedic scholar Dr. David Frawley, among others. They participated in discussions on how the Divine Feminine infuses our lives and can lead the process of transformation, on both the individual and collective levels. 
Making Way for the Feminine was the launch of a global initiative to heighten awareness of the feminine principles, to reflect on how the feminine manifests through our spiritual traditions and to explore how this energy can bring benefit to the world community. Many follow-up projects are being explored, including a documentary on the theme, the possibility of holding a regional gathering in Pakistan later this year, and the organization of a Spiritual Summit for the US in the fall of 2008. We will keep you informed as these projects develop.
Friday, May 9, 2008
