The Million Minutes of Peace
An International Appeal

A Reason to Hope

Committed to the cause of individual peace of mind, as well as the broader objectives of the Untied Nations, the Brahma Kumaris asked their members and students to think of ways to support the International Year of Peace.

The idea born in the Australian traffic jam became The Million Minutes of Peace Appeal, which asked people to pledge to spend time in meditation, positive thinking or prayer for peace. The reason was that as people around the world pledged to reflect on peace, they would focus on the fundamental unity of the human sprit and the eternal realities of which all are a part. It would highlight the waste and shallowness of conflict. The Million Minutes project also aimed a giving individuals a sense of participation in dealing with the issue that most people consider quite beyond their power to influence. As one housewife and mother wrote in making her donation of thirty minutes: “ Peace has to start as an individual decision. By making a choice to focus even a small segment of my day on peace, I ma taking that first step towards every rational person’s fantasy – saving the world.” (Opelia Julien, USA)

The project began with the aim of collecting pledges of a million minutes from each participating country, but the response overwhelmed all expectation. In four weeks (mid September to mid-October 1986) 1,231,975,713 minutes were collected in 88 countries. To total was equal to some 2,344 years of peace! That hefty pledge of popular support for peace was presented to the Untied Nations Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar on October 24, 1986. On accepting the minutes the Secretary-General said: “ I think these thousands of million of minutes – or billions should I say – are really extremely important for us. You are giving us a reason for hope.”