Farzam Kalamabadi started off the third day of the ebbf/IEF conference with a rousing talk on China, asserting that China will become a major contributor to the advancing world civilization.
He became involved with China more than 30 years ago and has been living there since 1987. He has a profound love for and understanding of the people and the culture and has become one of the premier calligraphers in the country. His love for the country has won him the respect of influential people at all levels and his persuasive and charming personality has enabled him to offer quite challenging ideas which have found acceptance and are taking hold among thousands of people. His Green Soul movement, inspired by the idea that `the earth has no problem, the problem is people and people have no problem, they need to rediscover their soul’, has attracted thousands of people across the country.
Kalamabadi outlined the history and political structure of China and looked particularly at its spiritual history, which is at least 20,000 years old. There is now a revived interest in this spiritual soul of China among people who for so many years have not had an opportunity to learn about it and express it. For example, in 1983, there were 70-90 million Buddhists in China but now there are 200-300 million; there were 30 million Christians but now there are some 100-200 million; while in 1983 there were about 30 million Muslims and now there are 50 million plus.
China is moving, Kalamabadi said, from being introverted country to an extroverted one for the first time in 35 years, it is moving from being from the imitator and follower of concepts, ideas and inventions to being a contributor and a leader.
It now has the opportunity to make a significant contribution to the emerging world civilization. The question is whether its path will be a militant one, which grabs resources, or a one where it is a leader of ideas and peace, contributing its unique characteristics to that world civilization.
Kalamabadi firmly believes that China is on the cusp of what he says is the world’s third most significant revolution. The first, he says, was the European renaissance, the second the discovery and development of the Americas. This third, he asserts, will be more far-reaching, more important than either of these two – it will be a peaceful, spiritual revolution.
He looked at how this is coming about, outlining the future trends based on what has already taken place. Most significantly has been the change from a state of ideology of the universal class struggle to a new ideology of the harmonious society, a process that took place from about 1990 to 2005. In 1999 Kalamabadi was able to introduce to Chinese leaders the concept of `China’s peaceful rise’, based on the reinstatement and adoption of China’s ancient spiritual heritage. The historical name of China is `the continent of God’, that is, `the Divine Land’. This was its name 8000 years ago. Kalamabadi realized that China has always been inspired by higher, more noble values than the materialistic direction of its recent past and this concept has been embraced quickly.
One example of this renewal of China’s new direction as a country of peace and profound spirituality has been its decision to give every country a `Statue of Peace’. Just as France gave the United States a Statue of Liberty to represent one of its most important values, China’s Statues of Peace are a symbol of its own value of world peace and harmony. The most recent statue was unveiled in Haifa, Israel, at a municipal ceremony, that exemplified China’s new mission — to serve the world of humanity.
Kalamabadi invited ebbf to participate in this vision by being a main contributor to the World Eco Civilization Congress in China. ebbf, he said, is the golden key: it has the expert mentor resources and can be a crucial corridor of ideas. He welcomed the ebbf action lab as `the best tool’ for developing this vision.
Kalamabadi’s talk was enthusiastically received. In the meaningful conversation that this blogger attended afterwards, where people expressed their appreciation for the beautiful contributions of China, one of the Chinese ebbf members said, `I am overwhelmed. Your love of my country and its people has inspired me.’
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