World Congress Report

The 10th World Congress of the TS, which took place in Rome from 10-15 July 2010 on the theme ‘Universal Brotherhood without distinction: a road to awareness’, was a great success, with 524 members from thirty three countries. The main sessions were shown live on the Internet. At the opening session there were prayers of the religions as well as greetings from a number of Sections and individual members around the world, followed by a welcome address by Mr Antonio Girardi, General Secretary of the Italian Section of the TS. In her opening address, the International President, Mrs Radha Burnier, drew attention to the need for us to understand that the Society aims not at any particular kind of brotherhood, which can be limited, but at Universal Brotherhood which implies a mind without barriers, sensitively aware of its profound relationship with the wholeness of life. 

Lectures

Lectures were delivered by the International Vice-President (‘Why do we Belong to the Theosophical Society?’); Prof. P. Krishna, Secretary, Rajghat Educational Centre, Varanasi, India (‘What Divides Us?’); and Dr Dara Tatray, National President of the Australian Section (‘The Scientific Basis of Universal Brotherhood’).

Symposia

There were two symposia, the first on ‘The Theosophical Society as a Regenerating Brotherhood’, with Mr Ricardo Lindemann, former National President of the TS in Brazil; Mrs Patrizia Calvi, Secretary to the Italian Section; and Mr Jan Jelle Keppler, General Secretary of the Belgian Section, as speakers. The second symposium was on the subject ‘Brotherhood as a Road to Awareness’, with Miss Trân-Thi-Kim-Diêu, General Secretary, French Section; Mrs Lissette Arroyo, General Secretary, Mexican Section; and Mrs Ing-Britt Wiklund, former General Secretary, Swedish Section. 

Workshops

There were six workshops during the Congress: ‘Forgiveness and Interconnectedness: Two Key Elements in Brotherhood’ with Mrs Betty Bland, National President, American Section; ‘Challenges in Brotherhood’ with Miss Marja Artamaa, General Secretary, Finnish Section; ‘Living Brotherhood’ with Mrs Marie Harkness, Organizing Secretary, TS in Ireland; ‘Solidarity and Cooperation: Practical Expressions of Brotherhood’ with Mr Antonio Martinez and Julia Ballesteros, from the TS in Colombia; ‘Practical Brotherhood in Our Everyday Life’ with Dr Dusan Zagar, Organizing Secretary of the TS in Slovenia; and ‘Self-Knowledge as the Foundation for Brotherhood’ with Carlos Guerra, General Secretary, Portuguese Section.

Short Lectures

Eight short lectures were delivered at the Congress: ‘The Discovery of the Self’ by Mr Colin Price, former General Secretary, English Section; ‘The TS on Probation’ by Mr Pedro Oliveira, Officer-in-charge, Editorial Office, International Headquarters; ‘In the Beginning is My End’ by Miss Mary Anderson, former International Vice-President; ‘Self-Perception and Fraternal Action’ by Mr Marcos Resende, National President, Brazilian Section; ‘Love and Service – Twin Stars of Brotherhood’ by Mr S. Sundaram, General Secretary, Indian Section; ‘The Meaning of nosce te ipsum in the Practice of Universal Brotherhood’ by Prof. Graziella Ricci, member of the Italian Section; ‘Life: A Symphony of Art and Beauty’ by Mrs Manju Sundaram, from the Indian Section; and ‘The  Plucking of a Flower Affects a Distant Star’ by Bhupendra Vora, former General Secretary of the East and Central African Section. 

Evening Programmes

Evening programmes included ‘Musical Yoga – Study is Transformation’ with Dr Edi Bilimoria; Italian bel canto with Soprano, Tenor, Baritone and Piano; Italian Classical Music by the Rome City Band and a slide programme on Theosophical Centres around the World, including the International Theosophical Centre at Naarden, the Netherlands; the Kreivila Centre in Finland; the ‘Olcott’ Headquarters in Wheaton; the Krotona Institute in Ojai, California; the Brasilia Theosophical Institute in Brazil; the San Rafael Centre in Argentina; the Manor Centre in Sydney; the Springbrook and Canyonleigh Centres in Australia; and the International Headquarters at Adyar. On the afternoon of 13 July the participants had a half day outing during which they visited some of the famous historical landmarks in the city of Rome. The Theosophical Order Service programme had as its theme ‘Service as a Road to Awareness’ with Mrs Diana Dunningham-Chapotin, International Secretary, TOS; Mr Timothy Boyd, Vice-President, American Section; and Mr Vicente Hao Chin, Jr, National President, Philippine Section, as speakers.

Questions and Answers

A Question and Answer session, which was chaired by the International President with the participation of Prof. P. Krishna and Mr Colin Price, explored a number of questions presented by the participants, most of them dealing with the theme of Brotherhood, the challenges it poses, what kind of mind is needed to make it a reality in our lives and the world, and how it continues to represent the essential aim of the Theosophical Society. An atmosphere of joyous camaraderie prevailed throughout the event and a number of members indicated that they would return to their countries reinvigorated by their experience of the days spent together with fellow-members in Rome.

Closing Session and Concluding Remarks
by the International President

At the closing session all assembled for the prayers of the religions, which were followed by impressions of the Congress by a few participants and by a vote of thanks by Mr Antonio Girardi. He then presented a small memento to the International President as an expression of gratitude from the Italian members. In her concluding speech, Mrs Burnier said that although a Theosophical Congress generates joyousness and causes the participants to have a good time together, we must be mindful that it also must represent a reminder to all of us of the work we have to do as members of the TS. The world is desperately in need of a new understanding, the essence of which is Universal Brotherhood. Occasions like the World Congress, she said, should also be seen as moments of reflection and rededication to our essential work, which is to become real Theosophists, that is, real human beings, free from the pulls of the animal nature in us that tends to create divisions, confusion and separation. The TS has a very important work to do in the world which is to point out that only a fundamental change in the human mind can bring about a real change in the world. She wished all the participants the very best in their journey together towards wisdom, towards becoming true Theosophists, in order to bring to the world a new understanding.