One Minute for Humanity

What is Eleven Eleven? It is going viral on social media. It is an event to be held in Puducherry on the 11th of November, 2025, at 11 o’clock for a minute of world peace, where people from different countries will congregate to observe that one-minute silent prayer. Will it stop war or conflict? Yes, it can—when people change their consciousness collectively. With that perception, belief, and faith, they meet on November 11 every year. It will be held in a large convention centre, and only registered participants will be allowed to attend. The event is being organised by the Universal Peace Foundation, a spiritual organisation situated near the Palani Hills, famous for Lord Muruga. More than a thousand well-meaning participants who understand the value of silence and peace will take part in the programme on November 11, 2025.

It is not new to those who participate annually. When it is organised in Puducherry on November 11, 2025, steps are simultaneously being taken to organise such an event at the same time all over the world, according to Indian Standard Time. The Universal Peace Foundation has its own chapters in many countries, and efforts are underway to hold this event globally.

In different parts of India, social organisations, spiritual groups, cultural bodies, business associations, schools, colleges, and universities are voluntarily organising the one-minute silent prayer on November 11. The Universal Peace Foundation’s main objective is to preserve peace within every individual, family, community, country, and the world. To that end, it has worked closely with families and communities for several years. It also runs a college to teach yoga to students and organises various programmes to prepare a “peace brigade.” The Founder of the Universal Peace Foundation (UPF) spreads the message of peace by teaching Kundalini Yoga, visiting different countries, and establishing chapters to promote peace worldwide.

Eleven Eleven is a Global Peace Day that signifies the agreement reached on November 11, 1918, after the First World War, to establish peace in the world. Thereafter, it was celebrated as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day. Peace is not the end of war—it is the beginning of the action of the heart. Human unity, compassion, love, and empathy must be cultivated in the hearts of people through the practice of observing silence. It should be done collectively, organizationally, and institutionally on a regular basis.

Followers of the Universal Peace Foundation’s practice observe one minute of silence at 11 o’clock and the eleventh minute every day. It is practised globally at 11 o’clock local time in each country. However, on the eleventh of November, it is organised worldwide according to Indian Standard Time. It is observed individually, collectively in organisations, and institutionally. Students in schools observe one-minute silent prayers daily, and it becomes a habit. There is a specific method by which they observe the one-minute silent prayer, which is taught and conducted online as well. Every day, thousands of people observe this one-minute silence for peace.

This year, the event will be held in Puducherry—the land of spirituality. Sri Aurobindo and the Divine Mother established their Ashram here to spread Integral Yoga across the world. National poet Subramania Bharathi and several spiritual leaders lived in Puducherry. Arulprakasa Vallalar lived in Vadalur, near Puducherry. Hence, it was decided to host the event here. In Puducherry, when the convention centre accommodates 1,111 participants, several schools and spiritual organisations across the region will also observe the one-minute prayer. Puducherry will be declared a land of peace and spirituality.

For this event, the Lt. Governor, Chief Minister, Minister for Education, Minister for Tourism, and Minister for Culture of Puducherry are all participating. Recognising the value of peace, they have agreed to be part of this mission, following the invitation from the Founder of the Universal Peace Foundation. The significance of the event lies in observing silence, not in speech-making. Several dignitaries—including former civil servants, vice-chancellors, public intellectuals, business leaders, and industrialists—will participate.

Preparatory work is already underway to train participants in observing a one-minute silence through breathing techniques. To spread awareness, social media platforms are being used on a large scale. Only registered and trained participants are allowed to attend the event at the convention centre and other designated places where the peace event will be organised. From village panchayats to the United Nations, people believe that peace can prevail in the world only when it is cultivated in the minds and hearts of individuals—and that it has a greater impact when practised collectively.

When soul force is integrated, it creates unfathomable, everlasting peace and tranquillity in the world. With that belief, several lakh people participate every year in the one-minute silent prayer for peace on November 11, at 11 o’clock and the eleventh minute. Next year, the event will be held in Geneva.

Views expressed are personal. The writer is a former Professor and Rajiv Gandhi Chair for Panchayati Raj Studies, Gandhigram Rural Institute