Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar to Lead Global Observance of World Meditation Day 2025
Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, humanitarian, spiritual leader and founder of The Art of Living, has spent more than four decades touching lives in over 180 countries with a simple yet powerful message: inner peace is the foundation for a peaceful world. In 2024, when the United Nations marked the first ever World Meditation Day, Gurudev was invited to the UN Headquarters in New York to lead a historic meditation from that global stage, bringing together more than 8.5 million people online and in person across continents.
As the world prepares to observe the second annual World Meditation Day on 21 December 2025, attention is once again turning to India’s leadership in bringing meditation into the global conversation on mental health, peace and well-being. In December 2024, the United Nations General Assembly, with strong support from India and other member states, designated 21 December as World Meditation Day, recognising the role of meditation in nurturing resilience, harmony and social cohesion.
Europe’s first World Meditation Day celebration will be hosted at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, where the Permanent Mission of India to the UN in Geneva, the Consulate General of India and The Art of Living are coming together for a special in person programme. Gurudev also conducted a session on 17 December 2025 from 3 PM to 5 PM CET, inviting diplomats, officials and the public to experience the power of collective meditation as a doorway to peace and reconciliation.
This year’s observance will also be anchored by a special gathering at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on 19 December, under the theme “Healing the World from Within,” where Gurudev will address diplomats, UN officials and community leaders before leading a guided meditation. The
Geneva and New York events, together with hundreds of local celebrations, will be followed by a global wave of meditations and programmes on 21 December, coordinated by The Art of Living across continents.
The day comes at a time of rising concern about mental well being worldwide. International studies and national surveys in India point to high levels of stress, anxiety and emotional strain linked to workload, uncertainty and urban living pressures, reinforcing the need for preventive, accessible approaches to mental health. World Meditation Day offers citizens, institutions and governments a shared moment each year to pause, breathe and reconnect with an inner space of balance and clarity.
Since the UN designation, civil society and spiritual organisations have played a central role in shaping World Meditation Day, with The Art of Living mobilising mass participation and institutional collaboration. During the inaugural observance in 2024, large scale meditations, public programmes and international engagements reached diverse audiences and demonstrated that meditation speaks to people far beyond any cultural or religious boundaries.
Building on this momentum, the 2025 observance is focusing more strongly on implementation and impact. Across regions, institutions are exploring pilot initiatives and research collaborations to integrate meditation into public health, education and workplace well being frameworks, while also using shared inner experience to complement external dialogue in international settings. Reflecting on the spirit of the day, Gurudev has described meditation as “mental hygiene” that helps individuals tap into a source of energy, enthusiasm, happiness and creativity, and has emphasised that it transcends all religions and borders, calling humanity to remember its deeper unity.
As participation continues to expand through digital platforms, local gatherings and institutional involvement, World Meditation Day is evolving into a sustained global observance that places inner wellbeing at the heart of our collective agenda. With Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar once again guiding the global celebrations from Geneva, New York and beyond, the 2025 observance invites people everywhere to take a few moments of silence together and rediscover the peace and strength that already lie within.