September 21,2013
Gathered in a circle in the backyard of Lalla Meryen Park, members of Youth for Peace-International in Morocco shouted the word peace three times in 15 languages while dedicating the congregation’s official peace pole Sunday morning.
“A peace pole is an international symbol of the hopes and dreams of the entire human family,we are so proud that oujda city become city of peace by joining the International cities for Peace” said Zakaria el hamel, president & Founder of Youth for Peace who facilitated the peace pole planting.
Zakaria said Youth for Peace decided to plant the peace pole prior to International Peace Day, which is celebrated on Sept. 21. He said the United Nations acknowledges Sept. 21 as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples.
“We’re very excited to participate in this international celebration,” Zakaria said, adding, “Everything we do should revolve around bringing greater peace to the world through our individual communities.”
Zakaria said peace poles carry the message “May Peace Prevail on Earth” and peace-lovers of all faiths have been involved in pole dedications, including the XIV Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa, President Jimmy Carter and Deepak Chopra. He said there are tens of thousands of peace poles in 180 countries.
“Our peace pole has ‘May Peace Prevail on Earth’ printed on it in four different languages. Our pole has English, arabic, Spanish and French.
A Peace Pole is a hand-crafted monument that displays the message and prayer May Peace Prevail on Earth on each of its four or six sides, usually in different languages. There are tens of thousands of Peace Poles in 180 countries all over the world dedicated as monuments to peace. They serve as constant reminders for us to visualize and pray for world peace.
Origin and History
The Peace Pole Project was started in Japan by Masahisa Goi (1916 – 1980), who dedicated his life to spreading the message, “May Peace Prevail on Earth”. Mr. Goi was greatly affected by the destruction caused by World War II and the atomic bombs which fell on the city of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. His desire to assist in the creation of world peace was answered when in 1955, the Peace Message, May Peace Prevail On Earth, came to him in a moment of great inspiration and deep prayer. After Mr. Goi authored the Universal Peace Message in 1955, a great number of people gathered in support of his vision and activities to spread the Peace Message which was were promoted throughout Japan. Soon after, Peace Poles inscribed with the Peace Message began to appear in various locations across Japan initiating the start of The Peace Pole Project.
The Peace Pole Project was first introduced to the United States with the opening of The World Peace Prayer Society offices in San Francisco and New York in 1986, The International Year of Peace. Peace Poles are now the most recognized international peace symbol and monument the world over with more than 200,000 Peace Poles standing in almost every country throughout the world.
