Integral Yoga Centre Gibraltar Celebration of World Peace Day

By the very nature of practising as a Barrister you are thrown into the world of conflict on almost a daily basis. Your work day might include: client conferences where you are told about the conflict(s) your client and his/ her family or children are suffering; you may receive ‘opposing’ counsel’s correspondence which is framed in conflictive and hurtful/ damaging language; you may be advocating in the Court/ Tribunal’s adversarial system where positions are entrenched and counsel ‘battling’ out submissions like bullets to ‘disarm’ the ‘opponent’. The secondary trauma many lawyers suffer as a consequence of long-term exposure to ‘conflict’ leads to high levels of stress, depression, anxiety and even high rates of suicide in the legal profession.

Having been introduced to and practised Raja Yoga since Nalanie Harilela Chellaram founded the IYC, studying under her guidance Patanjali’s Sutras, I found practical guidance on how to attain inner peace in spite of being submerged in conflict in my daily work. Pranayama (breathing exercises) and Hatha (physical exercises) bringing balance to the body/ mind; Karma Yoga (selfless service to others e.g. volunteer work); Dharana (Concentration) and Dhyana (Meditation) are all examples of some of the tools that support an improvement in my ability to manage cases holistically despite operating within an adversarial system and with clarity of mind, make me more efficient and resourceful at finding more peaceful ways of resolving legal/ other disputes.

Being invited by Nalanie to be the host for the IYC’s celebration of World Peace Day, as a Holistic Lawyer, Advocate and Mediator, was a privilege and an honour.

The event offered the audience a combination of inspiring messages of Peace from guest Speakers, dance performances, original music from IYC’s One Light, Yoga and a closing message from Nalanie. Nalanie is a Disciple of His Holiness Sri Swami Satchidananda, Therapist under the British School of Yoga, Founder of the IYC. In 2008 Nalanie was recognised for her ‘Services to Humanity’ by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. She has also spoken at global platforms including the United Nations.