Experiences of loss and grief are a natural part of life, yet they are often left unspoken. In Sabadell, Spain, a local grief support association has begun using the Peace Education Program as a tool to help participants navigate the healing journey after the loss of a loved one.
The Sabadell Mourning Group Association (Asociación Grupo de Duelo de Sabadell) is a nonprofit organization founded in 2003 by individuals who had experienced the profound loss of loved ones. Guided by the belief that grief is more manageable when shared, the organization offers group-based support where participants can find understanding, connection and healing alongside others who have faced similar experiences of loss.
Sabadell Mourning Association’s President and Volunteer Juan Carlos Martin explains that his role is to “accompany people in mourning.” In 2024, he was introduced to The Prem Rawat Foundation’s Peace Education Program by the local organization, Alliances of Peace (Alianzas de Paz). Shortly after, he invited volunteers of the local association to present the program to members of his center who were going through significant loss.The Peace Education Program has been very well-received by participants of the Sabadell Mourning Association as this 10 minute video shows:
In this video Peace Education Program participants at Sabadell Mourning Association share their perspectives.
The Peace Education Program consists of 10 workshops, each focused on one of the following themes: Peace, Appreciation, Inner Strength, Self-awareness, Clarity, Understanding, Dignity, Choice, Hope and Contentment. Featuring video presentations by peace educator Prem Rawat, these workshops aim to offer participants time to focus and reflect on their humanity, discovering their own experience of personal peace.
“My first and great love died six months before my mother. I didn’t know who I was anymore,” one Peace Education Program participant, Antonia Carvajal, said. “This workshop has been superb for me. It has helped me immensely to be myself again. It is an inner peace that gives you the help, or push, to move forward.”
Participant Ivonne Auad arrived carrying what she described as “a very heavy backpack.” Grieving both her sister and her mother, she navigated a profound period of loss. Through the Peace Education Program workshops, she was struck by Prem Rawat’s emphasis on knowing oneself. She realized she wanted to get to know herself more, and that she was on a search for herself.
“You have in you upheaval, and you have in you peace. You have in you darkness, and you have in you light. So if you understand that, then it becomes clear, that if peace is within each one of us, then the issue becomes do we know ourselves.” – Prem Rawat
“When you have your inner peace, you can expand everything. Whether we are grieving or not, we sincerely need that peace. And it is very, very important,” reflected Peace Education Program participant Antonia Carvajal, speaking to the program’s relevance for all people, whether they are actively grieving or not.
The experiences of the Sabadell Mourning Group members remind us that while loss is a continuous part of life, so too is the possibility of peace, self-understanding and strength. The Peace Education Program helps people connect to these inner resources by offering space for reflection and self-discovery, amid what is often the hardest part of people’s lives.
