School Day of Non-violence and Peace

January 30 is a special holiday, founded by a Spanish poet. It's a School Day of Non-Violence and Peace (an acronym for Spanish DENIP) on the anniversary of the death of Mahatma Gandhi.

History of School Day of Non-violence and Peace

The School Day of Non-Violence and Peace or the abbreviation DENIP or DENYP, derived from its Spanish name, Dia Escolar de la No-violencia y la Paz, is celebrated in schools around the world on this day. Commemoration of the death of Mahatma Gandhi, a bringer of peace and non-violence. The message for this day is: "Universal love, non-violence and peace…”

Date was founded in 1964 in Majorca, one of the Balearic Islands of Spain, by Llorenç Vidal Vidal, a Spanish poet. He created it as an initiative for and to support peace and nonviolence education, seeing it as a starting point on the path to building a permanent personality based on the principles of tolerance, harmony, solidarity, respect for human rights, peace and non-violence. In the making of this day, Vidal was influenced by Lanza del Vasto, a disciple of Gandhi, and his book, Returning to the Source. This day does not have any official program and each institution can participate as they see fit. All countries are invited to participate. Schools with school calendars in the Southern Hemisphere usually celebrate March 30th.

How to celebrate School Day of Non-violence and Peace

If you are an educator, focus on nonviolence and peace in your lessons today. Many lessons on the subject can be found on the internet. You can join anytime you want, but keeping in mind today's message may be helpful: "Universal, nonviolent and peaceful love. Love is more common than egoism, nonviolence is better than violence and peace is better than war.” If you are not working in the classroom, you can still focus all day on nonviolence and peace. You could read Lanza del Vasto's Return to the Roots, The Essential Gandhi, or a book on nonviolence. You can also watch a movie that focuses on peace.