Five of these dangers stand out, menacingly.

One, a horrendous war between a behemoth of a nuclear State and a country much smaller, but backed morally and materially by other behemoths, three of them nuclear States themselves.

Two, some 1,500 nuclear weapons, which an act of error, terror or stealth can explode on us before we can say Happy New Year.

Three, the very real possibility, of which a post-Covid-19 world is but dimly cognisant: The horrifying possibilities of germ warfare.

Four, adding to the dangers of chemical and biological ogres, a dirty new gnome prowling about in the shape of cyber terror which can disable vast sections of human society and lurk behind it, its parent, Artificial Intelligence’s twin, robotic malevolence.

Five, a climate crisis that is very likely to see water and food dry up at an unprecedented scale in the very near future, alongside bizarre acts of nature taking swipes at littoral States, drowning them in our collective cauldron of greed.

Gandhi’s spirit has already been on that magnetic site in the shape of another stunning work of art. We, in India, are not really aware of the name of the Swedish sculptor Carl Fredrik Reutersward (1934-2016). His powerful creation is called, simply, Non-Violence. It is a bronze gun that is cocked, and yet, because its barrel is tied in a knot, cannot, will not, shoot. It is strength, self-curtailed. The masterpiece was installed in 1988 at the UN headquarters by then secretary-general Javier Pérez de Cuellar.

That work of art has been choreographing the self-curtailment of all weapons and their wielders who seek to intimidate, dominate, and decimate. The knotted gun has been showing how much superior to peace is to victory, which, unlike victory, does not humiliate, does not mutilate, does not annihilate any adversary. In a sense, Gandhi has been speaking through it, of how violence perpetrated from behind the shield of armour is utter cowardice, apart from being utter evil. He has been showing how the non-violence of the brave is far superior to the violence of the coward.

But now he is entering the rare portals of the UN in his own likeness. Doubtless, the greatly articulate and honest speaker that he is, Guterres will speak words that rise to the occasion. (He said memorably only the other day that, “the world is on a highway to climate hell”.) As will our minister for external affairs.

But may we spare a moment to ask ourselves what Gandhi may himself say, if, by another incredibility typical of him, he is surrealistically present? It may be something like this:

Mr secretary-general, honourable Shri Jaishankar, excellencies.

Being here on the grounds of this great organisation, I feel both happy and sad. Happy, because I can see people from all parts of the globe gathered here as one family, but sad to recognise great and deep discord amongst its members. Not just discord, but what is worse, distrust. I believe in trusting. Trust begets trust. Suspicion is foetid and stinks. He who trusts has never yet lost in the world. The UN has not lost the world. But has it won the world?

I must also own that I feel both honoured and embarrassed by the occasion. I feel honoured, because in placing here the bust of an Indian who regarded himself as a farmer, a weaver, a cobbler, and one amongst the lowliest of the low, this world organisation is recognising, in these times where material success is worshipped, the down and out. But I am also embarrassed because I think it is a waste of good money to spend it on erecting a clay or metallic statue of the figure of a man who is himself made of clay.

Seeing here, the beautiful sculpture of the knotted gun, I am reminded of the moment when walking to my prayer, I saw a gun. It was almost the last thing I saw before a great white light took me to my Rama, who to me represents truth. I learnt to invoke Rama from my saintly mother and an equally saintly woman who worked in our home, whenever darkness gripped me. The knotted gun tells us in our dark times to tie up hatred and fear into a knot. Believe me, it takes more courage to knot up a gun than to fire it. I should know.

You have all assembled here to listen to the words of the secretary-general, and those of India’s foreign minister, not mine. But I will crave your indulgence to mention three persons none of you may have heard of — Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi, Sachin Mitra, and Smritish Banerjea. They were all young men, killed during the insane riots that accompanied the partitioning of India, while trying to stop frenzied mobs from attacking and murdering each other. They had families to support, ambitions to fulfil. Yet, they plunged themselves into the fire with no hatred, no anger, only calm. Fear did not figure in their dictionaries.

I want to ask the nations represented here: Are you willing to sacrifice your egos, if not your lives, for the love of peace? Is there, in your governments or in your societies, a single man ready to die without hatred in his heart in an attempt to pacify rioting crowds and prevent nuclear terror and war? Is there any government that is ready to say it will start to dismantle its death machines unmindful of others not doing the same? Any government ready to say it will not just join, but lead the world in reducing our fouling up of the planet’s air and its fragile surface? And, most important — any government that will atone for wrongs done out of sheer pride of race, religion or out of naked greed for more territory or power? Does “sorry” figure in your dictionaries?

And so, when I heard you, Mr foreign minister, say “Over the last 75 years since Independence, India has mostly used force defensively when it was threatened, almost always within its own borders” I was glad for its simplicity and honesty. Countries cannot threaten or attack others. Whilst they must resist aggression by force if necessary, they should know their doing so will have moral authority only if they have not disfigured their records by similar intentions or acts of their own.

Mr secretary-general, I thank you for your patience and wish you and this great organisation, Godspeed.

Gopalkrisha Gandhi is a former diplomat

The views expressed are personal