What if all the old men waging wars around the world are just sick – mentally and physically – traumatised by their indulgent lifestyle of self-abuse? Would curing them bring world peace?

And why are conflict mediators – whether UN special envoys – there is a well-paid army of them – or high level government emissaries so ineffective at peacemaking? Is it because they are too-dulled for the job? how can they sharpen themselves up?

That is what I discuss with Siddharth Chatterjee starting with a basic question: can one sick person mending themselves help to heal the world as a whole?

Sid believes so and he should know after 42 years at the sharp end of human suffering. Initially, as a decorated Indian Army Special Forces officer fighting insurgencies in SriLanka and India and then, with the UN, picking up war’s broken pieces in Bosnia, Iraq, Somalia, and Sudan. He went on to serve as the Chief Diplomat of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies – IFRC before serving in United Nations top Resident Coordinator roles in Kenya and China.

But along the way, he paid a heavy personal price with chronic illness, depression and post-traumatic stress. Then, alone in a sealed hotel room during 21 days of Covid quarantine in China, the bloated, middle-aged, hyper-medicated Sid reassembled himself to emerge more physically fit and healthy, and mentally sharper and more energised than at any time in his life.

How did Sid pull off his amazing transformation – in half the time that Buddha needed (legend says that he needed 49 days sitting under his iconic tree) to achieve enlightenment? He credits a regime of five simple and free practices culled from ancient Indian and Chinese traditions.

I am sceptical but as our conversation proceeds, I have to concede that modern science is confirming something real here. What are these “five practices”?

But Sid goes even further: the healing and calm that he found in his own nervous system is what the world needs between nations. So is Sid offering a hard-won insight into how conflict begins and how peace might be built?

This episode takes us from trauma and resilience to neuroscience, ancient wisdom, leadership and war, asking whether the health of individuals might somehow be connected to the health of nations.

Listen and decide for yourself. This could be life – changing for you, whether or not Sid’s prescription saves the world. However, breathe deeply through your nose as you listen. Why that is the key is explained here: