Spiritual leader Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar gave a call to spiritualise politics, socialise business and secularise religion while delivering his valedictory address at the third international dharma-dhamma conference that concluded in Indore on Monday.
“It is due to lack of religion that suicides are increasing. It is also due to lack of religion that other social evils are growing,” he said.
Quoting from ancient Indian scriptures, he said differences of opinion and diverse ways of thinking can get one closer to ultimate reality and bring happiness and peace in the world.
Elaborating on 10 attributes of dharma, he said one which holds us back from doing evil is dharma. “A person who is educated, intelligent, who has control over senses, maintains cleanliness and hygiene is religious. A fool cannot be a religious person,” Ravi Shankar remarked.
Presiding over the function, chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that there is one consciousness that is present in all living and non-living beings.
“It is India which gave this philosophy to the world. Indian religion and philosophy are an answer to conflicts going on in the world,” Chouhan said.
Religious scholars from India, southeast Asia, America and Europe presented research papers on the conference’s theme, “Harmony of Religions: Welfare of humankind”, during the three-day event organised by the state cultural department in association with Sanchi University of Buddhist-Indic Studies and India Foundation.
The state government promoted the event as a grand assembly of religions and a prelude to Ujjain’s Simhastha fair to be held next year.
Learning centres in Sanchi varsity
Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced to set up the centre for integrated healing and the centre for alternate learning at MP’s Sanchi University of Buddhist-Indic Studies. He said the state government will provide land to different countries for setting up their learning centres in the university campus. The state government is in process of finalising the proposals for three centres.
Courtsey : The Hindustan Times