THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In India there has been no clash between science and spirituality down the ages as Indian spirituality always insisted on experiencing something before developing faith on that phenomenon, founder of the Art of Living movement and spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravishankar has said.
He was speaking on 'India's Role in a Global Millennium' at the Bharateeya Institute for Advanced Study and Research (BIAR), here on Thursday.
Scientific temper
In contrast, other spiritual traditions insisted on faith preceding experience. India's spiritual philosophy is thus both time-tested and scientific. A scientific temper is essential for any educated society; but spirituality has to move hand in hand with the scientific temper. Technology has today shrunk the world so much that it has become one village, one family. Only spirituality can give that village the flavour of a family. Only spirituality can bond people together, he said.
Indian studies
Ancient Indian spiritual texts have to be reinterpreted with a scientific temper. In the U.S. there are more than 150 universities that offer Indian studies as a subject, but only very few Indians are there to teach these topics; the rest are Americans. "We are not encouraging our children to study our own knowledge. Yoga, Vedanta, Ayurveda¦ they have a universal appeal. We should be proud of this and spread it. When people in the west started accepting Panchakarma, we woke up to the merits of Ayurveda and Panchakarma. The beauty of Sanatana Dharma is that it is very practical. The symbolic language of the ancient texts should be subject to a scientific reappraisal. Our youth should be encouraged to take up Indian studies," he said.
'Be smart'
India should be smarter and start claiming patents due to us. Now, the nation reacts only after somebody else takes away, say, a tulsi or a turmeric patent. India should shake off its docility, get out of a slavish mentality and start taking a more proactive role in the affairs of neighbouring countries such as Sri Lanka, Nepal, Malaysia or Indonesia. Spirituality, Ayurveda, food, tourism, and IT are areas where the nation can excel.
India should also solve its problems such as violence, narrow-mindedness, terrorism, consumerism, stress, violence, corruption, and environmental pollution. All these problems are caused due to lack of education, he added.
Director of the Bharateeya Vicharam Kendram P. Parameswaran was also present on the occasion.
The spiritual leader later participated in an 'Anandotsavom' held at the Chandrasekahran Nair stadium.
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