Dr. Radhakrishnan
Distinguished friends and guests include Prof. Lokesh Chandra, Prof. Ravinder Kumar, Prof. Takagi, Prof. Howard Hunter and Prof. K. K. Panda, I am sorry we misspelled your name, we gave you a new name,
That’s what humble people like us can do.
Ms. Naveena Reddi, Dr. Akash Ouchi, my friend A. K. Merchant, Dr. Y. P.
Anand, Avdesh Kumar and very distinguished friends including, the devoted friends from BSG and from my own family here in Gandhi
Smriti.
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I don’t want to make any preliminary observations at this stage because there is galaxy of speakers, today very good formidable, no really formidable in looking but very eminent thinkers, scholars who have established and gained a name through their scholarship. I might take only just a couple of thoughts of vision at this stage in order to set the tone right. As you know the occasion is the centenary of the birth centenary of Josei Toda, the 2nd president of the redoubtable, fast growing, waves making, SGI movement who at a time when people could not dream of standing up against the establishment, the militarism of the redoubtable, merciless, Japanese administration instead of the courage to stand up and tell them, tell the militarists and the administrators right to initiate a process which will eliminate life from this earth. You have no right to annihilate humanity by going in for all kinds of destructive weapons, genocidal, mass destructive weapons. The only way is to educate people, the only way, is to create awareness among the people about the inalienable right to everybody to line, that too peacefully, to line with honor this cannot be possible unless we respect the sanctity of life. That such a man lived in Japan in the 50’s of this century. Now it is fashionable for everybody to stand up and criticize militarism or to say a few sentences or to write a few sentences or even do a little research against the holocaust or whatever it is. It is easy now, just become fashionable but that was not the situation in the middle of the 20th century. The sagacity speaks volumes of the greatness of this man who could see, who could foresee what is more of time and who believed that the only way to tackle his enemy is to educate people on the basis of which Soka Gakkai movement was build, their education pattern was fashioned, training was imparted, philosophy was broadened and Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism was given a new interpretation to mean that it is a creative force which becomes a real chapter of renaissance .I am happy that we in Gandhi Smriti are privileged to host this important dialogue.
With us are G. Ramachandran Institute of non-violence, the speaker wanted to be here , but could not come. I beg pardon and take complete responsibility of his absence. Gandhi
Smriti, Bharat Soka Gakkai and we have 2 distinguished institutes, which are collaborating with us in this Institute of Oriental Philosophy, Soka University that is being represented by
Mr.Takagi. Now, may I welcome all the distinguished panelists as well as the participants.
May I request Prof. Panda, Registrar of Delhi University and distinguished academicians,
to initiate the discussion. Over to Dr.Panda |
