NEW DELHI: India’s ancient traditions of non-violence, kindness, love and compassion are needed in today’s world where people are fighting on the basis of religion and countries over territorial disputes, Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama said in the Capital on Thursday. India also needs to bring some kind of “revolution” in its education system by combing its 3,000-year-old ancient tradition of high moral teachings with the modern education, he said.
“Those mental quality subjects like non-violence, love, kindness and compassion should be included as an academic subject instead of religious teachings,” the 84-year-old said. Delivering the 24th Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan memorial lecture on “universal ethics” organised by the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, the spiritual guru said India’s message of “ahimsa, kindness, love and compassion” spread even during religious conflicts and World Wars.
Unlike in parts of the world where Shia and Sunni Muslims fought with each other, there was no fighting within India, he said. “Such high moral teachings of ancient Indian culture and tradition are need of the hour the world over now,” said the Dalai, who escaped Chinese occupation of his homeland in 1959. Paying rich tributes to Radhakrishnan, he said that the former president was an example of combination of modern education and ancient Vedic knowledge, cul ture and traditions.