After Buddhism, SAARC To Learn About Hindu Cultural Trails As India Hosts Three-Day Seminar

The SAARC Cultural Centre and the Ministry of Culture’s Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts is holding a three-day seminar on Hindu cultural trails in which five countries, including India, are participating, in Delhi. The inaugural day of the seminar on Monday saw panel discussions in which scholars from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka participated, reported The New Indian Express.

The idea of the seminar is to promote, cultural, commerce and architectural values among the SAARC countries, said Sachchidanand Joshi, member secretary, IGNCA.

In the first two days, seminars will be held where 38 scholars from India and 15 from the other countries will be presenting their arguments. The topics will cover intangible heritage and pilgrimage, tourism, archaeology and architecture, pilgrimages, temples, traditions, geography, governance, education and healing. Discussions will be held on ‘Ayurveda, myths and reality’, identification of Hindu temples in the northern province of Sri Lanka, trends of Hindu religious pilgrimage between Sri Lanka and India, issues of conservation in Majuli in Assam would be a part of the seminar.

The third day will be a visit to Vrindavan. Last year’s cultural trail was Buddhism, and the next one is being planned on Islam.

“This is an opportunity for the SAARC countries to revive a dialogue about inherited spaces...” said Bindu Urugodawatte, deputy director, research, SAARC Cultural Centre, Colombo.