*********************************************************************** Global Hindu Electronic Network (GHEN) Are you a subscriber of Hindu Digest? To subscribe to Hindu Digest send an e-mail to listserv@arizvm1.ccit.arizona.edu with the following contents subscribe hindu-d Full Name [Note: Full Name must be at least 2 words] *********************************************************************** Subject: G_V_2000_Conference *********************************************************************** Title: Global Vision 2000 Conference Head: 10,000 Rally in Wash. D.C. To Honor Vivekananda Subhead: Largest USA Gathering of Swamis Highlights Three Day Global Vision 2000 Conference Text: The Global Vision 2000 event held August 6th, 7th and 8th in Washington, D.C., did more than just honor the memory of Swami Vivekananda and mark the 100th anniversary of his arrival in America. Speakers boldly proclaimed that the spiritual concepts propounded by Vivekananda in the last century contain the solutions to the problems of the next. There were pressing appeals for spreading the ancient Hindu values, beginning with vasudhaiva kutumbakam-the world is a one family-the message that Swami Vivekananda brought to the Parliament of Religions in Chicago in 1893. A Friday evening dinner inaugurated the three-day adult program. On Saturday, adults, youth and thousands of one-day participants -nearly 10,000 in all-were ferried by bus to Capital Center, a giant indoor 45,000-seat sports arena just outside of Washington, D.C. After a two-hour delay, the day's program proceeded relatively smoothly through a long list of speakers, a play on Swami Vivekananda, a colorful inaugural parade of delegates, an afternoon meeting of religious leaders and ended with a superb evening of music and dance which enthralled participants past midnight. Sunday's plenary sessions and work-shop meetings were less well attended by the now-exhausted delegates. Swami Iswarananda Giri gave the concluding address Sunday evening to 2,500. [See photos on pages 14-15, and youth report on page 16.] As an event, Global Vision 2000 was more than a success-double the number of expected 3-day participants (4,000 in all) showed up, overwhelming the staff. Some adult delegates waited five hours to register the first day at the Washington Hilton. But that was a minor delay compared to the nearby concurrent youth conference, where the scene on Friday at the Omni Shoreham hotel was described as a "near riot" by one youth delegate and "utter chaos" by another. The student-run youth meeting was even less prepared than the adults for the onerous response. After some desperate replanning, students ended up sleeping eight to a room at the hotel. Fortunately the Hindu habit of discipline prevailed in the closely chaperoned youth gathering-even the hotel's security guard said, "They were great!" Despite some very difficult logistics, including the feeding of unexpectedly large numbers of people, the conference fulfilled all of its planned objectives: to bring together a large gathering of Hindus for a spiritual celebration of Swami Vivekananda's arrival in the West; to involve the youth in substantial numbers; and to bring eastern and western philosophers together to examine the idea of the wholeness of all creation. Global Vision 2000 received generally unfavorable press in India and among the US ethnic papers, who characterized the event as politically motivated. Among the dozens of speakers, a few-Ashok Singhal and Murli Manohar Joshi in particular-did, in part, reiterate their well-known positions on Indian political issues. But to therefore denounce the whole event as "political" was incorrect and ignored the overwhelming spiritual and cultural content. Dr. Mahesh Mehta, president of the sponsoring VHP of America and chairman of Global Vision 2000 said, "We planned this event three years ago, long before the current political situation in India developed." Only a part of the more than 50 speakers were associated with the VHP; and many of those attending were not VHP members, but came from the broader Hindu community. Jatinder Kumar told the Washington Post, "Bill Clinton goes to church. Does that make it politics?" The conference's long-term impact-if there is to be any-will rest on the ideas expressed and the visions expanded, not in the statements, political or otherwise, of any one particular person. The true significance of this event lay on a level far above current politics. It lay in the crystallizing of a Hindu identity in America, and a clearer appreciation and realization of the true value of Hindu belief, tradition and customs as we enter the 21st century. The Message of the Saints The value of Hinduism was brought out most clearly at the "Sant Sammelan" on the afternoon of the second day. This was the largest gathering of Hindu swamis-the spiritual leaders of Hinduism-ever held in America. Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists were also represented. Included among the saints were Swami Satchidananda, Swami Chidananda Saraswati (Muniji), Swami Dayanand Saraswati, Sant Rameshbhai Oza, Sant Morari Bapu, Acharya Sushilkumar Muni, Dada Vasvani, Swami Shantananda, Swami Brahmavidyananda, Swami Jyotirmayananda, Uma Bharti, Swami Shuddhananda, and representatives of Pramukh Swami Maharaj, Yogi Bhajan and the Dalai Lama. Most spoke on the message of Swami Vivekananda, on the importance of religion and religious harmony. Young and old alike were struck with the collective wisdom of this rare group of holy men and women who had come to guide the gathered Hindus. Muniji said, "I believe many of the creative ideas of Swami Vivekananda will flourish in the next century. Our spiritual insights and disciplines do not belong to Hindus alone, but to the whole world. No matter what has happened in the past, Hinduism stands for peace. Be proud of your culture. The whole world is a one family, the world is our home, that is Hinduism-peace, non-violence, harmony and compassion." Swami Shuddananda, of Loknath Mission in Calcutta, addressed his remarks to the youth. "You have in your genes the blood of the rishis. Ask your parents the name of your gotra, that is the rishi whom you belong to." "Hinduism," he said, "is the religion that believes in the spiritual oneness." Swami Dayananda Saraswati pointed out that Vivekananda was just one among the great masters of the Vedic tradition. "The Vedic tradition has never stopped producing masters, just as a potmaker shapes a pot," he noted. J.P. Vasvani of Sadhu Vasvani Mission, stunning in his white robes, gave an eloquent oration in praise of Vivekananda, as well as an impassioned plea for vegetarianism and kindness to animals. Swami Satchidananda taught the route to tolerance, "If you can understand the essence of any one religion, you can understand all religions." In his message to the conference, the Dalai Lama said, "Interfaith understanding will bring about the unity necessary for all religions to work together. However, we must remember that there are no quick or easy solutions. Each religion has its own distinctive contributions to make, and each in its own way is suitable to a particular group of people as they understand life. The world needs them all. It is the spiritual duty of religious movements to acknowledge the variety of religious traditions in a world of interdependence; and that respect for the rights and sentiments of religious minorities is an essential part of this duty." Sushil Muni, Jain leader and a founder of the VHP, said, "We are for nonviolence, and we are not for divisions of religions." The Hinduism Today Survey With the assistance of the student delegation from South Africa, Hinduism Today conducted an informal survey of the conference attendees. [See page 16 for more excerpts.] For the adults interviewed, the high point of the Capital Center event was the Sant Sammellan, and the most enjoyed speakers were Uma Bharti, Rameshbhai Oza and Swami Dayananda Saraswati. "The swamis were just wonderful. I never knew they were such sources of knowledge," said Rakesh Shreedhar of New York. The cultural shows and "lots of people" were also mentioned as valuable. A question on "personal impact" brought responses such as "Given me the attitude of having more faith in myself" (Vipul Kashyap of New Jersey), and "I will with all greatness call myself Hindu" (N.C. Desai of Bombay)-a main point of Uma Bharti's Hindi speech. Dr. Ved Kawatra of New York said the meeting had given her "moral support by seeing so many people of my own religion in a foreign land." Useful criticism was also offered. N.C. Desai said, "The meeting discussed Swami Vivekananda and some ideals of Hinduism, but the main ideal of worshipping God was not stressed. Everybody talked about humanity." Vijay Shroff of South Carolina said, "All swamis (without skipping) should have got opportunities to speak." A few criticized the youth for being "most interested in socializing," though the same could be said for some of the adults. One observer noted about one-third of the speakers spoke in Hindi-perhaps contributing to a exodus of youth during the Sant Sammelan as many did do not understand Hindi. "The cultural program was excellent," said Sanjay Thakur of Rutgers University, New Jersey and many others. "The singers and dancers were too good. I loved Anuradha Paudwal!" Everyone had praise for the top-notch program of plays by the Prabhat Kala troupe from Bangalore, India. They performed dance dramas on the life of Vivekananda combining traditional Bharata Natyam dance with more modern methods of dramatic presentation, lighting and props. Nearly all of the cultural events and music were drawn from the Vaishnavite tradition. Moon Astronaut's Cosmic Vision One objective of the event was to bring together philosophers from East and West. One of those from the West-or more accurately, from outer space-was Astronaut Edgar Mitchell, the sixth man to walk on the moon. In his two major speeches, he had a unique impact on Global Vision 2000. The ultra-educated space explorer has found himself in the unlikely role of an evangelist working to temper the onrush of "scientific understanding" with religious insight. This transformation was the result of a transcendent experience, a kind of earthly samadhi. Upon his 1971 return voyage from the moon in the Apollo 12 spacecraft, he "suddenly experienced the universe as intelligent, loving and harmonious." "Looking inside," he recalls, "I saw that there is a greater reality than our physical experience." [See interview on page 26.] His insights complemented the Hindu view of the world, especially the message of Vivekananda, and related well to the event's science-minded Hindu youth pondering how to integrate Hindu beliefs with their university educations. Mitchell said, "The science that has been the engine of our development has created technology, and that science has said to us that our consciousness is a byproduct of our biochemical makeup, that the universe is deterministic. That was the part of our science that I saw from space was flawed and incomplete. It does not address the spiritual side of our nature. The God of our universe is represented in our consciousness. Matter and spirit are two sides of the same coin. We must go forward in the vision of Swami Vivekananda that we are all one." Reaffirmation of Hindu Values The value of family, the power of women and the sense of duty were prominent among the Hindu traditions to be given renewed dignity at the conference. Dr. Madhu Jhaveri extolled the family, "Until I came to this country, I never heard the word 'rights.' Everything was 'duty.' Duty to father, to mother, to brother, to sister. Even under crushing poverty in India, the Hindu family system is intact. This is because of the harmony and sense of duty." K. S. Sudarshanji continued on the same theme, "In the duty of parents, the rights of the children are protected. In the duty of children, the rights of the parents are protected. Let us do our duty and become prosperous, and the nation will become prosperous." Swami Shuddhanada told the youth, "Ask your parents, 'How come you two are living together for the last twenty years, when our neighbors separate every two?'" The answer, he explained, lies in the Hindu family values. The spirituality of women and their responsibility toward religion and society was an important but not deservingly prominent conference theme. Hindu women have long known the flaws in western feminism, which simply turns women into men, and are rediscovering their shakti, their spiritual power. The workshop on family concluded, "Women do not have to copy men. Women have to help men grow out of some of the wrong notions of dharma that they have." Dr. Lakshmi Kumari, president of Vivekananda Kendra, said, "Our women have forgotten to pray for the welfare of the universe. The poverty in our country is because women are not praying." The Hindu Century? Conference speaker David Frawley commented after the event, "Hinduism in this conference was awake, confident, strong and expansive. It revealed a power and a vision that the world must reckon with and may have to reform itself according to. Such a revitalized Hinduism is bound to be one of, if not the most important, cultural and spiritual forces for the coming century." There was no call for religious evangelism in the Western sense of building one religion at the expense of the other. K.S. Sudarshanji, Joint General Secretary of the RSS, put it aptly, "Hindus have to come forward and take the lead, go out and give a vision-replace the vision of matter with the vision of spirit." Part of this Hindu assertiveness appears to be a kind of synergy with other movements. Hindus have taken note that their beliefs are regarded by others as a solution to the world's problems, in ecology, religious harmony, politics, education and even business management. Absent was any call to abandon the past or revise Hinduism to fit the modern times. The vision of "Global Vision 2000" was Swami Vivekananda's perception of the whole world as a one family. Speaker after speaker reaffirmed the Hindu view of the oneness of all creation, and the Hindu tradition of tolerance and acceptance of all peoples and paths. Hindus and Hinduism came away with renewed self-respect. Center Section: Introduction: Spectacular gathering of 10,000 celebrates Vivekananda's Vision of Oneness and religious tolerance In the pre-dawn hours of a new millenium, the excitement is palpable as spiritual groups of every hue offer prayers for a new planetary thinking based on harmony not rivalry, cooperation not exploitation. Hindus, too, are eager to enter the year 2000 as loving brothers and sisters of all earth's peoples. For this, a deeper vision is needed-one that embraces, not divides. In Hinduism this vision is expressed as Vasudhaiva kutumbakam-"the entire creation is one family." In August the Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America staged the unique Global Vision 2000. The five themes of the Washington event, eloquently summarized by chairman Dr. Mahesh Mehta, envision a planet: 1) where religions respect each other and matters of spirit and matter converge; 2) where man, nature and soul are viewed as expressions of the same blissful God-consciousness; 3) where children are raised with self-esteem and respect for the highest human values and excellence; 4) where societies allow individuals of both sexes and all strata the fullest expression of their potential and 5) where serving the disadvantaged is a spiritual duty. Sidebar: Events It had a little of kumbha mela soul and serendipity. Though at the Hilton, not Haridwar and on the banks of the Potomac, not the Ganges, the saffron robes, soulful delegates and continuous stream of mountaintop consciousness all imbued it with magic. After a Ganesha puja and lighting of the deepa, Indian-American Meeta Gajal sang the US national anthem. "The people next to me cried," her father later confided. Her powerful and youthful voice did momentarily stun the entire stadium. With the force flowing, the American and Indian flags flying and Swami Vivekananda's dominant presence radiating through a larger-than-life white statue, the avalanche of speeches began. Each prismed Vivekananda's call to "awake, arise." For one, that meant being vegetarian. For others it meant just being more proud of being Hindu. "I never knew our monks were so smart," one dumfounded 13-year-old confessed after hearing one yogi after another speak eloquently from the podium. Photos clockwise: Ganesha, Meeta Gajjar, Swami Shuddananda, Dada Vaswani, Swami Dayananda, Swami Satyanand, Swami Jyotiramayananda, Swami Satchidananda and Swami Uma Bharti beside Anjlee Pandya. Sidebar: Personalities An astronaut, a Mayan shaman, a Sufi, a Unitarian, Jains, Buddhists, Sikhs and Hindu religious leaders and par-liamentarians-what a quilt. Each expressed the overwhelming need that religious, political, ecological and social concerns become one wholistic concern, not four divisive ones. The Himalayas, Great Wall of China and Arabian desert no longer divide countries and belief systems. Satellite TV, CNN and 747's have closed the era of the happy ostrich with his head in the sand. The contact of peoples with peoples, and beliefs with beliefs, will only increase, not abate. "If we start with the whole," pleaded Murli Joshi, "man and man, and man and environment, will be better friends." Photos, clockwise: Hariya Dalmia, Murli Joshi, Dr. Lakshmi Kumari, Rameshbhai Oza, Sushil Jain Kumar, Dr. Edgar Mitchell, Dr. Mahesh Mehta and Ashok Singhal. Sidebar: Performances Culture reached out to every wavelength-from the frenetic energy of a Bangra troupe of musico-acrobats to the sky-like tranquility of classical singer Anuradha Paudwal, pure radiance of Odissi dance jewel Sonal Mansingh, enthralling choreography of Bangalore's Prabhat Kala troupe and ethereal cadence of flautist Chaurasia. Dancers Viji Prakash, Anjani Ambegaokar and daughters dazzled with speed and finesse. Photos clockwise: Amrapali Ambegaokar, Anup Jalota, artist of Prabhat Kala troupe, Anuradha Paudwal, artists of Prabhat Kala troupe, Hariprasad Chaurasia, artist of Prabhat Kala troupe. Sidebar: Themes There were as many themes as streams running down a Kashmiri hillside in spring-oneness, India as a spiritual and scientific benefactor of humanity, inter-faith harmony, ecological stewardship and Hindu unity, to name only a few. Threaded through all of them was the paramount concern that today's youth be nurtured on the spiritual values, religious traditions and artistic refinements of culture that have been the Hindu life-breath for so long. The theme of inter-faith harmony seemed to touch a chord in everyone. Hindu youth today especially abhor religious fighting-among sects, among faiths. They hope peoples of different beliefs can be friends and solve problems through negotiation. Thus the colorful presentation by a Mayan priest of a giant charter for the Dalai Lama, commending his example as a peace advocate with spiritual thinking very akin to Mayans, was one of the most moving and symbolic moments. Photos clockwise: girl pledging allegiance to US flag, two youth, youth speaker Sonia Gandhi, folk dances during parade, painting of rishi/astronomer, Mayan presentting charter for Dalai Lama. Sidebar: Adult Reactions to Main Event "The Global Vision 2000 event helped show me the correlation between Hinduism and other religious systems, thereby showing how everything can evolve and function together. It had a very positive effect. It gave me the attitude of having more faith in oneself. Dada Vaswani made the deepest impression on me. Dr. Mitchell's speech about how science and spirituality complement each other was also inspiring." -Vipul Kashyap, New Jersey "This meeting has made me understand Hinduism in a much broader way and made me be proud to be a Hindu and work for my religion. The swamis were just wonderful. -Rakesh Shrudh, New York "This meeting has had a great personal impact on me. It has greatly added to the little I have known about Hinduism. Also, the calibre of the event has itself brought me to a period in my life for a careful examination of my own spirituality." - In Ho Lee "This conference has affected our family by recognizing that Hinduism is a way of life. The overall highest point of the program was the bringing together of a large Hindu community to make them aware of the pride of being a Hindu-despite a lack of good organization of the conference." -Dr. Mahendra Kawatra, New York "This meeting advanced Hinduism by teaching people to learn from Vivekananda and to be a Hindu without being ashamed of it." -Vijay Shroff, South Carolina Copyright 1993, Himalayan Academy, All Rights Reserved. The information contained in this news report may not be published for commercial purposes without the prior written authority of Himalayan Academy. (The idea is simply we don't want people putting it in magazines or newspapers that are for sale without our permission. 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