Pratibha says Kashmir is embodiment of compassion
In the media
The Asian Age -
27th May 2008
Invoking Kashmir's revolutionary poet Gulam Ahmed Mehjoor, President Pratibha Patil on Monday asked its "gardeners (people) to create the glory of spring and make the flowers bloom and the birds sing again". She said Kashmir was rightly called rishiwaer or the abode of rishis as it embodies love, tolerance and compassion.
She said, "The amalgam of pristine beauty, enchanting landscape, rich culture, seat of learning and a melting pot of ideas, Kashmir has lived as finest centre of learning, tolerance and cultural cohesion", adding, "whether be it Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism or Buddhism, all these relifgions have for centuries been a part of the spiritual landscape of the state".
The President, who is on a five-day visit of Jammu & Kashmir, was speaking at the inaugural function of the Institute of Kashmir Studies (IKS) at the Kashmir University here.
Recalling the contributions of various spiritual and philosophical saints and seers to Kashmiriyat, the President said that their message of love, tolerance and compassion left a deep imprint on the lives of the people of Jammu & Kashmir.
"Their legacy, over a period of time has etched itself so much into the collective consciousness of the region, that it cannot be eroded", she said, adding, that Kashmiriyat is a living legacy which has withstood the test of time and "it is now for us to continue to nurture it so that it is preserved for future generations". The IKS is established unde a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the South Asia Foundation (SAF) and the Kashmir University signed in August 2007.
"The Institute will promote regional cooperation, based on the Bhakti-SufiRishi culture of Kashmiriyat in a broader historical and worldwide context", said UNESCO goodwill ambassador Madanjeet Singh and co-founder of SAF.
It is the latest of the eight institutions of excellence which the SAF is in the process of establishing in Saarc countries, he added.
The President expressed hope that the IKS will contribute to the study and assimilation of knowledge about the history, cultutal values and socio-economic structure of society in Jammu & Kashmir.
"It will provide a platform for scholars in the field of Kashmir studies regarding ideas on pluralistic cultures and tolerant societies", she said. Later, she flew to Bhadarwah in Jammu region called "Chota (tiny) Kashmir" to inaugurate the regional campus of the Jammu University.
Speaking on the occasion, she said that quest for knowledge har remained an important facet of Indian civilisation.
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