What’s the News?
The two-day Global Buddhist Summit 2023 was recently concluded with the New Delhi Declaration.
- The Ministry of Culture in partnership with International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) has organized the 1st Global Buddhist Summit 2023
- It saw the participation of delegates from nearly 30 countries, including Taiwan, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and Mongolia.
Theme
The theme of the Global Buddhist Summit is “Responses to Contemporary Challenges: Philosophy to Praxis”.
Sub Themes of the summit were:
- Buddha Dhamma Pilgrimage, Living Heritage and Buddha Relicsa resilient foundation to India’s centuries-old cultural links to countries in South, Southeast and East Asia.
- Buddha Dhamma and Peac
- Environmental Crisis, Health and Sustainability Buddha Dhamma
- Preservation of Nalanda Buddhist Tradition
Highlights of the summit
- The summit aims to discuss today’s pressing global issues and look for answers in the Buddha Dhamma that is based on universal values.
- The focus was on modes of disseminating and internalizing universal values and finding ways to work together, to address the burning challenges both within and globally and offer a sustainable model for the future of the world.
The New Delhi Declaration highlights
- Aims: the texts, doctrines and philosophy of Buddha Dhamma are Aimbest guide for inter-faith dialogue, harmony and universal peace
- Peace: all nations, organizations and individuals must work towards creating a world free from conflict, violence and war.
- Environment Sustainability : governments and individuals should Environment Sustainabilitytake action to reduce carbon emissions, protect biodiversity, and preserve natural resources for future generations.
- Wellbeing: encourage individuals to cultivate mindfulness, Wellbeing:compassion, and wisdom, which are essential for promoting happiness and well-being.
- Buddhist Pilgrimage as Living Heritagepreserve the sacred sites of Buddhism and promote their accessibility to people of all backgrounds
- Drawing upon the Teachings of the Buddha Recommendations:for the welfare of all sentient beings, Members of the Sangha, Buddhist leaders, Scholars, followers and institutions can play a significant and effective role in addressing this multi-faceted crisis. The continuation of the annual Global Buddhist Summit is one such important step in this direction.
- Nalanda: one of the greatest seats of Dhamma education for Nalandanearly 700 years between the 5th and 12th centuries AD, precedes the modern system of university education. It was famous for value education and character building. These values need to be inculcated among youths to rejuvenate the society towards “Vasudeva Kuṭumbakam”.
International Buddhist Confederation (IBC)
- IBC is the biggest religious Buddhist confederation in the world.
- The body was formed in New Delhi in 2011 and is headquartered also here.
- The goal of IBC is to create a role for Buddhism on the global stage so as to help to preserve heritage, share knowledge, and promote values.