How the Nalanda Dialogue Mission started and evolved.
Looking forward to the best possible modes of modern engagement with Indian knowledge Tradition.
More than two decades back or so a small forum was set up in Kolkata, West Bengal with an aim to explore the present state of affairs of different traditional knowledge pursuits, and to figure out the relevant areas where traditional knowledge can possibly meet some specific demands of modern paradigms. What motivated the formation of this forum was primarily a recognition of failure, following a chain of interviews by D. Gangopadhyay (during 1994-2001) with the existing traditional scholars around Kolkata, to establish meaningful Dialogue when encountered with questions having root in modern paradigm of understandings.
"To one trained in modern paradigm of what use is Traditional Knowledge, if its points of contact with the modern paradigm seems to be so ill-defined!" was the irresistible impression. This situation, however, legitimizes the converse to be equally true why should a traditional scholar listen patiently to any so-called modern enquiry, apparently so far away from his/her own worldview! These interviews, during the turning of the last century thus served as instrumental to initiate attempts to look for better schemes for Tradition-Modernity Dialogue in a bigger scale involving traditional scholars as well as scientists from around the country.
The spirit of this Dialogue mission derives from the famous vada parampara (Dialogue Tradition) in ancient Nalanda Mahavihara, as a consequence of which much of the Indian theoretical traditions were developed up till 12th century. Commemorating this vada parampara, the mission envisaged a doctrinal engagement in a new context with modern science as the new pratipaksha (opponent) of the Buddhists in the vAda as it was Hindu Nyaya (logic) millennia back up until the 12th century. Founded in 2005, the mission has functioned mainly by holding a series of interactive Dialogues all over the country, where scientists have presented their views and philosophers have acted as commentators on the presentations. Navanalanda Mahavihara a deemed university under the ministry of culture, extended chief patronage for this Dialogue mission. Navanalanda Mahavihara was founded by late venerable vikkhu Jagadish Kashyapji in 1951 to reincarnate the spirit of ancient Nalanda.
So far 15 Dialogues had been conducted in Nalanda (2005-2021) within the institutional framework of hostage of the Dpt. of Philosophy, Nava Nalanda Mahavihara, Nalanda.
State of the Art Today
More than a decade passed after the inaugural Meeting on Sunyata in Nalanda (December 2005). It is time now to take stock of our last 17 years of attempts to initiate meaningful Dialogue. As mentioned, all those meetings were basically intended to make sense of the possibility to extending the traditional picture of Reality in its different variants compared to the 'modern' framework of understanding eventually developing as outgrowth of scientific revolution. This is admittedly a journey through the uncertain border of Tradition and Modernity as well as a self ethnography of knowledge.
Unfortunately, it was gradually realized after a few Dialogue sessions in Nälanda, that Indian philosopher and scientists don't have yet a common linguistic framework to communicate meaningfully! We were actually talking past each other on many issues. There is significant difference in what we might say ontological attitude between Indian and Western tradition which reflects itself in the conceptual framework and its evolution as a whole.
Scope of Dialogue between Science and Indian Philosophy revisited.
Debajyoti Gangopadhyay.
1: Colonial beginning of Dialogue
Along with the process of restoration and revival of traditional knowledge during the last 200 years or so, a few questions took shape.
These questions, put together, can be summarized as-what are the best possible modes of modern engagement with the traditional knowledge?
In fact any form of Dialogue between modern science and Indian philosophy today is motivated by a presupposition that, Indian philosophical store can be still engaged or extended to initiate some new social as well as doctrinal dynamics in today's India beyond its most often played colonially prescribed role.
Before getting into further details about this possibility, let us have a brief retrospective of the way the different variants of colonial scripts were drafted mainly during the last 200 years or so.
1.1: Colonial scripts of renewed attitudes towards Indian Past.
One of the most important points to note that Philosophy in pre-colonial India was far from something like an academic discipline as we understand it today, this was very much a part of socially legitimated agenda, and the philosophers (mainly the Brahmin Pundits, including the priest class) had a well defined and economically secured role to play within the system of social hierarchy in different ways.
But colonial rule following eventually the decisive battle of Plassy brought a definite End to this socio-economic structure along with an end also to the typical style of thought as well as knowledge dynamics nurtured with that very framework. Reception of West during the 19th Century Bengal led eventually to a framework of understanding committed, in one way or another, to binaries like Traditional-modern, rational-mystic, secular-religious, and colonial-National and like. This kind of strictly Two-valued (mental) framework left hardly any scope to admit something in-between these two categories. This binary framework of understanding has been proved to have a far reaching effect in our subsequent history. Let us have a critical note of the global origins of these binaries.
Art (288)
Biography (238)
Buddha (1969)
Children (97)
Deities (48)
Healing (35)
Hinduism (56)
History (547)
Language & Literature (466)
Mahayana (414)
Mythology (91)
Philosophy (459)
Sacred Sites (115)
Tantric Buddhism (90)
Send as free online greeting card
Email a Friend
Visual Search
Manage Wishlist