About the Conference

Simhastha, (Kumbha Mela held in Ujjain) world's largest religious congregation will be held in 2016. As a precursor to it, a series of four conferences will be held to understand better the essence of Simhastha and religion in regard to human beings and their society. The conference, which is second in the series, aims to focus on the harmony of all religions and the usefulness of religion for individual, social and cosmic well being. Its central premise is to bring about solidarity, peace, prosperity and welfare in the world through the agency of religion.

Among the multiple and variegated manifestations of human consciousness, the place and role of religion has been vital and significant having an unmitigated influence on human modes of thinking and ways of living. It seeks redemption from suffering, receiving of solace and succor and realization of bliss and beatitude. Ideally speaking, religion should be a means of fullest efflorescence of our potentialities and capabilities in the service of humanity in particular and of entire cosmos in general.

The ostensive variations among religions arise because different individuals and groups attempt to understand the fundamental religious truths in their own ways and adhere to them in different forms and modes. The human mind leads and shapes the worldly life. Human being is the most evolved species in the comic process and has acquired the capacity to preserve or harm nature. Since we have caused the evils and consequent undesirable suffering, we carry a universal responsibility no to create ecological imbalance but to rectify whatever imbalance we have made because of our folly. Nature has its intrinsic value as well as instrumental worth.

There is organic interdependence, cooperative partnership and supportive mutualism in community living. There is reciprocity between living beings and inanimate things. So the guiding principles of communitarian life are coexistence (sahavasa), cooperation (sahakara) and co-sharing (sahanhoga). This type of understanding leads to mutual complementarities, mutual trust, and above all to non-violence (ahimsa) which is the highest truth and virtue. This conference would fulfill the need to review and rethink the required mode of philosophizing on religious experiences.