An international conference on role of ‘religion and culture for peace and reconciliation in the South Asia’ kicked off in Lumbini from Tuesday.
The event aims to develop Lumbini, the birthplace of Gautam Buddha, into an international peace center.
In the two-day event jointly organized by the Nepal Government, Lumbini Development Trust and University of Winchester, UK, 24 experts from over 15 countries including the UK, Canada, Bangladesh, Netherlands, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Nepal will present working papers on the different topics.
It will go through discussions about efforts made by several countries for an end to conflict and possible measures to find solutions to religious and communal conflicts.
The event will see the paper presentations on the subjects of ‘importance of Buddhism for the establishment of peace’, and ‘religious fundamentalism in Sri Lanka after war’ by guests from the UK while Nepal’s Dr Yogi Singha Nath is to appear with his presentation on the theme of “secularism and sustainable religious tolerance” in Nepal.
The conference will conclude on Wednesday, issuing the Lumbini Declaration, the Lumbini Development Trust said.
Speaking at an inaugural session of the event, experts concerned were of the view that assimilation of Buddha’s teachings and their practice in life would send all sorts of conflicts and violence away from the earthly world. They insisted that Buddha’s teachings should be disseminated worldwide. They recalling wars/conflicts that affected various countries in the South Asia including Nepal for long, highlighted the need of further promotion of formal education on the Buddhism.
