Tag: Bodh Gaya

IIM Bodhgaya All Set To Get New, Green Campus Building

Souece: sentinelassam.com

Patna: The Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Bodh Gaya in Bihar is all set to get a new look by 2020. The new IIM campus, located in the sacred and historic and city of Bodhgaya, will be spread over 73 acres. The concept for the campus takes inspiration from Buddhist ideologies, evolving into a design which promotes a search for progression in the field of management studies, an official said on Saturday.

Established in 2015, IIM Bodhgaya is the 16th such institute in the country. One of India’s leading architectural firms, C.P. Kukreja Architects have been selected through a national competition to design it. Speaking on the execution of this first-of-its-kind project, the C.P. Kukreja Architects Managing Principal Dikshu C. Kukreja said: “It is our endeavour to create a 21st century world class campus set in a city with deep-rooted historical significance.” The grandness in the campus architecture is translated through different design elements. Entering the campus, one is greeted with the Buddhist ‘toranas’ (ornamental gateways), the abstract demeanours of which are imposing and yet rooted to the ground. (IANS)

‘Peace walk’ monk returns to Thailand

Source: bangkokpost.com

A Thai Buddhist monk recently returned to Thailand after finishing his walk across America to promote world peace.

Phra Sutham Nateetong, 59, completed his walk from Santa Monica, California, to New York on June 30 and returned to Thailand on Wednesday. 

His journey from the West to the East Coast of America took him 121 days to complete and spanned 5,013 kilometres. 

“America gives you a picture of the world. I saw all kinds of people and faced all kinds of weather conditions during the walk,” he said. 

Phra Sutham received support from people all over the United States.

“Native Americans were very supportive of me,” he said. “They appreciated my presence and gave me blessings whenever we met.”

He added that Laotians and Thais in America were also very supportive of his journey. 

Fans took turns accompanying him and sharing the news about his walk with those living in the areas that he was passing through. Some offered him food and money, while others travelled for several hours just to pay their respects, he said.

In some areas, he became the talk of the town because none of the residents had met a Thai person or a Buddhist monk before. 

He also insisted on continuing his entire trek by foot despite pressure from some supporters to pass through certain areas using a vehicle, due to fears of potential attacks. 

“They prioritise peacebuilding so much. American people love peace, not war. Only capitalists and weapons and oil traders want wars. They manipulate politics too. But ordinary Americans love peace and live peacefully,” he said.

Some cities and towns such as Eureka, California, provided protective police motorcades anyway. 

“I think people know that I went to promote peace and nothing else. They understand,” he said.

“Learning to live with those who think differently from us is an art that brings happiness to people and the world,” he added. 

Phra Sutham plans to resume his walk in France after he spends Buddhist Lent in Bodh Gaya, India, where Lord Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment beneath a Bodhi tree.

Acting East: India’s Buddha diplomacy shines once more as Myanmar’s air force chief visits, prays at Bodh Gaya

Source- firstpost.com

In 1940, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi made no pretensions of his masterful understanding of the dynamics between religion and politics when he said in his autobiographical account: “Those who say religion has nothing to do with politics do not know what religion is”.

And India has done well to dish out the Buddhist religious fare when it comes to visiting dignitaries from Buddhist countries. Bodh Gaya is now a near permanent fixture. The top pilgrimage site is in Bihar is where the Buddha gained enlightenment (nirvana) sitting beneath a banyan tree.

Definitely much more than religion was at play when the air force chief of Myanmar visited Bodh Gaya on Thursday. Located nearby is an Officers’ Training Academy (OTA) where many Myanmarese military officers are being trained.

The five-member Myanmarese military delegation was led by Commander-in-Chief (Air) General Maung Maung Kyaw, who is a favourite of the military chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing and is expected to assume more important roles in future. The wives had also accompanied their husbands on the visit to the religious site.

On Wednesday, Maung had met with Indian Army chief General Bipin Rawat and Indian Air Force chief BS Dhanoa, in what has been just the latest of a whole array of parleys between top officials of the two countries in the last couple of years.

Sharing a 1,640-kilometre-long border, India and Myanmar have an interesting relationship. Till a few years ago, Myanmar was reluctant to act on various Indian insurgent organisations that operated out of jungle camps based in Myanmar territory. These areas were looked as safe sanctuaries for the Indian insurgents.

Myanmar’s reluctance was understandable. It did not have the administrative and military reach to operate is such far off and inhospitable areas. Military equipment too was scarce.

Moreover, it was already battling several ethnic insurgencies including the Shans, Kachins and the Arakan rebels. It simply did not want to open another front.

In the course of last few years, things have changed. The weapons and logistics part was taken care of. India supplied transporting hardware including trucks as well as weapons including hundreds of 105 mm guns taken from old Indian army battle tanks, Carl Gustaf rocket launchers and other weapons. A steady supply of information followed.

More frequent meetings of top leadership, security and military officials led to closer coordination. Both militaries are now undertaking a major assault that may prove decisive.

Myanmar is also a space in which India and China are trying to spread their influence. Besides strategic plans of expanding and spreading influence, economics is also the name of the game. China sees in Myanmar a route to the Indian Ocean to bring in its oil supplies through pipelines. For India, pursuing its Act East policy in all sincerity, access through Myanmar to link up with the vibrant dynamics of South East Asia is a must.

This is not the first time that the Bodh Gaya circuit is being put to good use by the Indian military establishment. From 23 to 25 December, 2018, 60 couples from the Myanmar Army were invited to Bodh Gaya.

The Bodh Gaya idea first took shape during Rawat’s four-day visit to Sri Lanka in May 2018 when the proposal to invite Sri Lankan military personnel and their families to the OTA at Gaya was mulled.

A month later on 24 June, 2018, an IAF C-17 aircraft brought 160 Sri Lankan military personnel and their families to Bodh Gaya. The other site visited was of course the OTA. The same aircraft also flew them back to Colombo.

With religion definitely providing the fillip to the politics of the day, the Buddha must really have smiled at Bodh Gaya on Thursday.

Second special visit to Bodh Gaya for Sri Lankan Armed Forces personnel

Source: sundaytimes.lk

The High Commission of India organised the second edition of a special pilgrimage trip to Bodh Gaya from 15 – 18 June 2019 for 160 personnel of Sri Lanka armed forces and their families.

The special pilgrimage was started last year based on discussions held between the two countries towards increasing interaction and bonhomie between armed forces personnel of both countries, a statement from the Indian High Commission said.

This year’s trip has built on and expanded over the last one by not only having an increase in duration from two to four days but also inclusion of a reciprocal visit by 160 Indian Armed Forces personnel and their families to Sri Lanka.

During the trip, the Sri Lanka armed forces personnel and their families would visit the sacred Mahabodhi Temple, 80 feet statue of Buddha, Rajgir and Nalanda museum.

The Indian contingent which has arrived on a special request of Commander of Sri Lanka Army would visit important places in Sri Lanka. This includes a visit to Kandy where they would pay their respects at the Temple of Tooth Relic and to Galle. This is the first time when such large delegation of Indian armed forces with their families has arrived in Sri Lanka to undertake a visit.

An Indian Air Force C-17 Globemaster aircraft was specially deployed for transportation of the Sri Lankan and Indian contingents.

In addition to cultural and historical immersion, large scale interaction between armed forces personnel and their families would be undertaken both in India and Sri Lanka.

This would provide an ideal platform to develop personal and everlasting bonds of friendship between the armed forces of the two countries which are already sharing a very deep and robust professional relationship.   

Shri Taranjit Singh Sandhu, the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka and Lt General Mahesh Senananyake, Commander of Sri Lanka Army were at the airport to receive the Indian delegation visiting Sri Lanka and see off the Sri Lankan delegation for their visit to India.