(TibetanReview.net, Dec22’20) – Prime Minister Narendra Modi has proposed Dec 21 that he would help set up a library in India dedicated to traditional Buddhist literature and scriptures and which would be a platform for research and dialogue, reported the PTI news service Dec 21.

Addressing the 6th Indo-Japan Samwad Conference via video conferencing, Modi has lauded the forum for doing great work to promote the ideas and ideals of Lord Buddha, especially among the youth. “Today, I would like to propose the creation of a library of all such traditional Buddhist literature and scriptures. We will be happy to create such a facility in India and will provide appropriate resources for it,” he was quoted as saying.

He has said the library will collect digital copies of all such Buddhist literature from different countries; that it will aim to translate them, and make them freely available for all monks and scholars of Buddhism.

The proposed library will not only be a depository of literature but it will also be a platform for research and dialogue – a true ‘SAMWAD’ (conversation or dialogue) between human beings, between societies, and between man and nature, Modi has said.

“Its research mandate will also include examining how Buddha’s message can guide our modern world against contemporary challenges,” he has said, citing challenges like poverty, racism, extremism, gender discrimination, climate change among others.

Modi has noted that the light of Buddha’s message had spread out from India to many parts of the world. “However, this light did not remain static. In each new place it reached, Buddhist thought continued to evolve further over the centuries. Because of this, great treasures of Buddhist literature and philosophy can be found in many different monasteries today, across many different countries and languages.”

He has called this body of writing a treasure of humankind as a whole.

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