Vedic Heritage for Global Harmony and Peach in Modern Context

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The collection of scholarly articles presented in the volume explores various aspects of Vedic traditions, especially relating to global harmony and peace, in the present-day context. The Proceedings of the Sixth World Association for Vedic Studies (WAVES) Conference emphasise Vedic traditions as not confined to the Indian subcontinent today but as having spread to different parts of the globe. They deal with the essence of Vedanta, the contribution of the epic literature, history relating to the Rgvedic Aryans, Vedic sciences, and socio-economic and political aspects of Vedic life. Offering fresh ideas, they highlight the significance of the Vedic system for ensuring global peace and harmony, and satisfaction in the present. They study the concept of harmony and peace, and emphasise on the co-existence in the Upanisads, the Hindu concept of universalism, the importance of the Ayurveda and the Bhagavad-Gita in maintaining mental health, and on the global unity and syncretism in the education provided in ancient India. Attempts are made to cull out management ideas from the Mahabharata, and throw light on the relevance of the Arthasastra in modern-day geo-politics and the special relevance of Sandtana Dharma in the modern world. In the process, the scholars reveal the fictional aspects that have been linked to the Indian traditions and the related social evils. The volume will interest a range of scholars of Indology and general readers as it explores the ancient Indian tradition, especially the Vedic tradition, in a comprehensive manner.

Dr Surendra Nath Dwivedi, PhD, a professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, has become the first Indo- American professor to receive the Louisiana Engineering Society’s Engineering Faculty Professionalism Award. He has done much research in Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma, organized many technical workshops and seminars, and has consulted major corporations such as Ford Motor Co., IOMEGA, GM, GE and IBM. Dr Dwivedi has founded the International Society for Agile Manufacturing Systems and Chief Editor of IJAMS (International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Systems). He has also served as the President of the World Association for Vedic Studies (WAVES). In addition, he engages in many public services such as The Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation, a program in India providing education to children across the country. Prof. Bal Ram Singh is the Director of Center for Indic Studies at University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, where he teaches a course on Science of Kriyayoga. Dr Singh as a Professor of Biophysical Chemistry and Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar at UMass Dartmouth, and the Director of Botulinum Research Center, has been conducting research for 20 years at UMass Dartmouth on the molecular mode of action of botulinum and tetanus neurotoxins, and lately also on yoga, mind and consciousness. Dr Singh has published about 175 research articles, has edited three books, including India’s Intellectual Traditions and Contributions to the World (DKPW, 2010) and Origin of Indian Civilization (DKPW, 2010), and has obtained three patents. He has published over three dozen scholarly articles on issues related to Indian tradition, culture, and philosophy. He is Associate Editor of the International Journal of Indian Culture and Business Management. Dr Singh is President of BBTech, Inc., Dartmouth, MA, and Managing Director of BBTech Herbal in India. He is also Manager of a girl’s school, Kuruom Vidyalaya, which he has established in his native village in India.

Tus procedings is a collection of scholarly articles presented at the sixth biennial WAVES (World Association of Vedic Studies) Conference on 8-10 July 2006 in Houston, TX. Nearly 150 scholars and professors of philosophy, religion, history, languages, science, engineering and medical sciences from Asia, Europe and the Americas explored the various aspects of Vedic traditions, especially relating to global harmony and peace. The conference attracted 1000 attendees and was hailed a grand success. WAVES is an organization of academics, and of those interested in academics, in all different areas of Indian/ Vedic studies in past, present and future. It is a non-religious society with no ideology and is open for membership, participation by all persons irrespective of their colour, creed, ethnicity, and country of origin or any other kind of persuasion. Vedic traditions have continued without interruption for many millennia and remain a living and formative source of Hindu culture and tradition. Today Vedic traditions are not confined ‘o Indian subcontinent but have spread virtually to all parts of the globe, through persons of Indian origin and through scholars and admirers of these traditions. Swami Vidyadhishananda Giri, was the inaugural speaker as well as a keynote speaker. Keynote speaker Dr 5S. Kalyanaraman spoke on the ancient Saraswati civilization, and how to create a system to link the rivers in modern India. Dr John Antel, Dean and Professor of Economics at the University of Houston welcomed the Conference participants. Other prominent speakers were Rajiv Malhotra, Yvette Rosser, and David Frawley. The range of subjects covered included Yoga, Vedanta, Ayurveda, mathematical sciences, micro- technologies, consciousness studies, neuroscience studies, temples, architecture, archaeology, history, scripture, culture, music, visual arts and more. Over 100 papers examined by the Conference Editorial Committee (Surendra N. Dwivedi, Subhash C. Gupta, 5. Kalyanaraman, Satish Misra, Pramod Pathak, Mark Richard, B.V.K. Sastry, and Bal Ram Singh) were presented at the Conference, 51 of which were submitted for publication. WAVES Conference traditionally evokes response beyond the theme, and includes presentations in disciplines generally relevant to the theme of the Conference. This Proceedings in that spirit lists articles in Global Peace and Harmony, Vedanta, Health and Ayurveda, Dialogue, Education, Epics, History, Science, Dharma, Yoga and Vrata, Socio-Economic and political areas. Many of these articles reflect broader paths toward the Vedas and their wisdom, along with other sacred texts. In several of these articles scholars have explored different paths following the secular and _ spiritual development of India and humanity as a whole. While peace and harmony has been the need of world for decades now, there have been attempts with world bodies and bilateral and multilateral detente. However, Vedas and Vedanta address the peace and harmony with inner self, and can promote peace and harmony at mass scale without resorting to diplomatic plots or political policies. Given the dawn of global integration of information which has led to so much interest in Indian traditions, availability of such scholarship compiled in this book will facilitate access to this knowledge worldwide. WAVES is grateful to the Conference Organizing Committee consisting of Surendra Dwivedi, Surendra Nath Pandey, Dhirendra Shah, and Bal Ram Singh. WAVES is also grateful to the Local Organizing Committee led by Subhash Gupta, with Ramesh Bhutada, Jugal Malani, and Kusum Vyas as its members. The Committee was strongly supported by Padmakant Khambhati, Arun Prakash, and Gitesh Desai. The wife of Surendra Dwivedi, Mrs. Shashi Dwivedi provided strong support to her husband, especially when he was not feeling with his health. WAVES 2006 Conference Magazine was produced with the help of Subhash Gupta, Satish Misra, B.V.K. Sastry, Pramod Pathak, Mark Richard, and Shyam N. Shukla. Student assistants from University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Krishna Chaitanya Bhavaraju and Pramod Kumar Bejugam provided support in the logistics of the Conference.We thank Bipin Pandya, Dinesh Deoras, Jay Patel, Mark Richard (Vivek), Uma Deoras for their diligence and support work for the conduct of the Conference. WAVES is also grateful to Mrs. Usha Pathak who organized the cultural programme for the evening. Financial assistance from Subhash and Mrs Sarojini Gupta, Ramesh and Mrs Kiran Bhutada, Jugal and Mrs Raj Malani, T.R.N. Rao, Sashi Kejriwal, Donald Lyons, Subroto and Mrs Jyothi Gangopadhyay, Bhishma Agnihotri, Jagdish Gupta, Rajiv Malhotra of Infinity Foundation, and many more. is gratefully acknowledged. Thanks also goes to organizations such as BAPS Swaminarayan Temple, Arya Samaj, Hindu Students Council, Barsana Dham (Austin), Sri Meenakshi Temple, Hindus of Greater Houston, Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh, and Sewa International who supported the WAVES conference. We are also indebted to the publisher, DKPW, particularly Shri Susheel Mittal, for their excellent effort in collecting, copyediting, and pursuing editors for completing this arduous task of putting together this Proceedings together. Finally, we thank the Editors, Surendra N. Dwivedi and Bal Ram Singh, who took this painstaking task of going through articles, communicating with authors, and organizing the articles for the proceedings.

FREQUENTLY, when we think of WAVES, we consider only the superficial references to the group so named in the acronym: The World Association for Vedic Studies. We think of group members, group activities, and group accomplishments much like the proceedings offered here. It is also important to remember the very seeds of our Vedic Studies and grant them the reverence they so richly deserve. Such honour, after all, has been deemed worthy by civilizations around the world. WAVES is a multidisciplinary academic society with members from different religions, often of different scholarly views and varied interests. As scholars of Vedic and Hindu studies, we have a responsibility to explore how our beliefs and practices can benefit the greater good. India’s contributions go all the way back to the sacred texts of the Vedas, discovered more than 6,000 years ago. It all began in the Indus-Sarasvati Valley, the birthplace of the Vedas, wherein more than 2,500 archaeological sites have been discovered in an area more than double the size of ancient Egypt or Mesopotamia. From there, influence has extended to include contributions in areas that are richly diverse. One out of six persons is now a Hindu, and the expansion of Indian culture has been a peaceful movement. As Hu Shih said as the former Chinese ambassador to the USA: India conquered and dominated China culturally for 20 centuries without ever having to send a single soldier across her border. Perhaps this peace is based on the notion that Indians believe in the divinity of all persons. In a time when every corner of the globe is impacted by conflict and violence, there has never been a greater necessity for reflection on ways of achieving peace and harmony. The greatest impediment to peace is ignorance or a lack of willingness to compromise and understand one another. A disturbing statistic is that while the actual number of violent conflicts has seen a decline during the past decade, the number of people killed as a result has seen a sharp increase. Genocides in places such as Rwanda and Sudan and protracted conflicts in numerous other countries continue to claim the lives of millions of innocent civilians. Many of these conflicts have risen from differences in religion, race, political opinion, or other cultural beliefs. Due to the violence that humans have seen, many are looking for a way to transform their life for the better. As a result, people are turning to India and the Vedic wisdom for guidance. They find solutions to the problems they are seeking to solve through ideas that develop the body, mind, and spirit. In return, their quality of life begins to become enhanced. Since the very beginning of the Vedas, their knowledge has been helpful in the maturity of things such as peace and harmony. This knowledge consists of compassion, tolerance, and peace towards all. One of the major beliefs is that all things can be achieved through peace. Whether it is economics, foreign policies, science, or art, peace is a common factor. As the centuries pass, Vedic culture has remained ageless and everlasting. One thing most can agree on is the importance of the culture that will continue to thrive regardless of the time that has passed. Vedic knowledge is something that is richly profound. The core beliefs will continue to be integrated with modern tools of the day, and they will continue to flourish. Indians find their balance in the essence of their spirituality, which illustrates their respect for the blending of right body/right mind. There is another fundamental harmony of natures called dharma, which is the eternal way of life. The Vedic wisdom has a foundation that has its roots in the principle of dharma. The principle of Vedic Dharma has influenced almost every religion that is found on the face of the earth in some way. It can be applied to anybody anvwhere in the world. Even though the Vedas are 6,000 years old, they are still precious to India and the world. They are the blueprint for the essential way of life that holds peace at its core. It is our responsibility to share our experience and knowledge with our fellow humans. As the meaning and knowledge of the Vedas spread, humanity inches closer to true peace and narmony that everyone is searching to find.