Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he offers prayers before Buddha statue at Bodh Gaya Saturday Sep 05,2015

 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday Sep 05,2015 visited Bihar again. 

However, this time, he chose to talk about peace, harmony and universal brotherhood and not politics. 

Addressing monks and delegates at the concluding session of an international Buddhist conference, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that his government would like to develop Bodh Gaya not only as a spiritual capital but also as the civilisational bond between India and the Buddhist world. 

“I recognise how Buddhists all over the world revere Bodh Gaya as a place of pilgrimage,” he said. 

“The government of India will like to provide all possible support that its Buddhist cousin nations need for the satisfaction of their spiritual needs from this holiest of holy places.” 

Describing Buddha as the crown jewel of the Indian nation which accepts all ways of worship of all religions, Modi said that this quality of Hinduism in India was a product of many great spiritual masters such as Buddha who was the chief among them. 

“This is what sustains the secular character of India,” he added. 

Modi said that the enlightenment which Buddha attained in Bodh Gaya also lit the light of enlightened in Hinduism. 

“As the first servant of this ancient nation I revere Buddha as a reformer of not only Hinduism but also the world, who has given all of us a new world view and vision which is critical for the survival of all of us and the entire world,” he said. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said both Gautama Buddha and Lord Krishna taught the world so much, as Krishna gave his message before the start of the great war in Mahabharata and Buddha repeatedly emphasised on rising above warfare