Buddhism
Buddhism and India’s Soft Power Diplomacy

India has always been aware of the need to avoid using military might as the cornerstone of its foreign policy since gaining independence. The values of peaceful coexistence have governed India since Jawaharlal Nehru's Panchsheel principles. Though I....

China’s Systemic Mistreatment of its Religious Minorities

The Middle Kingdom and Its War against Religion: A Historical Perspective
When speaking to military students at Nankai University in 2013, Chinese professor Ai Yuejin said the following: “Do you know what the foundation for our nati....

Perceiving Silk Road as a Pilgrimage Route to India

If someone has to physically locate the Silk Road, then they would usually find a region from the main landmass of China to the ancient Roman Empire. The route in between, also touches the northern region of the Indian subcontinent as well as the Cen....

Kashi Ram Sharma, ‘The Third Birth of Confucius: Reconstructing the Ancient Chinese Philosophy in the Post-Mao China’. New Delhi, Manohar, 2022. 385pp. Rs. 1,995.00

Kashi Ram Sharma, ‘The Third Birth of Confucius: Reconstructing the Ancient Chinese Philosophy in the Post-Mao China’. New Delhi, Manohar, 2022. 385pp. Rs. 1,995.00Confucius has made a remarkable comeback in China. As the author emphasizes, “C....

Bamiyan Buddhas and Afghanistan’s Cultural Heritage

In Afghanistan, Buddhist cave temples are concentrated in three regions: Jalalabad (180 caves), Haibak (200 caves) and Bamiyan (1000 caves).[1] The Bamiyan Buddhas are part of a Buddhist site in Bamiya....

Routes of Exchange, Roots of Connectivity-The Archaeology of Ancient India’s Trade Networks by Dr. Marike van Aerde

On 19th January 2022 Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) hosted Dr. Marike van Aerde for a talk on ancient trade connectivity and the integral role played by the Indian Subcontinent in these exchanges. The Director, Dr. Arvind Gupta’s openin....

China Intensifies Campaign to Assimilate Tibetans into Mainstream Han Culture

Tibet appears poised to initiate a vigorous campaign aimed at assimilating the Tibetan ethnic minority into the Han national mainstream. An important speech by Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) Party Secretary Wu Yingjie, at a meeting of the District Par....

Tibetan Buddhism: A Source and Strength of India’s Soft Power Diplomacy

The relations between Tibet, India and China are best illustrated in the words of Claude Arpi, a noted historian and journalist who has written a series of important books on Tibet, India and China, including, The Fate of Tibet: When the Big Insec....

Siberia and India: Historical Cultural Affinities

India and Eurasia have had close social and cultural linkages, as Buddhism spread from India to Central Asia, Mongolia, Buryatia, Tuva and far wide. Buddhism provides a direct link between India and the peoples of Siberia (Buryatia, Chita, Irkutsk, ....

Re-conceptualizing Religious History: Archaeological Findings from Itkhori, a Composite Sacred Space

VIF organized a talk by Professor Rupendra Kumar Chattopadhyay (Vivekananda Chair Professor of Social Science, University of Calcutta) under the VIF Lecture Series ‘Understanding Indian History & Civilization’. The talk was titled Reconceptual....

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