NewzVille Desk
Two-day International Conclave was organized by the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture in Namsai, Arunachal Pradesh today. Chowna Mein, the Deputy Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh inaugurated the Conclave.
There were over 300 participants including heads of Sanghas, Bhikkus and Bhikkhunis, eminent members of the society, political representatives, professors, academicians from the Northeast and other regions attending the event. Representatives from Bhutan, Myanmar, Cambodia participated in the seminar sessions, while the Consul General of Bhutan in Guwahati Mr Jigme Thinly Namgyal, addressed the congregation in the inaugural session.
Addressing the gathering Chowna Mein said “our culture is deeply rooted in socio-religious festivals, we recently concluded the Songpa Water Festival, a Buddhist festival celebrated by the Khamti community in Arunachal Pradesh, specifically in Namsai and other areas like Changlang and Itanagar, where visitors from overseas were invited to participate. It was a grand success.
He added that there were several important ancient pilgrimage sites associated with Buddhism in the state too. In fact, his tribe the Tai Khamtis were the first, according to him, to wage the first war of independence against the British in 1839. He mentioned that “We defeated the British in the Anglo- Khamti war, and as a result of this subsequently, the British burnt down our villages and scattered our tribe in several areas of North East.”
Mesmerizing the history Mein said,”they have preserved the Pali language through their Khamti script. In fact, there are just two ancient scripts in the State: theirs (the Lic Tai) and the Bhoti. Even the Ramayan and Mahabharat are written in the Khamti script (Lic Tai).”
The Deputy Chief Minister also explained the enormous “good work” the Mahabodhi Society was undertaking in the region and he was hoping the region would get a skill development centre for empowerment of the youth of the region.
Zingnu Namchoom, MLA Namsai, Shartse Khensur Jangchup Choeden Rinpoche, Secretary General of IBC, Abhijit Halder, Director General of IBC were also present on the occasion.
Special prayers and chanting will be held tomorrow at the Golden Pagoda for the victims of the recent earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand. This will be followed by a session on Vipassana.
